The men's lacrosse team defeated the Caldwell University Cougars,19-9, this afternoon in the first-ever match between the two programs. Molloy jumped to 3-6 this season with the victory while Caldwell slipped to 2-3. How it Happened The Lions came out of the gate roaring, scoring seven goals in the first quarter off the stick of seven different scorers in freshman attacker Michael Rodin, freshman midfielder Chris Delaney, graduate student midfielder Colin Kotarski, senior midfielder Jack Egan, senior midfielder Nick Del Giorno, junior attacker Richie Polizzi Jr., and junior attacker Brian Ford. The momentum from the first quarter carried into the second as Ford, Kotarski, and freshman midfielder Brendan McDonough scored the next three goals before Caldwell found the back of the net for the first time, setting the score at 10-1 with just about seven minutes left in the first half. The maroon and white ended the first half with three unanswered goals, taking a 13-1 lead into the break. The maroon and white had one more trick up their sleeve before the first half ended as freshman attacker Jason Rebaudo found the back of the net twice and coupled with another goal from Del Giorno saw the Lions hold the 13-1 advantage at halftime, their biggest all season. The third quarter saw the Lions and Cougars exchange the first two goals, but another set of goals from Ford and Delaney allowed Molloy to continue to hold its double-digit advantage, up 16-2 entering the final frame. Caldwell scored the first three goals of the first quarter, but a goal from freshman attacker Rob Del Giorno and another goal from the senior Del Giorno and Ford saw Molloy to the 19-9 win 19-9, its highest goal total of the season. Key Performers Senior Del Giorno and Ford each set career-highs with four goals while Rebaudo, Delaney, and Kotarski each found the back of the net twice and Rebaudo adding a game-high four assists for six points. Rodin, Polizzi, Egan, the younger Del Giorno, and freshman Brendan McDonough each added goals. On the defensive side of the field, sophomore midfielder Thomas Mauro continued his dominance at the face-ff dot, going 12-of-16 while leading the squad with five ground balls. Freshman Hunter Irving added four face-off wins and three ground balls while freshman long stick midfielder Denver Tveter had the only caused turnover for the Lions. Molloy used all four of its goalies today with freshman Adam Hyman leading the way with 10 saves and the victory and junior James O'Grady stopped four. What's Next Molloy will return home for its final game at John A. Darcy Field for the year when they welcome Walsh University to town on Saturday (Apr. 17) at 12:00 p.m. This game will also count towards the ECC-GMAC Challenge Cup.