Box Score Box Score

TROY, N.Y. – Behind goals from seven different players and a seven-save performance from goalie James Manchester, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's lacrosse team defeated Clarkson University, 8-2, in Liberty League play at East Campus Stadium. The win, which was the third straight for RPI, moves the #17 Engineers to 9-1 overall and 4-0 in conference play. The Golden Knights fall to 2-9 and 1-1 in the Liberty League.

Both teams opened the game with a strong defensive effort, but it was the homestanding Engineers who scored first. Off a pass from sophomore Andrew Miller (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford), senior captain Bryant Johnson (Minnetonka, MN/Blake School) made it a 1-0 advantage at 7:24 of the opening frame.

The Engineers opened the lead to three in the second quarter. Rookie David Hey (Chapel Hill, NC/Durham Academy) tallied at the 4:22 mark off a long pass from down field and senior Devin Arnold (Buffalo, NY/Canisius) gave RPI the 3-0 advantage with just 15 seconds remaining after he collected a quick dish from junior Nick Billy (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) and fired it past Clarkson keeper Ryan Cole (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park).

Rensselaer, which held the Knights to just 17 shots in the game, pressed quickly in the third quarter as senior Paul Cerone (Ridgefield, CT/Ridgefield) and freshman Wes Rudy (Doylestown, PA/The Hill School) each scored to make it a 5-0 lead.

Johnson pushed it to a six-goal advantage (6-0) at 13:19 of the final quarter after he connected on a pass from Billy, who had a game-best three assists on the day. Sophomores Andrew Liptak (Westfield, MA/Westfield) and Grant Foulsham (Madison, NJ/Madison) each tallied to give the Engineers an 8-0 lead with 8:36 remaining, but Clarkson clawed its way back late.

Freshman Matt McCabe (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) scored the Golden Knights first tally, recording the only goal to slip past Manchester (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna) on the day at 2:56. Junior Mitch Collins (Baldwinsville, NY/CW Baker) cut the deficit to six (8-2) with 52 seconds left, but it wasn't enough as RPI maintained possession through the closing seconds.

Leading the way for the Engineers was Johnson, who finished with two goals. Six other players recorded a goal, while Manchester moved to 9-1 on the season in the win. Junior Angelo Luppino (Mount Kisco, NY/Fox Lane) came on between the pipes in the final 1:31, stopping two shots.

For Clarkson, Cole made 10 saves to shoulder the loss. He is now 2-3 overall. Statistically, the Engineers held the advantage in a number of categories, including shots (39-17) and ground balls (34-27).

Rensselaer returns to action next Saturday, hosting Muhlenberg at 1pm at East Campus Stadium. The Golden Knights are back on the field on Wednesday at league and area-rival St. Lawrence (5pm).