ITHACA, N.Y. – It was deja vu all over again for the Western New England College men's lacrosse team who almost pulled off the upset of the season.

Junior Tim Pfeffer (Penfield, NY) scored the game-winner with 46 seconds remaining in overtime to lead No. 7 Ithaca College to a 13-12 victory over No. 15 Western New England College in a quarterfinal round contest of the NCAA Division III Championship Wednesday afternoon (May 14) at Upper Terrace Field.

This was the second straight year that the Golden Bears' season ended in the national quarterfinals after Cortland posted a 12-10 decision last year in Springfield.

Ithaca also took a 16-15 overtime decision with 31 seconds left against WNEC in a first round game of the 2002 NCAA Division III Tournament in the only other meeting between the highly-regarded squads.

Western New England College started strong taking a1-0 lead on a goal by freshman Joe O'Keefe (Branford, CT) at the 8:57 mark of the opening quarter.

After Ithaca knotted the game on a goal by sophomore Nic Heckman (Sparta, NJ) with 5:26 remaining the period, seniors Jon Hayes (Waltham, MA) and Travis Brown (Chapel Hill, NC) netted goals in a 10-second span with just under two-and-a-half minutes left to give the visitors a 3-1 lead.

The Bombers answered with five consecutive goals to start the second stanza in taking a 7-4 advantage at halftime.

Trailing 8-4, Western New England College staged a gallant comeback with five straight goals of its own re-gaining the lead at 9-8 when O'Keefe (who had three goals) fired home a shot with an assist from sophomore Tim Santye (Skillman, NJ) with 6:53 remaining in the quarter.

Ithaca countered with a pair of goals in 46 seconds with Heckman's third of the game at 3:06 giving the Bombers a 10-9 edge after 45 minutes. He also added two assists, the final one on Pfeffer's winning shot.

It was an intense final quarter with Western New England College tying the score on three occasions, the last time when Hayes scored with just 1:02 left with an assist from junior Scott Kukis (Sudbury, MA).

In overtime, WNEC senior goalie Chris Body (Newtown, CT) made a nice save on a shot by junior Matt Cutter (Needham, MA) at the 2:58 mark. The Golden Bears had a man-up situation but IC freshman goalie David Gal (Amherst, MA) preserved the win stopping a shot by senior Mike Kelly (Cheshire, CT) with 1:24 remaining. Kelly had a goal that tied the contest at 11-11 with 4:17 to play and added an assist.

Gal, who entered the game in the third period, finished with 11 saves while giving up four goals. He is 7-0 on the season. Junior Ben Connery (Homer, NY) stopped eight shots with eight goals allowed.

Senior Craig Lepiane (Rochester, NY) had four goals and an assist for the Bombers who improved to 17-2, which established a school record for wins.

Body (12-5) compiled 14 saves while Hayes finished with four goals and assist for Western New England College. Brown contributed a pair of goals while winning 17-of-29 face-offs. Junior Matt McAnneny (Wakefield, MA) had a game-high nine ground balls.

Senior Tim Heffernan (Glastonbury, CT) and junior Jared Pabis (Wilbraham, MA) also had goals for the Golden Bears who completed another outstanding season with a 15-5 record.

Body (12-5) compiled 14 saves while Hayes finished with four goals and assist for Western New England College. Brown contributed a pair of goals while winning 17-of-29 face-offs. Junior Matt McAnneny (Wakefield, MA) had a game-high nine ground balls.

Senior Tim Heffernan (Glastonbury, CT) and junior Jared Pabis (Wilbraham, MA) also had goals for the Golden Bears who completed another outstanding season with a 15-5 record.

There were 96 shots in the game (Ithaca 51, Western New England College 45).