With their season on the line, Marist men’s lacrosse (8-6, 5-4 MAAC) defeated Virginia Military Institute (7-8, 3-6 MAAC) 14-10 to clinch a spot in the MAAC Tournament. The Red Foxes jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the first quarter and never looked back, leading to their fourth straight win.
Marist senior attackman and team captain Joshua Balcarcel led his team by netting four goals and adding two assists. Freshman midfielder Sean Mullan followed Balcarcel, tallying a hat trick for the second straight game.
VMI Sophomore goaltender Adam Norris notched 17 saves on 31 shots on goal while sophomore midfielder Austin English carried the Cadets offense with four goals and one assist.
Marist needed to come out of the gate fast in their last regular season game and sophomore attackmen Peter Murray netted back-to-back goals in the opening minutes.
On the ensuing possession, junior defender Aidan McCaffrey would get in on the action and score his first collegiate goal.
The Red Foxes finished three of their first five shots on goal in the first quarter. VMI finally got on the board with a goal from freshman midfielder Ty Yonas halfway through the first quarter.
Marist responded quickly as Balcarcel added two and junior faceoff specialist Dylan Bedell tallied one to give the Red Foxes a 6-1 lead after the first period.
To start the second quarter, the Cadets got on the board first with goals from English and senior midfielder AJ Stamos. However, Mullan and Balcarcel scored once more, giving Marist an 8-3 lead with under seven minutes left in the first half.
VMI would stop the drought with another goal from English but with under a minute left in the half, freshman midfielder Collin Patrick netted his first of the day, giving Marist a controlling five-goal lead heading into halftime.
The game slowed to begin the second half, and the first goal of the third quarter came at the 8:12 mark when junior attackmen Luke Rusterruci scored. English followed that with a score to cut Marist’s lead to 9-6.
The Red Foxes again answered with three quick goals from junior attackman Jake Deacy, freshman midfielder Christian Colantonnio and graduate student short-stick defensive midfielder Keenan DeRaeve to regain distance.
VMI needed to stop the bleeding and they finally netted one with a goal from English, his fourth goal of the game with 4:26 left in the third quarter.
The Red Foxes opened up the fourth quarter with a goal from Balcarcel, his fourth of the game, giving Marist a 13-8 lead. VMI added a goal from junior midfielder Simon Moore, with 10 minutes remaining in the game.
For the Red Foxes, Mullan completed a hat trick to shut the door on the Cadets’ season. Rusterucci added his second of the game with under seven minutes remaining in the game, but VMI could not overcome the deficit.
Bedell held his own against preseason All-MAAC selection sophomore faceoff specialist Jack Rogers, winning 14 out of 28. Marist junior goaltender Noble Smith collected 15 saves in today’s matchup. McCaffrey and DeRaeve added two caused turnovers for the Red Foxes.
For the second year in a row, Marist got hot down the stretch to earn a playoff spot and extend their season. The Red Foxes’ offense has taken another step, scoring 14 and 15 goals in its last two games. They converted on both of their extra-man opportunities today, something they have struggled with all season, ranking seventh in the MAAC in extra-man scoring percentage.
With today’s win, the Marist will wait for other results around the MAAC to see who they face in the playoffs. The opening round is scheduled for Saturday, April 27th, with the opening faceoff and location TBD.
Edited By Marley Pope
Graphic and Photo Credit: Jaylen Rizzo
For more coverage of Marist athletics, follow @cfmarist on Instagram, X and TikTok, and sign up to receive daily alerts here.