ADRIAN, Mich. - At Docking Stadium, the Adrian men's lacrosse team continued to flex its muscles defensively, holding the visiting Hanover College Panthers to one first-period goal en route to a 9-1 victory.
It is the second consecutive game in which the Bulldogs have limited their opposition to only a single goal, and third-straight instance of surrendering less than five goals. In fact, over its last three outings, Adrian has outscored its opponents 52-6.
The Panthers drew first blood on Saturday afternoon, successfully firing a shot past the black and gold netminder after 73 seconds of action. It would not take long, however, for the 'Dogs to find an equalizer, as
Chris French struck for his first mark of the day just eight seconds later.
After going scoreless the remainder of the opening quarter, the home side went to work quickly to begin the second frame. With a Panther in the penalty box, Michael Jones and French connected on back-to-back goals 23 seconds apart to give Adrian a 3-1 advantage. Then, two minutes later,
Peyton Gasche found a cutting
Brett Koczenasz, who finished off the play with an impressive diving effort to bring the lead up to three.
French went on to tally his third and final goal of the contest in the latter stages of the first half, sending the 'Dogs into the locker room up 5-1.
The third quarter was a quiet 15 minutes, though five total penalties did create several man-advantage opportunities for both sides.
Jake Coakley nabbed the lone goal of the quarter seven minutes in, his ninth of the season.
Finally, in the fourth quarter,
Owen Kelly, Koczenasz and Gasche each tacked one to put the game on ice.
All told, Adrian finished with 53 shots to Hanover's 25, while also holding the Panthers 0-for-9 on powerplay chances.
In goal,
Sam Spangler recorded his seventh win of 2022, stopping 10 shots.
The Bulldogs return to competition on March 30 when they travel to Greenville, Pennsylvania to challenge Thiel College.
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