St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
Rutgers
St. John's Drops Season Opener, 10-8, To Rutgers
2/7/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Feb. 7, 2015
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's lacrosse team suffered a 10-8 home defeat to familiar foe Rutgers in its season opener on Saturday afternoon from DaSilva Memorial Field. The Red Storm staged a mid-game rally to turn an early three-goal deficit into a three-goal lead midway through the third quarter, before a response by the Scarlet Knights and stalemate final stanza saw St. John's come out on the losing end.
"Certainly we are disappointed with the outcome of the game but, at the same time, I was pleased with our effort today," said Red Storm head coach Jason Miller. "We had opportunities down the stretch but just didn't get the shots to go for us in the fourth quarter, which I thought was the difference. However, we got great looks with the game in the balance and this is something we can certainly build on."
In a game of runs, St. John's (0-1) trailed 3-0 late in the first stanza before scoring seven of the game's next eight goals over the span of two and a half quarters to claim a 7-4 lead. Rutgers (1-0) would answer with a 5-0 scoring run to take a 9-7 lead into the game's final quarter, however, and, despite the Red Storm pulling to within one with 10:16 remaining, the visitors would reclaim its two-goal cushion in the closing minutes to escape Queens with the victory.
Both teams recorded 41 shots and committed 11 turnovers in Saturday's non-conference clash, while St. John's edged the groundball battle, 29-26, and Rutgers won 12-of-22 faceoffs along with capitalizing on its only extra-man opportunity. The Red Storm went 1-for-2 in man-up situations and 17-for-19 in the clearing game.
Making the transition to his natural attacking position after being primarily deployed in midfield a year ago, senior co-captain Stefan Diachenko recorded a hat trick on eight shots Saturday to tie a single-game career high for goals. Midfielder Corey Haynes, one of three Red Storm freshmen to make their collegiate debuts in the season opener, also tallied three points on two assists and one goal, while junior midfielder James Bonanno chipped in with a pair of scores and three groundballs. Partnering Diachenko in attack, junior Eric DeJohn finished with one goal and one assist, and freshman Jason DeBenedictis tallied one goal. Diachenko also finished with three groundballs.
Defensively, sophomore Jack McClellan marked his second career start by corralling a career-high eight groundballs, the most by a St. John's defenseman since senior co-captain Mark DiFrangia tallied the same number in the 2014 season opener against Holy Cross. McClellan also accounted for two of the Red Storm's 11 caused turnover on the day, with senior LSM Chris Fisher recording three to go with three groundballs and DiFrangia one of his own.
In goal, St. John's sophomore goalie Joseph Danaher tallied 13 saves in the complete-game effort while, in another Red Storm debut, freshman midfielder Justin Corpolongo won 10-of-19 restarts at the "X."
DeJohn scored the Red Storm's first goal of the 2015 campaign with 11 seconds remaining in the first quarter on a winding, solo effort capped by a rising shot. Diachenko then scored back-to-back goals to open the second quarter to tie the game at 3-all, the first on a crafty low shot and the second courtesy of an unselfish extra pass from Haynes.
St. John's 4-0 run to open the third quarter of play spanned 3:34 and saw four different players find the back of the net. DeBenedictis first opened his St. John's goals account on another Haynes assist, before sophomore midfielder Brian Gaffney assisted Bonanno to record his first collegiate point. Haynes then netted his goal on a left-handed dodge and shot, before Diachenko completed his hat trick from a DeJohn assist to put the Red Storm up 7-4 with 8:41 remaining in the third quarter.
Bonanno scored St. John's lone fourth quarter goal with 10:16 remaining to cut Rutgers' lead to 9-8, however the Red Storm could not pull back level despite outshooting the Scarlet Knights, 13-4, in the final stanza.
Sophomore midfielder Christian Trasolini finished with four goals and one assist to lead Rutgers, who got 11 saves from junior goalie Kris Alleyne.
Saturday's non-conference clash marked the 23rd all-time meeting between St. John's and former BIG EAST Conference rival Rutgers on the lacrosse field, more than any other single opponent in program history. In handing the Red Storm just its second loss in the last seven home games, the Scarlet Knights improved to 18-5 in the series.
St. John's remains in Queens for the second game of the season as Long Island foe Stony Brook enters DaSilva Memorial Field on Saturday, Feb. 14, for a non-conference clash at 1 p.m.
