LOUISVILE, Ky. –The Bellarmine Knights came out on the short end of an exciting 15-14 lacrosse game against Detroit Mercy on Saturday afternoon in Owsley B. Frazier Stadium.
 
After a back and forth affair, the difference came down to the final possession with Detroit's Matthew Vangalen taking a feed from AJ Van Voorhis and short-hopping a shot into the goal with just nine seconds remaining in the game.
 
Bellarmine had enjoyed the upper hand most of the game, at one point owing a 9-5 advantage before the Titans stormed back to tie the game at 10 apiece with 4:26 left in the third. After that, each team enjoyed leads, but neither could get any separation.
 
Detroit Mercy took its first lead of the game at 11-10 with 4:09 left in the third quarter, but the Knights pulled even to make the score 11-11 heading into the fourth. 
 
In the final stanza, Detroit Mercy drew first blood on a Brett Erskine goal at the 13:31 mark, but the Knights reeled off two in a row with Blake Roshkowski notching both goals to take a 13-12 lead.
 
The Titans answered with two goals in less than minute to wrestle the lead away, but Bellarmine freshman Riley Seay scored his fifth goal of the game with just 45 seconds remaining to give the game its sixth tie. 
 
Detroit Mercy won the ensuing faceoff, and called a timeout after advancing the ball to their offensive end. The Titans then worked the ball around until Vangalen unleashed his game-winning shot.
 
"We had adversity hit the past week with some injuries to key players," said Bellarmine Coach Jim Mitchell. "Multiple guys stepped up today, and I'm proud of how the team competed. There is no quit in this group, and we will keep fighting."
 
One of the areas affected by the Bellarmine injuries was at the faceoff position, and the Titans took full advantage, winning 27 of 33.  Those extra possessions led to a 50-34 advantage in shots for Detroit Mercy, but Bellarmine goalie Jordan Dondoyano helped keep the Knights competitive with 20 saves on the day.
 
Offensively, several players had big days.  For the Titans, Vangalen had an eight-point day with three goals and five assists while Erskine finished with five goals and an assist.  Bellarmine's Seay totaled seven points with two assists to go with his five goals. Other top performers included Ian Miller with two goals and two assists while Roshkowski recorded a hat trick. Landon Trout dished out three assists, and Morgan Macko and Stephen Votto each tallied two goals and an assist.
 
The loss drops the Knights to 0-5 on the season while the Titans improve to 3-1.
 
Bellarmine returns to action next Saturday at Utah. Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m. (ET).

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