St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
4-7, 1-0Big East
Marquette
4-6, 0-1Big East
St. John’s Rallies to Defeat Marquette, 13-9
3/30/2024 2:46:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
The Red Storm came back from down 5-0 to pick up its second straight win
QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's lacrosse team rallied from down 5-0 to beat Marquette, 13-9, on Saturday at Belson Stadium.
After Marquette scored the game's first five goals, the Red Storm (4-7, 1-0 BIG EAST) used a 12-2 run to secure its second comeback win in as many weeks. The Johnnies held Marquette to one goal in the second and third quarters and outscored the Golden Eagles, 9-2, over that stretch. Saturday was the first time the St. John's has rallied from down five to win since March 23, 2019, against UMass Lowell.
Junior attackman Brian Kelly tallied four goals and an assist to extend his point streak to 10 games. Saturday was Kelly's seventh outing this season with at least four points and second game with at least four goals. The Red Hook, N.Y., native's five points gives him 128 for his career, putting him in sole possession of eighth place on the Red Storm's all-time points list.
Jake Wright set a new career best with four points (2G, 2A) for his fifth straight multi-point performance. Since being inserted into the starting lineup on March 9 against Binghamton, Wright has 10 points.
Caiden Vlasimsky recorded his second hat trick of 2024, with all three goals coming during a 6-0 run that gave the Johnnies the lead, stretching between the second and third quarters.
Senior midfielder Caleb Zuhoski scored two goals and added a helper to pick up his fourth-consecutive multi-point effort. The Riverhead, N.Y., product's 12 goals this season are a new career best.
Bobby Seel added a score and an assist to extend his team-best point and goal streaks to 12 games. Drew Wasserman also found the back of the net for the Johnnies.
Junior captain Braeden Pratt and freshman midfielder Ryder Ochoa each picked up their first career point, each tallying an assist.
Kyle Munson was strong again in net, recording 13 saves for his fifth straight game with double-digit saves. The redshirt junior's 59.1 save percentage against the Golden Eagles is his third-best in a game this season.
Defensively Jackson Klein and Dylan Lee each caused a pair of turnovers. The Johnnies caused 10 Marquette giveaways and won the groundball battle, 32-27. St. John's excelled on the clear, converting 24-of-25 opportunities.
The Red Storm picked up its second win all-time against Marquette on Saturday. St. John's has won two games in a row and four of its last six.
Bobby O'Grady recorded a team-best five points on three goals and a pair of helpers for Marquette (5-5, 0-1 BIG EAST). Will Foster added two scores while Carsen Brandt and Devon Cowan each had multi-point efforts. Caleb Creasor made 10 saves between the pipes.
The Golden Eagles wasted no time getting on the scoresheet, taking a 5-0 lead in the opening 10:28 of the game. Kelly ended the Marquette run, burying a behind-the-back shot off a feed from Seel. 1:43 later, Kelly picked up his second of the game, taking it himself from the left side of the crease to bring the Johnnies within three, 5-2.
Kelly completed the natural hat trick just over five minutes into the second frame, bringing the Red Storm within two, but Marquette scored 38 seconds later to take a 6-3 lead. After a Golden Eagles penalty for slashing, Wright picked up a loose ball and fired a shot past Creasor to cut the lead to 6-4. Vlasimsky brought the Johnnies within one, 6-5, with 3:01 left in the quarter, sniping a shot into the upper-right corner of the net. 43 seconds later, Wright scored his second of the afternoon, finishing off a feed from Pratt, sending the teams into the intermission knotted at six.
Zuhoski gave the Red Storm its first lead of the contest 32 seconds into the third quarter and Vlasimsky's second of the game gave the home squad an 8-6 advantage. Wright picked up the assist on Vlasimsky's tally for his third point of the day. Vlasimsky scored his third of the afternoon midway through the quarter to stretch the Red Storm lead 9-6. Marquette ended the 9-1 St. John's run less than a minute later to make the score 9-7. After Seel forced a Golden Eagles turnover on a clear attempt, Wright found Kelly in transition who put one into the twine to give the Johnnies a three-goal cushion, 10-7. With less than 10 seconds left in the quarter, Ochoa ran the length of the field and found an open Wasserman who buried a shot as the buzzer sounded to extend the lead to 11-7 heading into the final quarter.
Seel found the back of the net 1:30 into the fourth, giving St. John's its largest advantage of the afternoon, 12-7. A pair of Marquette goals cut the Red Storm's lead to three, 12-9, with 3:48 remaining. The Eagles won the ensuing faceoff, but a pair of blocked shots from Jack Schirtzer allowed St. John's to regain possession with just over three minutes to play. A late Zuhoski goal sealed the Red Storm's first BIG EAST win since 2016.
The Johnnies will be back in action on Friday night when they travel to Colorado to take on Denver. Faceoff from Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium is set for 8 p.m. ET (6 p.m. local).
