Men's lacrosse taketh and giveth

Team conquers Pioneers 14-4 on Saturday

The men's lacrosse team found themselves on both ends of a blowout at home this week.

On Saturday, the Yeomen plastered the Marietta College Pioneers 14-4, and then on Wednesday played admirably against number one ranked Ohio Wesleyan Battlin' Bishops 23-9.

A broken down team bus delayed the arrival of Marietta, which pushed the start of the game back 40 minutes. Oberlin was not phased by this minor detour, as they casually worked out before the Pioneers actually rolled into the parking lot. At first sight of the bus, Coach Jim Donovan barked a few orders at his charges, and the Yeomen went to work. "It just made us pumped up and excited," said senior Sam Krasnow. Pre-game drills and stretching put the Yeomen back into their game form, as they warmed the field up for the contest.

Sophomore Terry Jue said, "A delay always brings down the team's intensity, adrenaline levels in one way or another, but we sure didn't show it in the game. We came out scoring a couple of goals and it was over at that point."

Oberlin controlled every minute of play, until the final seconds ticked off the clock. Oberlin scored two goals in the first quarter, and then shut out the Pioneers in the second. Chipping in three goals of their own in the second, Oberlin took a 5-1 lead into half-time.

"We rolled over them. We dominated them from start to finish which is what we set out to do," said Krasnow.

The Yeomen were running on all cylinders going into the third quarter. The defense, anchored by senior Chris Lavin and sophomores Solomon Borenstein and Jue, dismantled any offensive effort by the Pioneers. Jue said, "Our defense has made the biggest improvement as the season has progressed. We have improved skill-wise and we are communicating more."

For the game, Oberlin allowed only 22 shots on goal. Senior goalie Scott Sheppard, who is usually called upon to play outstanding in the cage, made things look easy. Sheppard made ten saves, and allowed four goals over his 60 minutes of play.

In the last two quarters of play, the Yeomen outscored Marietta 9-3, and ran away with the win. Along with the defense, the mid-fielders and attackmen played rock-solid. Seven Yeomen scored in the game, including three from Krasnow and four from senior Garth Stidolph. Rounding out the scoring was sophomore Ben Bernard and first-year Evan Kelley, each with two, and junior Im Soo Kwak, junior Matt Jensen, and first-year Jesse Cretaro with one apiece. Donovan said, "I think we're getting better every game."

Stidolph sparkled in this contest, using his bulk to score on aggressive drives towards the net. Along with his four goals, he dished out one assist, had 13 shots on goal, and scooped up 13 ground balls. On face-offs, Stidolph fought like a starved dog for raw meat, manhandling his opponent, and winning 75 percent of the draws.

The Yeomen's schedule did not allow them to celebrate their win for long, as they prepared for Ohio Wesleyan on Wednesday. Ohio Wesleyan, the best Division III team in the country, brought a small army with them to play Oberlin. The Battling Bishops, all 45 of them, swarmed the sidelines forming a sea of black jerseys. While the Yeomen, all 14 of them in their home whites, proved that the good guys don't always win.

"We accepted this as a really big challenge. We wanted to demonstrate we could play with them," said Donovan.

Ohio Wesleyan bombarded Oberlin with nine first quarter goals. With the game pretty much decided at that point, the Yeomen picked up their play in the last three quarters.

Borenstein said, "We all stepped up to a whole new level. Sammy was bustin' ass up front and Terry Jue was bustin' heads in back."

The Yeomen blasted nine goals past the Bishops all American goalie, more goals than the number seven team in the country, Denison, could muster against Ohio Wesleyan. Krasnow lead the scoring with an outstanding four goals. Both Stidolph and Kelley contributed two goals, along with one from Kwak.

Kwak opened up the scoring in the first, slipping behind Ohio Wesleyan's perimeter defense, and receiving a pass right in the webbing. Kwak sized up the all American, and cut him down to size with a scorching shot.

"Our motto for the last few games has been 'All Out Effort' and we definitely gave that and a little more," said Jue. Sheppard stopped 21 shots against the Bishops, and provided a backstop of confidence for his teammates.

"This was an outstanding effort by the whole team against the number one team in the country. OWU is an excellent team with great shooters, yet with the exception of the last five minutes of the first quarter, we did a pretty good job of playing with them," said Donovan.

This was Oberlin's last home game of the season, and with the exception of May 9's Alumni Game, the last time a handful of seniors will play on their home turf. Stidolph, Lavin, Sheppard, and Krasnow have only two games left as Oberlin athletes. Krasnow said, "It was a great way to go out, to score four goals against the number one team."

The Yeomen play at Kenyon College on Saturday, and at Northwood University on May 2. "With the way we've been playing and the desire for wins increasing with each game, I think we'll do well against both teams. I could see two more wins in our future," said Borenstein.

Double crossing: A men's lacrosse team player shows his defensive skills against Ohio Wesleyan. The men lost to Ohio Wesleyan last Wednesday 9-23. (photo by Ned Basbaum)