Gettysburg duress

Sea Gulls' defense, goalkeeping make life miserable for Bullets

SU junior attacker Erik Krum shoots and scores on Gettysburg goalie J.T. McCook in the second quarter. Krum finished with three goals. / Milt Savage photo

SALISBURY -- The third-ranked Salisbury University men's lacrosse team aced its first true test of the season, blowing past No. 12 Gettysburg College 8-2 on Saturday at Sea Gull Stadium.

After a tightly contested first quarter that ended 1-1, the Sea Gulls ripped off seven unanswered goals to take control of the game.

"I thought our defense played really well today, and Johnny [Rodriguez] had a great game in goal," SU coach Jim Berkman said. "The game was up and down. It was 30 shots to 31 shots. I thought we shot it a little bit better than they did, had better quality of shots, had a lot of shots from right in tight. But I thought it was a good effort all around by us today."

SU struck first, less than five minutes into the game, when junior Erik Krum collected his first of three goals on the day.

The Bullets (2-2) tied up the game five minutes later when Danno Lynch deposited a feed from Pat Sartory behind Rodriguez. That would be Gettysburg's high-water mark, as SU would take hold of the game shortly into the second quarter.

Junior Tony Mendes, who had scored at least a goal in each of his four appearances in an SU uniform coming into Saturday's game, would give the Gulls a 2-1 lead as he drew a penalty and converted on the man-up opportunity with a shot from close range. Mendes, a transfer from the University of Maryland, recorded his first hat trick as a Sea Gull and added an assist to boot. He said he feels right at home with his new team.

"The chemistry on our team is awesome," Mendes said. "We all hang out together and everybody's friends. It's kind of like a family. They brought me right in and made me feel really comfortable."

Mendes looked extremely comfortable throughout the game, and his third goal was the day's highlight, as he took a skip pass from Matt Cannone and unloaded a rocket that rang the crossbar before settling home in the back of the net to give SU a 7-1 lead.

"That was something that we work on everyday in practice," Mendes said. "It's something my teammates just want me to do, shoot as hard as I can and hit that corner. It was a good chance, and I got a good shot off."

SU (5-0) will hit the field next on March 12, when they face Ohio Wesleyan at 1 p.m. at Sea Gull Stadium.

Written by Shawn Nisson
Original article: http://www.delmarvanow.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/201103060432/SPORTS/103060343