Box Score

SELINSGROVE, Pa. – A low-scoring first half turned into a second-half frenzy as Susqehanna men's lacrosse held off Merchant Marine 6-3 to win its first-ever Landmark Conference title on Saturday afternoon.

The No. 3 seed Crusaders (12-6) scored the game's first goal as Connor Moran (Delafield, Wisc. / Kettle Moraine) found the back of the net from a feed by John Kerrigan (Maple Glen, Pa./La Salle College HS) to give SU a 1-0 lead at 11:25 in the opening period.

Neither team found the back of the net for the rest of the first half as the Crusaders went into halftime with a 1-0 edge.

SU opened up the second half with a score only 13 seconds into the action as Moran ripped in his second of the game, this time assisted by Tylere Fritts (Chatham, N.Y. / Chatham). Austen Lein (New Vernon, N.J. / Madison) scored consecutive goals less than one minute apart to give the Crusaders a 3-0 lead with 10:59 to go in the third quarter.

The No. 4 seed Mariners (9-8) got on the board with a man-up score at 4:34 to trim their deficit to 3-1.

Merchant Marine then scored back-to-back goals in the fourth quarter to get within one (4-3) with 5:39 to go in the championship contest. But the Crusaders responded with a pair of scores off the sticks of Lein and Moran to ice the game and seal their first conference title.

Moran and Lein both recorded hat-tricks as the combination accounted for all SU's goals. Ryan Natusch (Madison, Conn. / Daniel Hand) chipped in with two assists and Carmen Raroha (Voorhees, N.J. / Bishop Eustace) added a helper.

Lein led all players with five ground balls and Marcus Cheatham (Reisterstown, Md. / Loyola) had a game-high three caused turnovers. Will Torrence (Wallingford, Pa. / Strath Haven) faced 11 shots and made eight saves in goals for SU.