PURCHASE, N.Y. – Senior Jack Polak (Longmeadow, Mass./Longmeadow) and sophomore Andrew Murray (Yonkers, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) each scored four goals, leading Manhattanville men's lacrosse to a 13-7 victory over Alfred State. Freshman Tyler Bentrewicz (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville) also chipped in offensively, scoring the first hat trick of his college career.
 
The Valiants stumbled out of the gates slightly, as the Pioneers netted the first three goals of the competition. Trailing 3-0 with just over five minutes remaining in the first quarter, Bentrewicz picked up his first goal of the game, capitalizing quickly on a turnover.
 
Bentrewicz went on the score with just under 20 seconds remaining in the quarter on a Valiants counterattack. Bentrewicz also drew a late hit penalty, giving the Valiants a man-up opportunity that the team took into the second quarter.
 
Just 41 seconds in, Murray scored his first of four goals on the day, tying the game at 3-3. Polak would give the Valiants their first lead of the game, scoring at the 12:26 mark. Immediately off the ensuing faceoff, sophomore Lucas Carlin (Matamoras, Pa./Delaware Valley) pushed the ball up field, fed the ball to sophomore Connor Normandin (Stratford, Conn./Bunnell) who then set up Polak's second goal in eleven seconds.
 
Murray scored two more goals in the second quarter, completing his hat trick and sending the Valiants into halftime with a 7-3 lead. Polak struck again, twice, to start the second half and with 10:15 left in the third quarter, the team held a 9-3 lead.
 
Alfred State managed to make things interesting, scoring three straight goals over a five-minute span in the third quarter. The Valiants held on to a 9-6 lead until the final 2:48 of the third quarter where the managed to score three goals, pushing the lead to 12-6.
 
Sophomore Zach Hoffman (Loudonville, N.Y./LaSalle Institute) didn't need anywhere near that kind of insurance as the keeper was solid on the afternoon, allowing only six goals while making some very difficult saves against the Pioneers top shooters.
 
The victory moves the Valiants to 4-5 and has the team feeling confident as they begin their push for the playoffs. Five games remain on the Valiants schedule; all five are Freedom Conference games. The team will faceoff against the first place Eastern Eagles on Saturday afternoon.