MADISON, N.J. – The Drew University men's lacrosse team bolted to a 9-4 halftime en route to a 13-11 victory over Catholic University in a Landmark Conference men's lacrosse tilt Saturday afternoon in Ranger Stadium.
 
Sophomore Joe Barnish tied a career-high with 18 saves while classmate Jake Rainero won 18-of-27 faceoffs and picked up 14 ground balls for the Rangers (5-4, 1-1 LC), who earned their first win over Catholic since a 10-7 victory on April 12, 2014.
 
Eight different Rangers scored a goal in a balanced offensive attack. Senior Luke Bruther posted three goals and one assist while classmate Mike DeMayo also found the back of the net three times. Freshman Joseph Carabetta scored twice while junior Joey Larmore and senior Tommy Larmore notched one goal and two assists each.
 
Mike Mulligan posted two goals and two assist for the Cardinals (3-7, 1-1 LC) while Victor Rosado recorded one goal and three assists. Colton Manorek collected 11 saves for Catholic.
 
Rainero wasted little time putting the Rangers on the scoreboard, winning the opening faceoff and scoring 15 seconds into game. However, Catholic answered with three consecutive goals, taking a 3-1 lead with 8:41 left in the opening quarter.
 
Drew responded with an 8-1 run over the rest of the half, starting with a 5-0 burst over the remainder of the opening quarter. Joseph Carabetta and Joey Larmore scored one goal apiece before DeMayo pumped in consecutive tallies. Junior Riley Zeer capped the surge with a goal that made it 6-3 heading into the second quarter.
 
Mulligan snapped the run for Catholic when he scored with 11:38 on the clock. However, Drew responded with a 3-0 spurt inside the final nine minutes of the quarter. DeMayo and Bruther potted back-to-back man-up goals before Bruther struck again with the final goal of the stanza, handing Drew its 9-4 halftime advantage.
 
The Cardinals found their offense coming out of the intermission, scoring four unanswered goals over the opening 5:30 to make it 9-8. But after Rainero won the ensuing faceoff the Rangers called timeout, neither side would score for nearly the rest of the quarter. But Matt Giordano snapped the defensive standstill when he struck with 46 seconds left, making it 10-8 heading into the fourth quarter.
 
It remained a 10-8 game through the first half of the final period until Bruther scored another man-up goal with 6:25 left. Drew followed up with two more tallies to finish off a 4-0 run, as Joseph Carabetta and Tommy Larmore scored to give the Rangers a convincing 13-8 lead with 3:23 showing.
 
Catholic scored the last three goals, but two came in the final 29 seconds, including one in the final second.
 
Drew returns to Landmark Conference action on Wednesday, when it visits Wilkes University at 7 p.m.