KEENE, N.H. (February 23, 2016) - The Western New England University men's lacrosse team dropped its 2016 season opener to Keene State College, 19-11 this afternoon in non-conference action at the Owl Athletic Complex.
 
Senior Jon Bota (Mahopac, N.Y.) led the Golden Bears with five points on four goals and an assist, while junior Keegan Dudeck (Longmeadow, Mass.) added four points (two goals, two assists) and senior Taylor Dubose (Altamont, N.Y.) also posted a multi-point effort with two goals and one assist.
 
Keene State junior Bryan Rotatori (Grafton, Mass.) had a hand in nine Owl goals, netting five himself to go with four assists, while senior Tyler McKelvie (Acton, Mass.) and sophomore Hunter Arnold (Boxborough, Mass.) recorded four goals each.
 
Making his third career start in the cage, sophomore goalie Steven Kerr (Hopkinton, Mass.) made nine saves on 28 Keene State shots. His counterpart, sophomore Mat Howe (Bedford, N.H.), stopped 13 of Western New England's 24 shots on target.
 
Western New England held a 22-15 advantage in ground balls and won 25 of the 33 faceoffs, but the Golden Bears turned the ball over 15 times compared to Keene State's three.
 
Despite controlling possession for much of the first quarter, Western New England trailed the Owls 2-1 after the opening 15 minutes. McKelvie got the home team on the board 1:35 into the contest, before senior Patrick Dillon (Baldwin, N.Y.) evened the score at the 8:28 mark with his first goal of the season. Keene State reclaimed a one-goal edge with 3:11 remaining in the opening period, however, on the first of Rotatori's four first half tallies.
 
Western New England equalized for the second time at the 11:45 mark of the second quarter, as Dubose found the back of the cage for his first goal of 2016. Keene answered with 6:21 left in the half on Rotatori's second of the afternoon, and the Owls extended their advantage to four (6-2) with three more goals over the next 2:28. Bota ended the 4-0 Keene State run with 3:21 remaining on a feed from Dudeck, and the Owls carried a 6-3 lead into the break. Western New England outshot Keene State 22-14 in the first half, but the home team held a 10-9 edge in shots on target.
 
The two teams traded goals early in the third quarter, before Keene State utilized a 3-0 run to extend its advantage to six (11-5) with 5:23 left in the period. Four straight Western New England goals (Bota, Dudeck, Dubose, and junior Justin Bard) had the Golden Bears back within two (11-9), but a late tally by junior Tyler Reilly (Grafton, Mass.) pushed the margin to three heading into the fourth quarter.
 
The Owls netted a pair of man-up goals early in the fourth, and reeled off six straight overall, opening up an 18-9 advantage with 3:43 remaining in the contest. Sophomore Mike Wood (Southborough, Mass.) and Bota added late goals for the Golden Bears, but the deficit was too much to overcome.
 
Western New England (0-1) will be back in action on Saturday, March 5 at No. 7 nationally ranked Stevenson (Md.) University, before returning to Springfield to open its home slate against Trinity College on March 9. Keene State (1-0) hosts RPI on Saturday afternoon.