The College of Wooster men’s lacrosse team got off to a stellar start last Sunday by beating the Aurora University Spartans 9-2. Joe Suliman ’11 and Matt Ranck ’13 led the Scots and each recorded hat-tricks. Wooster took control of the game early when midfielder Patrick Schlick ’13 scored his third career goal with only 5:22 on the clock. Ranck quickly put the Scots up 2-0 by scooping up a deflected shot from Eric Johnson ’13 and putting the ball in the back of the net.
Despite an Aurora goal early in the second quarter, Wooster continued to dominate the match. Nick Spittle ’12 and Suliman scored consecutive goals in the second quarter to give the Scots a 4-1 lead. Aurora’s Justin Bose responded with a goal to make the score 4-2 but Wooster finished off the first half with two more goals, making the halftime score 6-2.
The second half of the match got off to a slow start. Both teams were scoreless in the third quarter. Aurora’s goalkeeper Adam Holka made six saves to prevent the Scots from adding onto their four goal lead. The fourth quarter however, was a completely different story. Ranck and Suliman scored two more goals for the Scots giving each of them a hat-trick. In addition, last season’s leading scorer Matt Pullara ’11 tacked on another goal for the Scots, giving him his first goal of the season. In goal for the Scots senior Jake Kubasta made four saves.
From the beginning of the match it was clear that the Scots were the better team on the field. They lead the match in almost every key statistical category, including shot attempts (41-8), ground balls, (44-18), and face-off wins (9-5). The Scots will return to the field on March 13 at the University of Mary Washington. Over spring break Wooster will compete in six matches, including games against Denison University in Granville Ohio, St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA, Swarthmore College in Swathmore, Pennsylvania, Gwynedd-Mercy in Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania. The Scots will alos play Colorado College at home in John P. Papp Stadium.