University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
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Fairfield
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Spiders Open Season With 11-10 Road Win Over Fairfield
02/15/2016 | Men's Lacrosse
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Even freezing temperatures couldn't cool off junior Mitch Goldberg of the University of Richmond men's lacrosse team.
Goldberg's five-goal day led the Spiders to a season-opening win over Fairfield, a team that has been ranked in the top-20 in each of the past four seasons. Goldberg was one of five different Richmond players to find the back of the net en route to the hard-fought 11-10 victory.
"Being able to start the year with a win is always nice, being able to start with a road win against a well-coached and very talented team like Fairfield is even nicer," Head Coach Dan Chemotti said. "Both teams made big plays when plays needed to be made and that's a credit to the athletes on the field and hopefully for us a sign of learning from past experiences. We are proud of the effort our players demonstrated on the field, but we realize there is still a lot of improving to do.
The Spiders controlled the game for much of the afternoon, outshooting the Stags by a tally of 43-28 and won the ground ball battle, 28-18. Junior Peter Moran was outstanding in the face-off circle, winning 16 of the 23 draws.
Goldberg finished with five goals and one assist for a six point day. It marks the third time in the past two seasons the Damascus, Md. native has scored five goals in a game, which ties his own school record. He has now scored a point in 24 straight games for Richmond.
"Mitch's performance today was a combination of good unselfish offensive possessions combined with players making plays. Even more impressive than his five goals was the way he led his teammates on the field and on the sideline," Chemotti added.
Freshman Teddy Hatfield and junior Dan Ginestro each found the back of the net on two occasions. Alex Hatem and Cory Palmer added a goal apiece to round out the scoring for the Spiders.
“I thought our offense really clicked today. We saw what their defense was giving us and had to adjust throughout the game. I felt that everyone was in the right spot offensively, which opened up space me and my teammates to make some plays,” Goldberg said.
The Stags jumped out to an early 2-1 lead just 10 minutes into the contest, but the Spiders responded quickly. Goldberg's first goal came with 4:12 to play in the first to tie things up at 2-2. Palmer found the back of the net with less than 20 seconds remaining in the quarter to give Richmond it's first lead of the day, 3-2.
Goldberg and Palmer's goal sparked a five unanswered for Richmond who quickly pushed its lead to 6-2 with three minutes left in the first half. Fairfield added a goal in the final minute as the Spiders took a 6-3 advantage into halftime.
The Stags scored on three different occasions in the third quarter, but every time the Spiders responded with a goal of their own to take a 9-6 lead into the final 15 minutes.
Fairfield scored three goals in the first eight minutes of the fourth quarter to get within one, but Goldberg's fifth goal of the day with 6:08 to play would prove to be the winner as the Spider defense held strong in the final minutes to preserve the season-opening win.
The Spiders return to action next Saturday when they travel to UMBC. Game time against the Retrievers is set for 12 p.m.
