SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (March 31, 2021) – The Western New England University men's lacrosse team opened their season with a 23-14 victory over Salve Regina in CCC action on Wednesday evening at Golden Bear Stadium.

Top Performers
Graduate student Nick Gamba and junior Mike Bannon each scored four goals for the Golden Bears, while Bannon also dished out three assists. Sophomore Ben Kolb, sophomore Brian Madden, and senior Brendan Lyons each scored three goals.

Senior Pat Leary scored five goals for the Seahawks while freshman Liam Cooney scored three goals and provided two assists.

Game Review
Cooney scored early to give the Seahawks a 1-0 advantage. Western New England responded with four straight goals to take a 4-1 lead, with the first quarter ending at 4-2 after Leary scored with 13 seconds remaining. The Golden Bears outscored the Seahawks 4-2 in the second quarter to take an 8-4 lead into halftime.

The third quarter was filled with goals as Western New England and Salve Regina combined for 15 goals. The Golden Bears scored four of the first five goals to take a 12-6 lead. Leary scored three straight to cut the deficit to three. Both teams each scored three goals over the remaining six minutes of the quarter. Western New England erupted for eight more goals in the final quarter to take the 23-14 victory.

Up Next
Western New England (1-0) travels to Wentworth for some CCC action on Saturday at noon.