by Lauren Roth
The Roanoke men’s lacrosse team has had quite the season so far. Currently, the Maroons are 4-3 and they have played multiple nationally ranked teams. The team remains undefeated in the ODAC as they head into more conference play this weekend.
Despite losing their first game of the season, the Maroons have shown off their skills from the get-go. In their home opener against Catholic University, the Maroons had a comeback win against the visiting Cardinals. The final score was 14-12 with goals from Gilbert, Docking, Caldwell, Whitlow, Kennedy, Frye, and Kammerman. John Dias supported the team with 5 turnovers and 4 ground balls, while goalkeeper Taylor Lewis held strong in net with 12 saves for Roanoke.
The Maroons faced a slight bump in the road against Dickinson, but quickly turned their game around to start on a three-game winning streak. On March 5th, Roanoke took on the Sewanee Tigers. The Maroons dominated the first quarter with goals from Whitlow, Caldwell, Kammerman, Goodrich, and Docking making the first quarter score 7-2. Roanoke continued its relentless pursuit to make the halftime score 15-3. The Maroons finished the game with 15 saves from Lewis and a final score of 25-7.
Roanoke had their next win against Ohio Wesleyan, but they certainly faced a challenge on the way. After two periods of play, the Maroons were tied 8-8. In the third quarter, the Maroons had a fire lit under them and they went on a 4-0 run, ending the period with a score of 12-9. The Maroons were able to build off of their momentum and finished the game with a final score of 13-10. Lewis was strong in net once again with 12 saves. Whitlow and Gilbert led the Maroons on the scoreboard with three goals each.
On Saturday, March 12th the Maroons had their first ODAC game against Guildford College. This game had many challenges with bitterly cold wind and snow, but the Maroons did not stop their fight. Roanoke’s defense dominated, allowing only 5 goals and 12 shots for the whole game. Many Maroons got action on the field, making this win truly a team effort. The final score was 25-4.
On Tuesday, the Maroons faced another nationally ranked team, Cortland University. The Maroons played hard, holding the Red Dragons at a score of 0-0 for most of the first quarter. However, the Maroons could not hold them off for long, as they slipped into a 15-8 deficit. With seldom hope the Maroons continued to fight, bringing the final score to 15-11.
On Saturday, March 19th the Maroons will play their second conference game of the season against Virginia Wesleyan. Support the Maroons by watching the livestream of this exciting game at www.roanokemaroons.com!
