Box Score Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's lacrosse team scored three consecutive goals over a 4:24 stretch late in the third quarter to turn a 6-5 deficit into an 8-6 lead and held visiting Manhattan to a lone tally in the game's final 23:30 to take home a 9-7 victory at Joe Walton Stadium on a cold and cloudy Saturday afternoon.
RMU fired 57 shots in the win, the second-highest total in school history and the best-ever mark at home. The defensive pressure from the Colonials was also record-setting as RMU held Manhattan to a 6-for-15 mark on clearing attempts, the best single-game percentage to which the Colonials have ever limited an opponent.
Senior captain Trevor Moore (Port Coquitlam, British Columbia / Western Reserve Academy) led the offensive effort again for Robert Morris with his second consecutive four-point game courtesy of two goals and two assists. He fired 13 shots toward the Jaspers' cage, a career high, and the second-best single-game total by a player in school history, and now has registered at least three points in nine of his last 10 and 18 of his last 20 games.
With the two goals, Moore also moved past his classmate, Corbyn Tao-Brambleby (Coquitlam, British Columbia / Western Reserve Academy), in all-time goals scored at RMU just one week after Tao-Brambleby had passed Andrew Watt '08 to become the all-time record holder.
Robert Morris fired each of the game's first five shots, and the early pressure paid off when junior Kyle Buchanan (Nepean, Ontario / John McCrae) found the twine fewer than three minutes in with Tao-Brambleby assisting to give RMU a 1-0 edge.
After RMU was forced to kill off two extra-man opportunities in the opening quarter, Moore scored his first of the day to make it a two-goal game with just over two minutes left in the first frame.
Manhattan finally got on the scoreboard with just 20 ticks remaining before the end of the opening quarter to pull within one.
Buchanan and Tao-Brambleby hooked up again just 16 seconds into the second quarter to put RMU back on top by two.
The Colonials' man-down unit again proved up to a challenge when RMU killed off a two-minute, extra-man opportunity early in the second quarter. Robert Morris kept the momentum going when juniors Kevin Brownell (Burlington, Ontario / Central) and Kiel Matisz (Stoney Creek, Ontario / Saltfleet) each scored within a three-minute span to put the Colonials on top by four.
Manhattan scored twice over the final three minutes, including its only man-up goal of the day, to make the halftime score 5-3 in favor of the Colonials.
The intermission would not slow down the Jaspers, though, as Manhattan tallied the first three scores of the second half to take its first, and only, lead of the game, 6-5, with 8:39 to play in the third.
The Jaspers had a chance to double their lead as they received a man-up chance immediately following their go-ahead goal. However, after a Colonial timeout, Robert Morris killed off the chance and soon found its scoring touch again.
Redshirt senior Patrick Smith (Westminster, Md. / Westminster) tied the game with an assist to Moore with 4:29 left in the third, and after another failed man-up chance for the Jaspers, Smith put Robert Morris in front to stay with 50 seconds left in the third.
Moore scored what proved to be the game-winner with just five seconds to play in the third as each team collected just a single tally in the final quarter.
Robert Morris gave Manhattan little chance to come back as it held the Jaspers to just four fourth-quarter shots, but Manhattan still managed to pull within one, 8-7, with 5:10 left to play.
The Colonials would not concede a chance to tie, though, as senior Keith Lee (Hudson, Ohio / Western Reserve Academy) won the ensuing faceoff. RMU had possession for more than three minutes before redshirt sophomore Dave Morton (Orangeville, Ontario / Hill School) essentially iced the game with his first point of the season, a goal right off of a ground ball pickup with 2:02 to play.
Tao-Brambleby moved into a tie for second place in all-time assists at RMU, set a new career high with a game-high nine ground balls and also collected his first multi-point game of the season.
Buchanan, Matisz and Moore all extended their consecutive point streaks, each of which is at least 22 games long and was ranked among the top 10 nationally entering the weekend. No other school has even two players among the top 10 nationally in that department.
Robert Morris held Manhattan to just a 1-for-9 mark on extra-man opportunities, its best mark when allowing at least nine chances since February 2007.
Lee went 8-for-13 on faceoffs and added six shots and four ground balls.
Robert Morris will now head to the road for three consecutive non-conference games. The Colonials will next be in action when they travel to New York to take on Colgate in a midweek matchup, Tuesday, March 1, for the Raiders' home opener.
