WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Palm Beach Atlantic men's lacrosse team hosted the Florida Southern Mocs on Saturday night. After a close contest, the Mocs scored six consecutive goals in the last ten minutes of the game. The Sailfish were defeated in their first conference game at home, dropping the contest 16-11.
PBA was up early in the game after Bryce Downs's first goal of the night. With seven minutes left of the quarter, Florida Southern scored its first goal. The Mocs quickly extended their lead to 3-1, forcing the 'Fish to take a timeout. Patrick Law responded to the timeout after Downs dragged three defenders to him before passing to an open Law who could shoot in the net. With three minutes left of the frame, Downs attacked from behind the cage, shooting to tie the game, 3-3. The Mocs responded to the Sailfish goals by scoring late in the quarter to regain the lead, 4-3.
The Sailfish had a slow start to the second quarter and allowed the Mocs to net two early goals. PBA took another timeout, hoping to turn the game around. Curtis Goddard responded with a move around his defender before shooting into the net. Keegan Southard followed up with a goal of his own before Goddard tied the game with another successful shot, 6-6. The last five minutes of the second frame were a back-and-forth affair with both teams making their attempts. PBA entered the halftime break tied 8-8 to Florida Southern.
PBA started the first two minutes of the third quarter with a man down. They stopped the Mocs from scoring within those minutes and garnered the lead after Cooper Porter ran to the middle of the field and got a shot off. The game continued to be close throughout the quarter, but PBA entered the last frame with a lead, 10-9.
The last quarter started as a close contest, with both teams being compact in defense. Goddard netted his third goal with ten minutes left, looking to give PBA its first victory in the SSC of the season. PBA was up 11-10 before the Mocs picked up their intensity. The 'Fish could not respond to the Mocs' energy at the end of the game and fell short 16-11.
The Palm Beach Atlantic men's lacrosse team is back in action on Wednesday night when it travels to Melbourne to face Florida Tech. The game is set for 7:30 p.m. (EST).
