Dartmouth Dominates Early, Rolls to 17-6 Win at Holy Cross

Story Links

Next Game:

Siena

3/4/2023 | 1:00 PM

Mar. 04 (Sat) / 1:00 PM

 Siena

History { element.remove(); }); } else{ let elementsToRemove = document.querySelectorAll(‘.postgame_3_nextgame’); elementsToRemove.forEach(element => { element.remove(); }); } ]]> WORCESTER, Mass. — The Dartmouth men’s lacrosse team jumped out to a 12-0 halftime lead and wouldn’t look back, defeating Holy Cross 17-6 on a snowy Saturday afternoon in Worcester. The 11-goal margin of victory marked the Big Green’s largest since a 16-2 win over Hartford on Mar. 9, 2004. It was Dartmouth’s largest margin of victory on the road since a 19-6 win at Adelphi on Mar. 16, 1994.
 
In his first game of the season, sophomore Quinn Moore scored a game and career high five goals. Classmate Colin McGill posted six points for a second straight game, finishing Saturday with three goals and three assists.
 
“The guys worked hard to assert themselves,” said Dartmouth head coach Brendan Callahan. “I thought we certainly came out and started fast, scoring six goals in the first quarter and following it up with six in the second.”
 
The Big Green are now 2-0 for just the second time since 2012 (with the other instance being what proved to be the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season). Holy Cross fell to 0-5. The Big Green improved to 32-2 all-time against the Crusaders, as Saturday marked their first double-digit victory on the road since Mar. 17, 1999 — a 23-13 win at Holy Cross.
 
Along with Moore and McGill, Brandon Ventarola posted three goals and an assist for his first-career hat trick. Freshman Emmett Paradine followed up his first-career goal last week with two goals against the Crusaders. Sophomore Holden Deck and freshman Hopper Zappitello each scored their first-career goals on Saturday.
 
“Quinn Moore got it going on the offensive end today,” said Callahan. “He’s a guy who has a tremendous shot. It was great to see him healthy and playing well. I also thought Colin McGill had another strong day, making plays on the offensive end of the field.
 
Helping get the offense the ball was senior Mitchell Myers, who won his first 10 faceoff attempts of the afternoon, finishing 17-of-21 for the game with four groundballs.
 
“To only lose one faceoff in the first half (11-of-12) I thought was a big part of us starting fast,” said Callahan. “I also loved our hustle on the ride today. We were able to cause some problems for Holy Cross, especially in that first half.”
 
The Crusaders were just 10-of-17 clearing in the first half, including just 4-of-8 in the second quarter. While the Big Green scored 12 first-half goals, they allowed only seven first-half shots, due in large part to the play of Myers’ and the defense. Holy Cross turned the ball over 17 times in the first half and 31 times for the game.
 
Defensively, 11 different Big Green players caused a turnover, led by three from freshman Max LaTorre, who also had two groundballs and his first-career point (an assist).
 
The Big Green came out firing, scoring six first-quarter goals, beginning and ending with McGill goals. A long shot in the final seconds of the stanza was placed perfectly over Holy Cross goaltender Dawson Friers’ left shoulder.

.@SportsCenter, you may want to check this out! Colin McGill, picking corners from 30+ yards away

This goal as the first quarter expired gave the Big Green a 6-0 lead, on the way to the 17-6 victory at Holy Cross!#SCTop10 | @ESPNAssignDesk | #TheWoods pic.twitter.com/OljrqLGsV6

— Dartmouth Men’s Lacrosse (@DartmouthMLax) February 26, 2023

Moore highlighted the second quarter, scoring three of the six Big Green goals. He scored twice in 20 seconds to give Dartmouth a 9-0 lead with 9:16 on the second-quarter clock. After goals from Ventarola (on the extra man) and McGill, a Moore goal with three seconds remaining gave Dartmouth a 12-0 halftime lead.
 
Holy Cross scored three of the first four third-quarter goals and outscored the Big Green 4-2 in the stanza, but Dartmouth still took a 14-4 lead into the fourth.
 
Three consecutive Big Green goals, capped off by the first of Zappitello’s career, made the score 17-4. Holy Cross answered with pair of man-up goals in the final minute, but Dartmouth cruised to the 17-6 victory.
 
Final shots were 63-24 in favor of the Big Green while Dartmouth held a 34-22 edge in groundballs. Freshman goaltender Sam Cooper stopped four of eight shots sent his way over the first 54:51 before being replaced by sophomore Mason Morel, who made three saves, allowing two goals. The Big Green scored 12 first-half goals, but it could have been more if it wasn’t for Friers, who stood tall with 16 first-half stops. Liam Ray entered in the second half and made eight saves.
 
The Big Green now have their eyes set on their home opener as they’ll host Siena next Saturday at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
 
“I thought we had a great week of practice and took a big step forward today,” said Callahan. “We look forward to seeing what this group can do in the coming weeks as we continue to work.”