MILWAUKEE, Wis.—The Bellarmine lacrosse team dropped a 14-11 decision to the No. 20 Ohio State Buckeyes today in the Midwest Classic being played at Marquette.
Ohio State outscored the Knights 8-2 in the second quarter, and that disparity proved to be too great a margin to overcome as Bellarmine outscored the Buckeyes 7-4 in the second half.
Tucker Ciessau (5 goals, 2 assists) and
Jack Perkins (3 goals, 1 assist) each recorded hat tricks for the Knights, while OSU's Colin Chell led a balanced offensive attack with three goals.
Bellarmine broke out on top early, taking a 2-0 lead as Ciessau scored the first of his five goals and
Andrew Schoeneck followed with a score.
Ohio State then reeled off five straight goals, a run that spanned parts of the first and second quarters. After Ciessau notched his second score of the game, the Buckeyes unleashed another 5-0 run before Perkins scored just before halftime to make the score 10-4.
After the break, the Knights closed to within three goals, but OSU pushed the lead to 13-8 on a goal with just four seconds remaining in the third period.
Ohio State, which is ranked No. 17 in the Inside Lacrosse poll, owned a small advantage in shots (34-32), but won the ground ball battle 33-19 thanks in large part to a 22-6 advantage in faceoffs.
Max Cartor posted 10 saves in goal for the Knights, but saw his goalie record fall to 0-2 on the season.
Ohio State improved to 6-0 on the year while Bellarmine slips to 1-4.
The Knights return home for a Saturday matchup with Mount St. Mary's at noon in Owsley B. Frazier Stadium.
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BOX SCORE (HTM)
