AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – It was a tough day offensively for Bellarmine as they fell at Air Force 18-6 in Atlantic Sun men's lacrosse competition on Saturday.
 
"This was a really disappointing effort by our team," said Bellarmine head coach Andrew Whitley. "We played well at the start and had some great chances offensively early in the game followed up by some good stops defensively."
 
Bellarmine (6-7, 0-2 ASUN) entered averaging 11.75 goals over their first 12 games, but Air Force (3-7, 1-1 ASUN) held them to their second-lowest scoring output of the season. The 18 goals by the Falcons were the third-most by a Knights opponent in 2025.
 
"Our lack of poise and composure as the game wore on was really disconcerting as we started to make physical errors which then were compounded by mental errors and the game got away from us," said Whitley. "That showed up in the fact that we failed seven clears and you can't win a game giving away that many second chance opportunities."
 
On the other side, AFA converted 21 of 22 clear attempts.
 
The momentum of the game was determined at the outset as the Falcons outscored the Knights 3-0 in the first, marking Bellarmine's first scoreless period since the fourth quarter of their 12-5 win at Queens last March 23.
 
Justin Wescoat finally got the Knights on the board, beating Falcons keeper Jake Marek from 15 yards out with 12:41 left in the second quarter.
 
Ezra Moore would also net a pair of goals in the second, but Air Force scored five times in the frame, including two by unanimous Preseason All-ASUN selection Josh Yago, en route to an 8-3 halftime advantage.
 
Air Force would hold Bellarmine scoreless for a full quarter once again coming out of the locker room, owning a 5-0 advantage in the third as Yago, Ryan Stadelmaier and Caelan Driggs each reached hat trick status while helping AFA carry a 13-3 lead into the fourth.
 
John Alie, who entered with the second-highest goal total in the nation at 38, did not register a goal until his sixth shot, coming with 14:07 left in the game and would add his second exactly five minutes later.
 
Joe Alie added a single goal in the game's waning minutes, though the Falcons added five more scores in the fourth to win comfortably by the 18-6 final.
 
Overall, the Knights shot .214, well under their season average of .323, which was 10^th-best in the nation and tops in the ASUN entering the game.
 
In addition to the Knights' shooting woes, the advantage in the possession game belonged to the Falcons.
 
"We missed multiple first-time ground balls and Air Force converted those extra possessions into goals over the course of the game," Whitley said.
 
The Falcons picked up 57.1 percent of the ground balls overall and won 68.0 percent of the faceoffs.
 
In the cage, freshman keeper Nolan Hudnut registered 10 saves to give him 169 on the season, passing JC Higginbotham (167) for the second-most saves in a season by a Knight.
 
His counterpart, Marek, finished with 12 saves.
 
Yago and Driggs each finished with four goals, with Yago dishing out a game-high three assists.
 
"We are way better than we played today which is why it was such a frustrating performance," Whitley concluded. "I honestly think we need to work on our poise and composure because I do believe we possess the physical capability. That will be a theme next week as prepare. We will be the biggest determinant of the outcome of the next three games."
 
Bellarmine will play two out of three at home to finish the regular season, returning to Frazier Stadium next Saturday, April 12 to continue ASUN action against Mercer at 12 p.m. ET. After two conference games, Bellarmine is tied with Queens for fifth while the top four teams will earn spots in the conference tournament.
 
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