POUGHKEEPSIE, NY - Ten different players scored, including a game-high four tallies from sophomore attack Ian Zumpano, as the Vassar College men's lacrosse team defeated Emerson College, 15-8 on Saturday at the Weinberg Turf Field. The Brewers move to 2-2 on the season, while the Lions shoulder their first loss of 2022 and are now 4-1.

It was a back-and-forth opening quarter as the Brewers opened with goals from senior midfielder Connor Deehan and sophomore attack Troy Santise for the 2-0 lead at the 13:09 mark. Emerson battled back as senior middie Skyler Celotto and graduate attack Austin Franklin knotted the game at 2-all with 10:47 to play in the opening frame. A tally by junior long stick midfielder Dillon Dierman - which was the first of his VC career - saw the Brewers back on top, but sophomore attack Birk Swan took advantage on the man-up to make it a 3-3 game with 6:50 remaining. From that point, Vassar flipped the offensive switch, scoring two goals to end the first quarter, carrying that momentum for five straight goals in the second stanza to build up a 10-3 lead with 6:08 on the clock.

Zumpano and senior midfielder Logan Hyde scored to end the opening frame, followed by tallies from sophomore midfielder Dan Negron, Zumpano, junior midfielder James Nicholas, and  tallies by rookies Van Ledermann and Shane O'Hara (also the first of his career) to give the homestanding Brewers a dominant lead late in the frame. Emerson countered with 21 seconds left in the second with Celotto converting on the man-up to send the two teams into halftime with Vassar holding the 11-4 lead.

Celotto scored to open the third quarter and Emerson junior attack Nicholas Fulgoine banked in a shot from an assist by Swan to cut the visitors deficit to 10-6 at 8:12. Deehan answered for Vassar, while Franklin rebounded on the other end to make it an 11-7 margin heading into the final period of play.

Vassar opened the final stanza as Hyde fed Zumpano on the man-up, followed by Hyde's second of the game less than a minute later for the 13-7 lead. Emerson got a tally soon after, but sophomore attack Dylan McFarland dropped in his first collegiate tally and Zumpo added his fourth of the contest to round out the scoring with 1:55 to play.

The Brewers dominated in shots, owning a 69-35 margin, including a 31-20 edge in shots on goal. Vassar committed just 13 turnovers in the game to Emerson's 28 and also had an 18-9 advantage in ground balls. The Brewers went 20-of-24 on the clear, while Emerson was 20-of-29.

In addition to Zumpano, who also had an assist and a game-high 11 shots (five on goal), Hyde posted two goals and two assists with a ground ball. Deehan added two goals, while Nicholas and Negron each had a goal and an assist. Sophomore defender Solomon Hess paced the ground ball effort, scooping up four with three caused turnovers - leading all players on the day. Sophomore face-off specialist Thomas Cameron went 9-of-14 in the circle, while sophomore Michael Barbera also posted a solid line in the circle, going 2-of-3 on the day. In goal, junior Aidan Gallagher posted the victory, recording five saves in the first 30 minutes of the contest. Junior Jack Bagin came on in relief for the second half, recording seven stops.

For Emerson, Celotto posted three goals on eight shots (6 on goal), while Swan added a goal and two assists on the afternoon. Franklin had two goals, while Fulgione had a goal and an assist. Freshman midfielder Tyler King went 5-of-15 in the face-off circle, while junior middie James Toomy was 7-of-11 in the circle. In goal, senior Malcolm McGrath took the loss, making 16 saves on the day.

Vassar is now idle until March 12 when it heads to the West Coast for a 6pm (PST) tilt at Whittier College. The Brewers will then face Nichols College (MA) at Whittier on March 14 at 1pm (PST). Emerson is back on the field on Monday in a 1pm game at Mahattanville.