DOVER, Del. (March 15, 2017) – Shutdown defense and timely scoring led the Drew University men's lacrosse team to its third straight win, a 5-3 victory at Wesley College on a frigid Wednesday evening.
 
By the Numbers
The Rangers improve to 3-2 on the season with their third consecutive win, which hasn't been done since Drew won eight in a row heading into the Landmark Conference playoffs in 2012. The Wolverines fall to 4-4 with a 2-3 mark at home in Miller Stadium.
 
Top Performers
• Five different Rangers made up the Drew scoring on Wednesday with freshman Kevin Goettlich, sophomore Ryan D'Alessandro, junior Jack Crowley, freshman Seamus O'Connor and senior Michael Lloyd striking the back of the net in order.
• D'Alessandro and Lloyd each offered up an assist, while Lloyd caused five turnovers and picked up four groundballs from his defensive position.
• Senior Teddy Sweeney made five saves in the first half to improve to 3-0 as a starting goalkeeper for Drew this season with a 6.50 goals-against average. Freshman Nate Sanders made four stops in the second half to preserve the victory and lower his goals-against average to 6.67 with a .623 save percentage.
 
The Difference
The Rangers made the most of two man-up situations in the second and third quarters. With Drew up 3-2, O'Connor finished a pass from Lloyd with 6:55 to play in the opening half to score the eventual game-winning goal. Lloyd was involved again on the man-up opportunity in the third quarter, netting an unassisted blast for the insurance goal and a 5-3 lead with 1:08 left in the period.
 
Highlights
• Drew took the early 2-0 lead with D'Alessandro guiding the attack. He assisted on Goettlich's goal less than two minutes into the contest, then added a tally 3:30 later off a feed from sophomore midfielder Brendan Hamm.
• Wesley answered with two to close out the first period tied at 2-2.
• Goettlich found Crowley for a score and the 3-2 advantage four minutes into the second quarter. For Crowley, it was his team-leading 11^th goal of the season as he starts the spring scoring in all five contests.
• Neither team scored in the fourth quarter. Lloyd, junior long stick midfielder Greg Swenson and senior defender Frank Kingston all caused turnovers in big spots in the fourth, while the defense survived 10 shots in the same possession spanning 3:30 without allowing a goal.
 
Stat Sheet
• Drew outshot Wesley, 38-29, while the Blue & Green defense allowed just 12 shots on goal.
• The Rangers surrendered just one man-down situation on a single penalty, and killed it off while allowing just a single shot that was saved by Sanders.
• Drew was 15-of-19 on the clear while limiting total turnovers to 14, compared to the Wolverine's 20. They also dominated the groundball battle, 36-22.
• Junior faceoff specialist Joe Palmieri (6-of-11) helped Drew win the faceoff war, 7-5, to go along with his team-high five groundballs.
 
Up Next
The Rangers remain on the road for a Saturday, March 18 faceoff at Swarthmore College at 1:00 p.m.