WPU Avenges Tourney Final Loss to Fighting Bees
Davenport–The Statesmen men’s lacrosse team shook off a slow start to exorcise some demons from last spring as it defeated St. Ambrose 16-7 in Heart of America Athletic Conference play Saturday.
#4 WPU (12-1, 2-0 Heart), which has pushed its school-record winning streak to 10 games, used a 64-35 edge in shots to avenge its loss to SAU in the 2023 Heart Championship Finals.
Dominating across the board, the navy and gold also committed just 24 turnovers (30 for SAU), while finishing 29-for-32 in clears (SAU was 21-for-38). WPU won the ground ball battle 54-30 as well.
It was not all smooth sailing for the visitors, though, as they were challenged throughout the first 30 minutes. Max Standage (So., Gilbert, Ariz., Public Accounting) scored unassisted exactly three minutes into the competition, while Collin Baliva (Sr., St. Louis, Mo., Mechanical Engineering) also found the netting without help just a few seconds later.
The Fighting Bees (6-4, 2-1 Heart), however, got on the board soon thereafter. The offenses then went silent for over five minutes before Wyatt Christensen (So., Madison, Wis., Biology), with an assist from Eli Dillon (Sr., Portland, Ore., Business Management), pushed the advantage back to two.
Unfortunately, St. Ambrose, which is receiving votes nationally, then took control for a spell, finishing the first period with two goals before adding two more unanswered scores at the start of the second stanza for a 5-3 lead. WPU’s deficit was its first in nearly a month when it was behind against Indiana Tech on March 12.
The Statesmen fortunately regrouped and ended the quarter strong, beginning with a goal from Cole Huettl (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Business Management) (assist from Baliva). Breck Putzier (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn., Exercise Science) then got into the action with an unassisted goal and an assist on a score for Boston Romero (Sr., Las Vegas, Nev., Business Management) to get WPU on top 6-5 at intermission.
William Penn then returned to the field a different squad, posting a 38-14 edge in shots after the break. The Statesmen tallied just three goals in the third, but blanked SAU during the period. Christensen had a goal and assist to Kenny Bohney (So., Moorhead, Minn., Exercise Science), while Nate Blasingame (Jr., Portland, Ore., Business Management) took a pass from Baliva and deposited it into the goal.
St. Ambrose pulled to within three with 12:04 still remaining in regulation, but WPU caught fire down the stretch with seven goals in the final 10 minutes of play. Christensen accounted for two of the tallies, while Bohney, Baliva, Romero, Standage, and Seth Read (Jr., Phoenix, Ariz., Psychology) also beat the SAU goalkeeper.
William Penn was as balanced as ever with 10 different players having a part in at least one goal. Christensen led the charge with four goals and an assist, while Putzier also finished with five points on one goal and four assists.
Baliva guided the rest of the Statesmen with two goals and two assists, while Standage ended up with two goals and one helper. Romero and Bohney scored twice, and Blasingame managed one goal and one assist.
Putzier’s seven ground balls were a team high, while the quartet of Baliva, Blasingame, Ryan Swarts (Sr., Boise, Idaho, Industrial Technology), and Noah Braegger (Fr., West Point, Utah, General Accounting) each tallied six. Baliva and Braegger headlined the defensive side of the ball with three caused turnovers apiece.
Behind a 12-for-17 showing from Swarts, the visitors won 19 of Saturday’s 26 faceoffs.
Eric Garigan (Grad., Tucson, Ariz., Master’s of Organizational Leadership) was also stout in front of the cage with 15 saves.
“This is a big win for our program and a statement for the season,” Head Coach Luke Christiansen said. “We played one of our worst halves of the year to start the game, but battled back and dominated the second half. This was a great team effort that we can learn a lot from as we move towards the conference tournament.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Marshall, Mo. next Wednesday to face Missouri Valley in Heart action at 7 p.m.
