Salisbury Survives Denison, Advances to NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship
Top-ranked Salisbury edged seventh-ranked Denison 12-11 in the NCAA Men's Lacrosse semifinals on Sunday afternoon at Sea Gull Stadium, clinching the Sea Gulls a spot in the championship game for the third time in the last four years.
The defending national champion Sea Gulls (21-1) will take on second-ranked RIT (20-2) in the NCAA Championship game next Sunday at 5 p.m. at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. RIT defeated fourth-ranked Wesleyan (Conn.) 22-9 in Sunday's other semifinal.
Salisbury and Denison traded goals in a back-and-forth first quarter that resulted in a 3-3 deadlock following the first 15 minutes of play. The Sea Gulls then outscored Denison 4-1 in the second frame to take a 7-4 advantage into halftime.
SU scored the opening two goals of the second half to push out to its largest lead, 9-4, but Denison clawed its way back into the contest with a flurry of scores over the final 25 minutes, pulling within one at 12-11 with 2:50 remaining. The Sea Gulls' defense clamped down over the final few minutes to preserve the one-goal victory.
Nick Garbarino led the Salisbury attack with five goals, while Corey Gwin posted two goals and one assist. Aaron Leeds (5 caused turnovers) and Cory Berry (4 caused turnovers) led the Salisbury defense in the victory.