Ben O'Connor vs Susquehanna 050323
Emma Mesko
5
Susquehanna SUS 10-8
10
Winner Elizabethtown ETOWN 12-4
Susquehanna SUS
10-8
5
Final
10
Elizabethtown ETOWN
12-4
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Susquehanna SUS 2 1 1 1 5
Elizabethtown ETOWN 4 4 2 0 10

Game Recap: Men's Lacrosse |

O'Connor sets goals record, Langen breaks conference tournament record as Blue Jays advance to Landmark Championship

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. -- Nearly a game-to-game basis where another program or conference record has fallen for the Elizabethtown College men's lacrosse team. In Wednesday night's 10-5 Landmark semifinal win over Susquehanna, Ben O'Connor set a new program single-season goals record while Riley Langen broke one conference tournament game record and tied another for the Blue Jays. Brayden Franey made seven saves to earn win No. 11, a new career-high for the junior as Etown advances to its seventh straight championship game.

While it can be tricky facing a team a second time, especially come playoffs, Elizabethtown (12-4) was still able to manage a quick start to get out in front of the River Hawks. Joey Killpatrick and Ben O'Connor connected for the opening goal as the graduate student buried his shot just 53 seconds into the game, his first of four on the night.

Then, it was Langen finding Colin Kondracki with just over 10 minutes to go in the first, doubling Etown's lead to 2-0. Kondracki had a first-half hat trick for the Blue Jays. The two flipped the script for the next goal as Kondracki fed Langen for his lone tally of the night to make it 3-0.

Nick Remund got Susquehanna (10-8) back within two at 3-1 less than a minute after Langen's goal. Langen would find Kondracki again for the answer. It was the River Hawks that would end the quarter with a goal as Jack Gaillard found Chris Ciccarello to make it 4-2 with 54 seconds left in the opening period.

The Landmark goals leader, Brennan Lorence, opened up the second quarter scoring with his 62nd of the year, though it was be his only goal of the game as the Jays would crack down on Lorence for a second time this season. Etown only allowed Lorence a single game in the regular season meeting between the teams.

Susquehanna's only goal of the second came at 7:18 before Gismondi set off a four-goal spurt from EC over a two and a half minute time frame. Langen dished to Gismondi, who ripped a shot upper right for his first in over two months after his return from injury Wednesday night. 51 seconds later, it was Langen assisting on Kondracki's third of the evening. The assist marked Langen's fifth of the first half, which set the tournament record, formally held by Matt Lynch of Goucher (vs. Catholic 5/2/12) and Luke D'Ambrogi of Catholic (5/5/21 vs. Moravian), who each had four assists in those games.

Colin Cummings scored a man-up for the Jays with 2:37 left and nine seconds later, O'Connor netted his second of the game as the Etown lead blossomed to five, 8-3.

O'Connor's first goal of the second half, coming at 9:52 of the third quarter, was the one that broke the single-season record. The Blue Jays' man-up offense worked the ball around as Killpatrick swung the ball to Langen behind the cage and the senior waited a few seconds as O'Connor set himself up. Two defenders were between O'Connor and the goal, and the team's leading goal scorer used a bounce shot into the left side of the net as goalie Jozef Korpics had trouble tracking it. It was O'Connor's 60th of the season. He'd end up recording both of Etown's third-quarter goals as they held the River Hawks to a single goal in the third and led 10-4 heading into the fourth.

Only one goal in the fourth, which came from Steven Musser a little over halfway through the quarter, more than enough cushion for the Blue Jays as they held on for the 10-5 win to advance to Saturday's championships game. Elizabethtown will host the two-seed, Scranton, at 1 p.m. The Royals defeated third-seeded Catholic, 13-4, to advance to the title game.

Jacob Griffin finished with 12 faceoff wins and eight ground balls for the Jays. Lucas Kohler added four ground balls.
Print Friendly Version