PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Several key players from 2017 showed familiar form for the
Robert Morris men's lacrosse team, while a pair of newcomers opened their NCAA accounts in an 11-7 loss to No. 7/8 Rutgers in the 2018 season opener at High Point Solutions Stadium Saturday afternoon.
Tyson Gibson, who led RMU in points with 41 a year ago, and erstwhile Northeast Conference Rookie of the Year
Ryan Smith, who scored 20 goals as a freshman, were two of seven different players to find the net. Meanwhile,
Alex Heger looked characteristically good guarding it.
The All-NEC honoree, after sharing the national lead in saves-per-game average at 12.75 as a sophomore, began his junior campaign with nine stops, including a couple of big ones down the stretch as Robert Morris made a comeback bid that saw
Corson Kealey and
Jake Boudreau collect their first official points as collegians.
Offensively, the Colonials played on frequently even terms with the Scarlet Knights (1-0), matching their 33 total shots and matching their goal output in the first, third and fourth quarters. A 4-0 second period controlled by Rutgers, however, played a part in their undoing.
An early 3-0 hole did not deter the determination of the visitors. Defenseman
Zachary Bryant got RMU on the board for the first time in 2018 with 6:44 to play in the first, then senior attackman
Adrian Torok-Orban, last year's second-leading goal-getter (27), shrugged off a defender and bounced a shot through the legs of all-conference keeper Max Edelmann with 4:59 left.
A pretty turnaround snipe by Smith from the left wing gave Robert Morris three scores in under four minutes, and new life through the first 15.
That wasn't the only time the Colonials had answers, either. In the third quarter, Kealey worked his way in from the right side and attempted a skillful last-second pass to Boudreau right on the doorstep that seemed to miss its intended target but still, somehow, trickle over the goal line. Officials decided Boudreau did, indeed, touch the ball last, giving the new midfielder his first-ever goal.
The younger brother of RMU product and recent National Lacrosse League (NLL) draftee "JP" Kealey would later get on the scoresheet nevertheless. He set up
Jimmy Perkins for a top-shelf goal that cut the deficit to 8-5 with 9:53 to play in the period.
Perkins, also one of four different Colonials to cause a turnover, had a good day all over the field. He led the team with four ground balls, and RMU, collectively, edged Rutgers, 36-31, in that category.
Once again, the Rutgers lead was reduced to three when Gibson scored from close range with 6:43 to go in regulation. Moments later, junior middieÂ
Shane Majewski pulled up and rifled one past Edelmann right down the middle of the attacking zone to make it a 9-7 game.
It would take a goal off the ensuing faceoff by Casey Rose, assisted by Christian Mazzone, and a last-minute tally by Mazzone with Heger pulled for the Scarlet Knights to stave off the rally and produce the final margin.
Smith led all competitors with seven shots. He averaged 3.53 per match his rookie year.
Robert Morris (0-1) travels to Bellarmine next Friday at 3:00 p.m. for another non-conference contest.
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