HAWKEYES WIN THIRD STRAIGHT MEARNS CUP

(Rochester, NY)… The Hawkeyes captured their third straight Mearns Cup championship, knocking off the Buffaloes 13-5 Friday night at The Classic Rink. Both teams will now head to Utica, NY, to play in the NCBS National Championship from August 7 to 10.

With the win, the Hawkeyes improved to 9-0 and completed the first perfect season in Upstate Collegiate Box Lacrosse League (UCBLL) history. The story of the game was the Hawkeyes’ defense, which limited the Buffaloes to just 18 shots. Goalie John Jacobs was again solid in net, allowing just five goals. 

With the score 7-4 at halftime, the Hawkeyes shut down the Buffaloes’ high-powered offense, yielding just a Jason Chiodo power-play goal in the third quarter. Meanwhile, the Hawkeyes’ offense went back to work, scoring two goals to open the third quarter and ending the contest with four straight tallies. 

Zachary Terry scored the game’s final three goals to finish with a championship game record seven goals and nine points. Thomas Gravino and Nate Senez (2+2) each scored a pair of goals, while Pax Marshall and Colt Green added single tallies. 

The Hawkeyes opened the game by blitzing the Buffaloes with three goals in the first 3:33 behind markers from Senez, Gravino and Green. After a Kensaku Kobayashi goal at 4:42, Senez scored his second of the night, and Terry netted back-to-back goals to give the Hawkeyes a 6-1 lead.

The Buffaloes regrouped in the second by scoring three times to cut the deficit to 7-4 at halftime. Chiodo had two of those goals, while Casey LaForce added a single tally. Chiodo powered the Buffaloes’ offense with three goals, while Dylan Snow chipped in four assists.

Despite the loss, the Buffaloes had a historic season. Not only did they finish second in the UCBLL, but they won their first playoff game and reached their first championship game.

Fans can follow the Hawkeyes and Buffaloes at the NCBS National Championship. All the games will be live-streamed on the NLL YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/NLL/videos) and live scored on NCBS.tv.