Men’s Lacrosse’s Record-Breaking Season Closes at #17 Endicott in CCC Semifinals

BEVERLY, Mass. – A record-breaking season for the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team came to a close Wednesday afternoon in the CCC semifinals as the Endicott Gulls used a second-half surge to rally past the Leopards, 14-11.

With the loss, the Black & Gold complete the 2024 campaign with a 13-6 record, the program's best-ever mark, while the Gulls host the CCC title game with a 15-1 mark.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• After Wentworth took a 1-0 lead just 22 seconds into the contest, Endicott took a 2-1 lead by the 12:47 mark on tallies by sophomore Tommy Tyksinski (Guiderland, N.Y.) and junior Cam Fernandez (Mendham, N.J.). The Leopards knotted the score at the 9:07 mark on a goal by freshman Brendan Kroll (Wakefield, R.I.) before the two teams again traded scores to push the game to 3-3. The Black & Gold regained their lead as junior Kobi Buffa (Craryville, N.Y.) scored with nine seconds left in the frame, marking a 4-3 score.
• Buffa and Kroll tallied for the Leopards early in the second quarter, giving the Black & Gold a 6-3 lead by the 8:53 mark, before Fernandez cut the Gulls' deficit with a goal at the 7:01 mark. Buffa tallied again with the man-up at the 3:09 mark to give the Leopards a 7-4 advantage by the halfway point.
• Endicott rattled off four straight goals in the third frame, including two by junior Guerin Favreau (Woodstock Valley, Conn.), to take an 8-7 lead by the end of the third quarter. A goal by senior Nick Pagluiso (Shelton, Conn.) pushed the Gulls' lead to 9-7 at the 11:59 mark of the fourth quarter.
• After a Leopard tally at the 10:03 mark of the final frame cut the deficit to 9-8, sophomore Nick Graap (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) scored two goals for Endicott in a 3-0 run to give the hosts a 12-8 lead. Kroll scored two straight for the Leopards, cutting the deficit to 12-10 by the 4:10 mark, before two Tyksinski tallies sandwiched another Leopard goal and earned Endicott a 14-11 win.
• Junior Tom Gardner (West Windsor, N.J.) made a career-high 25 saves in the loss, beating his previous best set against the Gulls on April 24. Gardner set new program record in wins in a season (13) as well as total saves in a season (264). Despite being limited at the X, senior Connor Charron (Tewksbury, Mass.) finishes his historic season currently ranked 38^th in faceoff win percentage across the Division III landscape, totaling 268 wins this season and 561 across his career.

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