Lacrosse Falls to Division Foe Davenport in Overtime

The No. 8 Michigan State University men’s lacrosse team dropped a crucial division game to No. 19 Davenport by a score of 9-8 in overtime.

The game was decided with 2:50 left in overtime as Davenport midfielder Nate Adkins set up teammate Chapin White for the winning goal.

The Panthers came into the game averaging 21 goals per game, but despite holding them to their lowest output of the season, the Spartans were unable to come out with the win.

The loss puts MSU (9-3, 4-1) second in the Central Collegiate Lacrosse Association and boosts Davenport (8-3, 5-0) into the top spot in the division.

The Spartans were ranked No. 4 in the nation before the loss. The victory only raised Davenport one spot in the polls.

The match was a tale of two halves, with Davenport outscoring MSU by six in the first, only for the Spartans to outscore their opponent by six in the second.

The Panthers began the scoring on a goal by Adkins with 12:50 left in the first quarter, only for midfielder Ryan Solon of MSU to respond late in the quarter to tie it up.

Davenport then went on to score six straight goals in the second quarter, ending the half leading 7-1.

MSU started out with a flurry in the second half, going on a 6-0 run of their own, netting all six within the first 8:30 of the third quarter. Attackmen Mac Ensley and Danny Meyers each scored two goals during the run.

With the score tied at 7-7 entering the fourth, midfielder Greg Kolis gave the Spartans their first lead of the game on a tough shot seven minutes into the fourth, giving him his second goal of the game.

Adkins then scored the overtime-forcing goal with only 1:39 left in the fourth quarter, allowing White to make the game-winning shot soon after.

Ensley led the Spartans with three points, two goals and one assist. Faceoff man Joe Mikkelsen won 18 out of 20 draws, while also adding an assist.

Davenport was paced by Adkins and attackmen Dominic Boggiano, each tallying two goals and one assist. Seven other players recorded at least one point for the Panthers.

With no more division opponents on its schedule, Davenport will take home the CCLA division regular season title.

MSU will likely get a chance to avenge their loss if they play Davenport again in the CCLA tournament, possibly in the tournament championship game.

Four more games make up the rest of the Spartans’ regular season schedule, with a game against Minnesota (8-4, 4-1) of the Upper Midwest Lacrosse Conference next up.

The contest will be played Saturday, April 19 at 12 p.m. at Ralph Young Field in East Lansing.


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Justin Sienkowski is a multimedia journalist for Impact Sports.

Photos: Hannah McEnroe/Impact Sports