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Sea Gull men regain crown after one-year absence
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After four years playing together and only one loss — in last year’s championship game — the seniors on the Salisbury men’s lacrosse team ended their run with a third Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship May 27. The Sea Gulls defeated Cortland State, 15-9, in a rematch of the 2006 title game. It was Salisbury’s fourth championship in five years.
“Redemption wasn’t the word I was going to use. But I did lose a lot of sleep after last year’s game,” said senior goaltender Max Zarchin. “We weren’t looking for revenge or anything like that, but it was definitely good to get another shot against the same team.”
The championship sealed a record season for Salisbury, which set Division III records for all-time goals, assists and points. All three records had been held by the 1995 Salisbury team, which also was undefeated and won the national championship. Head coach Jim Berkman said the 1995 team was special, but the current group rose to the same level.
“I told the guys before the game there is a lot of Sea Gull lore at Salisbury, and there is a lot of tradition,” Berkman said. “But I said if someone mentions the best teams of all time, they would definitely be in that sentence.”
The legacy was in doubt when the championship game began, as Cortland State scored four of the first five goals. The Sea Gulls came to life in the second quarter, though, scoring six straight for a 7-4 lead. But Cortland St. pulled to within 7-6 at the half.
A 6-2 run in the third quarter put the Sea Gulls in control.
“We weren’t running on all eight cylinders there at the beginning,” said junior Matt Hickman, who scored twice in the second half. “We finally got our composure and put the ball in the back of the net.”
Salisbury’s defense held the Red Dragons to 34 shots and 33 ground balls for the game, capping a season in which they did not allow double-digit goals by an opponent. The Sea Gulls took 43 shots and 48 ground balls in the championship match, ending the season with an average of 18.13 goals a game.
“It’s obviously been the best four years of our lives, and I think every senior will agree with that,” said Eric Bishop. “To come out on top with three rings is just unbelievable.”
Salisbury finished the season 23-0, while Cortland State ended 15-6. Red Dragons senior Mike Felice said that few people — including him — thought the team would make it to the championship game this year.
“We took the chance we were given … A lot of people didn’t think we could do it. That’s when we came together as a team and got our second chance and rolled it the whole way,” he said. “We didn’t want to give up. We wanted to prove to everybody that we belonged there.
Quarterfinals
Cortland St. 12, Western New Eng. 10; Wesleyan (Conn.) 9, Nazareth 6; Salisbury 15, Roanoke 9; Gettysburg 11, Ithaca 5.
Semifinals
Salisbury 3 4 1 1 — 9
Gettysburg 1 1 2 2 — 6
Salisbury scoring: Eric Bishop 2, Matt Dasinger 2, Greg Titus 2, Matt Hickman 1, Kylor Berkman 1, Mike Von Kamecke 1.
Gettysburg scoring: Ted Leonard 2, Trip Dyer 1, Joe Brody 1, Greg Montgomery 1, Andrew Mavraganis 1.
Shots: Salisbury 24, Gettysburg 24. Goalkeeper saves: Salisbury (Max Zarchin) 4, Gettysburg (Pat Vaughan) 7.
Cortland St. 3 1 2 3 —9
Wesleyan (Conn.) 2 3 1 2 — 8
Cortland St. scoring: Billy Fuchs 3, Mike Felice 2, Ryan Heath 2, Adam Hyde 1, Josh Cittadino 1.
Wesleyan (Conn.) scoring: Mike Hines 2, Jason Ben-Eliyahu 2, Grayson Connors 1, Chris Jasinski 1, Jon Killeen 1, Lonnie Blumenthal 1.
Shots: Cortland St. 31, Wesleyan (Conn.) 35. Goalkeeper saves: Cortland St. (Michael Robinson) 10, Wesleyan (Conn.) (Charlie Congleton) 12.
Championship
Salisbury 2 5 6 2 — 15
Cortland St. 4 2 2 1 — 9
Salisbury scoring: Matt Hickman 5, Eric Bishop 4, Greg Titus 3, Matt Dasinger 2, Mike Von Kamecke 1.
Cortland St. scoring: Adam Hyde 4, Mike Felice 1, Josh Cittadino 1, Billy Fuchs 1, Cheney Raymond 1, Chris Dutkowsky 1.
Shots: Salisbury 43, Cortland St. 33. Goalkeeper saves: Salisbury (Max Zarchin) 12, Cortland St. (Michael Robinson) 11.
“Redemption wasn’t the word I was going to use. But I did lose a lot of sleep after last year’s game,” said senior goaltender Max Zarchin. “We weren’t looking for revenge or anything like that, but it was definitely good to get another shot against the same team.”
The championship sealed a record season for Salisbury, which set Division III records for all-time goals, assists and points. All three records had been held by the 1995 Salisbury team, which also was undefeated and won the national championship. Head coach Jim Berkman said the 1995 team was special, but the current group rose to the same level.
“I told the guys before the game there is a lot of Sea Gull lore at Salisbury, and there is a lot of tradition,” Berkman said. “But I said if someone mentions the best teams of all time, they would definitely be in that sentence.”
The legacy was in doubt when the championship game began, as Cortland State scored four of the first five goals. The Sea Gulls came to life in the second quarter, though, scoring six straight for a 7-4 lead. But Cortland St. pulled to within 7-6 at the half.
A 6-2 run in the third quarter put the Sea Gulls in control.
“We weren’t running on all eight cylinders there at the beginning,” said junior Matt Hickman, who scored twice in the second half. “We finally got our composure and put the ball in the back of the net.”
Salisbury’s defense held the Red Dragons to 34 shots and 33 ground balls for the game, capping a season in which they did not allow double-digit goals by an opponent. The Sea Gulls took 43 shots and 48 ground balls in the championship match, ending the season with an average of 18.13 goals a game.
“It’s obviously been the best four years of our lives, and I think every senior will agree with that,” said Eric Bishop. “To come out on top with three rings is just unbelievable.”
Salisbury finished the season 23-0, while Cortland State ended 15-6. Red Dragons senior Mike Felice said that few people — including him — thought the team would make it to the championship game this year.
“We took the chance we were given … A lot of people didn’t think we could do it. That’s when we came together as a team and got our second chance and rolled it the whole way,” he said. “We didn’t want to give up. We wanted to prove to everybody that we belonged there.
Quarterfinals
Cortland St. 12, Western New Eng. 10; Wesleyan (Conn.) 9, Nazareth 6; Salisbury 15, Roanoke 9; Gettysburg 11, Ithaca 5.
Semifinals
Salisbury 3 4 1 1 — 9
Gettysburg 1 1 2 2 — 6
Salisbury scoring: Eric Bishop 2, Matt Dasinger 2, Greg Titus 2, Matt Hickman 1, Kylor Berkman 1, Mike Von Kamecke 1.
Gettysburg scoring: Ted Leonard 2, Trip Dyer 1, Joe Brody 1, Greg Montgomery 1, Andrew Mavraganis 1.
Shots: Salisbury 24, Gettysburg 24. Goalkeeper saves: Salisbury (Max Zarchin) 4, Gettysburg (Pat Vaughan) 7.
Cortland St. 3 1 2 3 —9
Wesleyan (Conn.) 2 3 1 2 — 8
Cortland St. scoring: Billy Fuchs 3, Mike Felice 2, Ryan Heath 2, Adam Hyde 1, Josh Cittadino 1.
Wesleyan (Conn.) scoring: Mike Hines 2, Jason Ben-Eliyahu 2, Grayson Connors 1, Chris Jasinski 1, Jon Killeen 1, Lonnie Blumenthal 1.
Shots: Cortland St. 31, Wesleyan (Conn.) 35. Goalkeeper saves: Cortland St. (Michael Robinson) 10, Wesleyan (Conn.) (Charlie Congleton) 12.
Championship
Salisbury 2 5 6 2 — 15
Cortland St. 4 2 2 1 — 9
Salisbury scoring: Matt Hickman 5, Eric Bishop 4, Greg Titus 3, Matt Dasinger 2, Mike Von Kamecke 1.
Cortland St. scoring: Adam Hyde 4, Mike Felice 1, Josh Cittadino 1, Billy Fuchs 1, Cheney Raymond 1, Chris Dutkowsky 1.
Shots: Salisbury 43, Cortland St. 33. Goalkeeper saves: Salisbury (Max Zarchin) 12, Cortland St. (Michael Robinson) 11.
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