Mulcahy's Overtime Score Gives Drexel a 12-11 Win in CAA Opener

Saturday, March 18

Towson, Md.

12 p.m.

Drexel University

4-3, 1-0CAA

Towson

1-6, 0-1CAA

Drexel

Towson

Mulcahy's Overtime Score Gives Drexel a 12-11 Win in CAA Opener

3/18/2023 2:18:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

Box Score

TOWSON, Md. – Jack Mulcahy picked up a loose ball in front of the cage and scored on a back-handed flip 46 seconds into overtime as Drexel defeated Towson in its Colonial Athletic Association opener, 12-11. Luke Tomak scored three times and Ross Blumenthal made 15 saves in the victory for the Dragons at Johnny Unitas Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Drexel led by three after Tomak completed his hat trick with 1:06 to play in the fourth quarter. However, the Tigers won the face-off and proceeded to score three goals in a span of 26 seconds to force the overtime period. Kyle Berkeley started the run with his fourth goal of the game with just 49 seconds to play. The Tigers got possession again and Sam Morin scored 13 seconds later. The long stick was at it again with just 23 seconds to play as he scored his third of the game and knotted the contest at 11-11. Drexel won the face-off in overtime and on the first possession, Casey Waller had his shot blocked. After a scrum in front of the cage, Mulcahy picked up the ball and somehow flicked it past Towson's Evan Long to give Drexel the win.

Drexel led by as many as six goals midway through the third quarter and appeared to be in control of the game. The Dragons scored three straight goals to make it a 9-3 lead with 8:17 to play in the third. Casey Waller. Max Semple and Sean Curcio each found the net during the DU run. However, Towson scored three straight in a stretch of just 1:38 to end the quarter to trim the deficit to three. The Tigers then opened the scoring in the fourth quarter on an Alex Reid score making the score 9-7. Curcio answered again with a bounce shot from about 10 yards away to increase the Drexel lead to three. Drexel held that cushion for almost seven minutes before Joaquin Villagomez found the cage with just under four minutes to go, which set up the drama that came in the final two minutes.

The teams were scoreless for the first 11 minutes of the game before Drexel's Tristan Plotts scored his first goal of the season from in close. Right after the ensuing face-off, a Towson player was called for a two-minute non-releasable penalty, and the Dragons cashed in. Tomak scored two goals on the extra man giving Drexel a 3-0 lead. He scored the first from Jack Mulcahy on the left side from about seven yards out. The second came from the same spot, this time set up by Sean Donnelly.
Towson's Morin answered with a transition goal just 10 seconds after the penalty expired. The Tigers then make it a one-goal game early in the second when Berkeley converted a Jonathan Bender feed, making it 3-2. The score remained the same until the Dragons had their third extra-man goal of the half. Donnelly found Zach Augustine and the junior scored for the second time this year. The Dragons netted a late goal when Mulcahy hit the cross bar and George Grippo was right there to put home the rebound with just five seconds to play to make it 5-2.

Tomak led the Dragons with four points and had his second career hat trick. Donnelly had two assits and three points. Luke Carden picked up a career-high five ground balls. Blumenthal had another solid outing in the cage. He had his third game of the year with at least 15 saves. The fifth-year senior made a few point blank saves in the second and third quarter as the Dragons started to increase their lead.

Berkeley had six points to lead all players. The Tigers won 17 of the 26 face-offs and outshot Drexel, 48-42, in the game. They fired 29 of those shots in the second half.

The Dragons are back in action Saturday at Vidas Field. Drexel will host Hampton in a Colonial Athletic Association game at 11 a.m.