Wheeling, W. Va. - Over the last year and a half, the Men's Lacrosse program has been in a rebuilding phase as they acquired talent to build a competitive team in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC). The fruits of that labor are beginning to show as the Wheeling Men's Lacrosse team (3-8, 1-3) enters the final two weeks of the season with their GMAC playoff hopes still very much alive. They hit the road for the biggest game of the year for the team so far when they take on Walsh in North Canton, Ohio at 1 PM.
The Cardinals pulled off a big win their last time out when they took down GMAC opponent Davis & Elkins 16-6 last Saturday at Bishop Schmitt Field. It was the most goals scored in a game by Wheeling since March 31st, 2019, when they beat Dominican (NY.) in overtime 17-16. The Cardinals came out strong in the first half, scoring eight goals over the first 30 minutes, with the most exciting one coming in the final second of the second quarter on a mid-field shot. They led 8-0 at halftime and were able to hold on to win 16-6. It was their first GMAC win of the season and set them up for an exciting finish to the season.
Leading the way for the Cardinals once again was sophomore Mike Andersson, who scored a team-high five goals on the day and tied for the team lead with six points. It was Andersson's fifth hat trick in his last six games and marked the seventh consecutive multi-goal game for the sophomore. He now has 30 goals this season as he almost doubled his output last season. He is just 15 goals away from the single season record of 45 recorded by Derek Downs during the 2018 season. Andersson has been one of the top goal scorers for the team this season and ranks fifth in the conference in goals scored this season.
It was also a big showing for fellow sophomore Bordy Fawver, who turned in his best game of the season. He scored four goals on the day and one assist to finish with five points and wrap up a strong day. Jacob Knippel was the final Cardinal to register a hat trick on the day, scoring three goals and leading the way with three assists on the day. He tied with Andersson putting up six points as the Cardinals had their highest offensive output of the season. On the defensive end, Matt Anderson played lock down defense for the first half, holding Davis & Elkins' top scorer off the board. He also scored the midfield goal at halftime that made it an eight-point lead as the teams broke for the locker room.
The effort has set up this big time matchup for the second to last week of the season as both Walsh and Wheeling look to keep their playoff hopes alive. Walsh currently holds the fourth spot in the conference at 2-2 and Wheeling sits a game behind them at 1-3. If Wheeling wins, they will tie with Walsh for the fourth spot in the conference heading into the final week of the season. It would set up a final week of the year where a win or a Walsh loss would get the Cardinals into the GMAC tournament for the first time since 2018.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Cavaliers will be meeting for the ninth time in team history on Saturday with the Cardinals leading the all-time series at 6-2 overall. They have equal 3-1 records in Wheeling and on the road when they play Walsh and are averaging 13 goals per game against the team. However, Wheeling is looking for their first win against the Cavaliers since March 24th, 2018, when they picked up a 17-11 win at Bishop Schmitt Field. Last season, it was Walsh that got the better of Wheeling 21-4.
The four Cardinals goals came from four different players as they scored all four of their goals in the second half. Former Cardinal Braiden Struss got the scoring started in the third before Mike Andersson added his lone goal. The Cardinals also got goals from former Cardinal Robert Ros and Jake Wodarek to end the day as they couldn't keep up with the Walsh offensive attack.
The Details
The Opening Face-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 1 PM on the campus of Walsh University. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
