PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville University men's lacrosse regular season came to a close on Saturday afternoon as the Valiants were bested by Maritime, 23-9. With the loss, the team's final record for the 2024 season was brought to 8-9 overall, finishing 4-3 in Skyline Conference play to secure their first postseason berth since 2018.
Prior to Saturday's contest, the Valiants honored the senior class for their contributions to the program both on and off the field. Sean Larkin (White Plains, N.Y./White Plains) and Michael Chris (North Caldwell, N.J./Don Bosco Prep) were both recognized with a pre-game ceremony as they get set for graduation in exactly two weeks.
Maritime got on the board first with a goal from Ryan Brice, as the Valiants responded with a pair of goals from Larkin in celebratory fashion, followed by Jake Strobel (White Plains, N.Y./White Plains) scoring one of his own to take a 3-1 lead. The Privateers found their momentum coming back with four straight goals before Tyler Berch (Syosset, N.Y./Syosset) and Nick Corace (Sayville, N.Y./Sayville) each scored for the Valiants to tie it up, 5-5. With 2:22 remaining, Maritime took back a one-point lead as Nick Cornelia (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst) scored to even it out again at 6-6. The quarter would close out with a goal from the Privateers to take a 7-6 lead.
To start the second quarter, Maritime scored four straight goals before Larkin found the back of the net for his third goal of the day with the Valiants down, 11-7. Another pair connected for the Privateers starting to pull away, capitalizing on their six-point lead. Cornelia then scored in a man up opportunity to bring it back within five. With three seconds remaining in the half, Maritime's Parker Reilly scored followed by Manhattanville's Matt Bundy (Cinnaminson, N.J./Cinnaminson) at the buzzer for a 14-9 score.
The second half of the contest brought offensive dominance from the Privateers scoring eight straight goals through the final 30 minutes, holding the Valiants scoreless with only 12 shots on goal.
In net, Cody Johnston (Syosset, N.Y./Syosset) got his second start of the season, recording a season-high 16 saves through 51:44 minutes of play. Mike Hopkins (Bedford, N.Y./Fox Lane) then took over for the final 8:16 making three saves.
Defensively, Jarod Wilmoth (Harlem, N.Y./Cardinal Hayes) led the team with five ground balls, as Francisco Rosas (Stratford, Conn./Stratford), Chris Perrone (Merrick, N.Y./Calhoun), and Matthew Newman (Yonkers, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) each caused a pair of turnovers. In the faceoff circle, Nick Padovani (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) and Aaron Goldstein (Walden, N.Y./Valley Central) each tallied six draws.
The final conference standings are pending tiebreaker procedures as Farmingdale State, Maritime, and Merchant Marine finish the regular season 6-1 overall. The No. 4 Valiants will now head into postseason play, taking on the official No. 1 seed with championship hosting privileges.
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