GAMBIER, Ohio – The Kenyon College men's lacrosse team weathered a back-and-forth affair before gaining control and grinding out a 10-7 nonconference victory Saturday afternoon at Benson Bowl.
The Owls wasted little time igniting the home crowd. Senior
David Chintala struck first just seconds into the contest after Kenyon won the opening faceoff, burying the game's first goal to give the Owls an early spark. They quickly doubled the lead when junior
Tanner Lewis rifled a shot past Grove City goalkeeper Tyler Gladstone at the 12:58 mark, capping a flurry of early chances as the Owls peppered the Wolverines' defense.
The good guys kept their foot on the gas midway through the first quarter. In one of the afternoon's more unusual moments, senior goalkeeper
Adam Hall joined the scoring column, finding the back of the net at 10:09 to extend the lead to 3-0. Grove City managed to claw back late in the period, however, as Rigdon Greene finished a feed from Davis Schneider before Stewart McClain added another goal in the closing seconds, trimming the Owls' advantage to 3-2 by the end of the opening quarter.
Momentum continued to swing early in the second frame. Sawyer Strong leveled the score at 3-3 just 90 seconds into the period before McClain struck again moments later to give the Wolverines their first lead of the day at 4-3. Kenyon's defense stiffened soon after, forcing a string of turnovers and holding Grove City scoreless for the remainder of the quarter, but the visitors carried their one-goal edge into halftime.
Coming out of the break, Kenyon began to claw its way back into the contest. Grove City pushed its lead to 5-3 early in the third quarter, but the Owls answered immediately when senior
Will Jordan scooped up the ensuing faceoff and charged downfield to bury a goal that cut the deficit to one.
With just over seven minutes left in the third quarter, senior
Mike Kapral knotted the score at 5-5 after finishing a slick setup from Lewis. Minutes later, the Owls capitalized on a man-up opportunity when Chintala blasted home a goal off an assist from sophomore
Alex Haag to give Kenyon a 6-5 edge. Grove City managed to equalize late in the quarter on Greene's second goal of the afternoon, but KC answered in dramatic fashion with just 13 seconds remaining as Kapral buried a clutch strike off a Chintala feed to send the Owls into the final quarter ahead 7-6.
The Owls extended their lead midway through the period when
Gavin Gumucio converted a man-up opportunity, finishing a pass from Lewis to make it 8-6. Grove City trimmed the margin to one shortly after on McClain's third goal of the day, but Kenyon responded once again behind its senior leader. Chintala struck at the 7:24 mark, finishing an assist from
Ben Devitis to restore a two-goal cushion.
Sophomore
Alex Haag provided the final dagger with 4:36 remaining, ripping a shot into the cage to give the Owls a 10-7 advantage. From there, Kenyon's defense locked down, forcing key turnovers and clearing possession to drain the remaining time off the clock.
Chintala once again paced the Kenyon offense with a four-point outing, recording his sixth hat trick of the season with three goals and one assist while also scooping five ground balls and causing a turnover. The senior now sits at 23 goals and nine assists through eight games this season. Kapral added two goals and a ground ball, while Lewis contributed three points on a goal and two assists. Haag chipped in a goal and an assist, while Gumucio and Jordan each scored once. Devitis also contributed with an assist.
Defensively, the Owls forced 10 caused turnovers compared to Grove City's six, helping tilt momentum during key stretches of the contest. Hall anchored the defense with seven saves on the afternoon while facing 14 shots on target, conceding seven goals and bringing his season save percentage to .575.
Up next, the Owls will be back at Benson Bowl on Saturday, March 21, hosting Elmhurst University in their final nonconference game of the season. First faceoff is scheduled for 12 p.m.
