Despite a frantic comeback, the Vanderbilt men’s club lacrosse team could not fully recover from its slow start on a frigid Saturday afternoon in Nashville.
Late goals from junior Brian Kearney and sophomore Cary Corrigan helped the Commodores rally from a late four-goal deficit in their home opener before losing to Georgia Tech in overtime, 9-8. Senior Alex Del Pozzo scored the game-winning goal for the Yellow Jackets, who were playing in their first game of the season.
“I think we played a hell of a game,” said junior defenseman Cameron Roth. “It was the best I’ve seen the offense play ever. They played with a lot of heart in the fourth quarter, and it’s good to see that. There’s only one way to go, and that’s up.”
The Commodores opened their 2010 season on Jan. 31 with a 14-2 win at Alabama, but the two-time Southeastern Lacrosse Conference Champion Yellow Jackets proved early on to pose a much stiffer challenge. Junior Casey Timmerman scored two early goals, and goalkeeper Sam Karpowicz made several point-blank saves on the Vanderbilt attackers as Georgia Tech jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second quarter.
“It took us a half to wake up. But with the help of [junior Timothy] Maloney winning the face-offs and the ability to attack and middies getting the ball in the net, it really helped us in the second half especially with that fourth-quarter surge,” said head coach Tyler Hirsch, who took the Vanderbilt job in 2008.
Nick Marino added a goal and an assist for the Commodores, who scored four unanswered goals after trailing 8-4 in the fourth quarter.
But the Yellow Jackets won the opening face-off of the sudden death overtime period and did not relinquish control of the ball until Del Pozzo’s goal on a shot from close range that bounced past junior keeper Daniel Rosenzweig and sent Yellow Jacket players pouring onto the field.
The Commodores missed several early opportunities to cut into the Georgia Tech lead and shot only 17 percent for the game.
“The shooting was horrendous,” said Coach Hirsch. “We went eight for 47, so that’s something we have to work on. But you change it, and you go nine for 47, and that’s the game-winner.”
The men’s lacrosse club team was founded in 1964. The Commodores currently play in the Central Division of the SELC, along with Clemson, Kentucky and Tennessee. At a school with large contingents of students from lacrosse-crazed states such as Maryland, New York and New Jersey, Roth recognizes the potential in the Vanderbilt student body for a new tradition of serious interest in the team.
“It’s good to see a good group of kids from all across the country who want to come out and play lacrosse and absolutely watch it,” he said. “And I think we have to potential to go real deep in the playoffs and maybe go to the championship. And if we just keep getting support, more people will want to come out and watch us, more people will want to keep playing harder.”
The Commodores host Indiana next Friday at 7:00 p.m. before heading to Clemson to kick off divisional play against the Tigers on Feb. 20.
