Wheeling, W. Va. - After starting the season 0-3, the Wheeling University Men's Lacrosse team (1-3, 0-0) was looking for their first win to get that monkey off their back. They were able to do that and much more as they defeated D'Youville University 29-10 at Bishop Schmitt Field. The Cardinals scored the most goals that they have scored in a game since the 2016 season and fell just four goals shy of the program team scoring record, which was set against Davis & Elkins back in 2016.
After falling behind 1-0 early, the Cardinals came soaring back, led by sophomore Ty Taylor, who was one of two Cardinals to break the single-game scoring record with nine goals on the night. After the team fell behind 1-0 early, it was Taylor who provided the spark early. With Wheeling ahead 3-1, Taylor found the net for the first time, to push Wheeling ahead 3-1. After Jacob Knippel got on the board, Taylor would go off, scoring three straight goals, giving him four before the team broke for the locker room. In the second half, it was Taylor once again who got things started, scoring two more goals in under a minute, putting him just one goal away from tying the program record. He would tie the program record at the 10:46 mark of the third quarter and four minutes later the moment happened. Mike Andersson, who also tied the single game goal record, would pass Taylor the ball and the sophomore took his shot. He connected on his eighth goal of the day, making him the new single game scoring leader. HE would add one more goal to his effort, and finished the day with nine goals, setting a career-high and tying for the single-game scoring record.
The other Cardinal to break the record on the day was junior Mike Andersson, who would get the scoring started for the Cardinals. After they fell behind 1-0, Andersson would take a pass from Brenner Chase and found the net to tie things at 1-1. Andersson was pretty much held in check during the first half, adding two more goals before halftime to give him three for the day. Andersson would score his fourth goal of the day at the 8:51 mark of the quarter, before assisting Ty Taylor's record-breaking goal. With Taylor already holding the record, Andersson was looking to come back and make history of his own. He would follow Taylor with his fifth goal of the day to end the third quarter and heading into the fourth, Andersson was sitting at six goals. He needed three to tie Taylor and got one step closer with 9:33 to go as he made a move and got in the net. As the eight-minute mark ticked away, Andersson was still sitting at seven and would rattle off two goals over the next minute to get to nine for the game. Once he reached the mark, Andersson came out of the game and ended tied with Taylor for the single-game goal record at nine.
Along with their top two scorers, the Cardinals had four other players finishing in double figures on the day. Dakota Strong scored his first goal of the season to give Wheeling their first lead of the day and came back with another shot before halftime. It was Strong's first career multi-goal game as he put together a solid effort from the midfield. Jacob Knippel and Brenner Chase each added two goals on the night, with Chase recording his first multi-goal game of the season. Jack Rowe was the final multi-goal scorer for the Cardinals, finishing with the first two goals of his collegiate career. Both goals came in the final quarter of play, as Rowe took a pass from Aidan Grubler and Jake Wodarek to find the back of the net in the fourth quarter.
The final three goal scorers on the day for the Cardinals were Wodarek, Brody Fawver, and Owen Doyle, each adding one goal to the effort. For Doyle, it was his first career goal and came in the fourth quarter as Head Coach Gage Bradshaw got to go to his bench. For the Cardinals, the 29 goals were the most scored in a game since the 2016 season and had them finish just four goals away from the program record of 33, set during the 2016 season. It was a big win for the Cardinals as they got their first win of the season heading into a big game with Chowan.
Aside from all the goals scored, the Cardinals also had big efforts in the passing game, with three different Cardinals finishing with three assists. Jacob Knippel, Jake Wodarek, and Jack Rowe all finished with three assists on the night, while Andersson, Taylor, Fawver, Adam Zdanowicz, Aidan Grubler, and Justin Stewart all finished with one. Zach Smiley led the defensive unit with three caused turnovers and Gabriel Hennin added two caused turnovers on the day. Goalkeeper Austin Hall got the win, making nine saves on 16 shots faced, while Joshua Wolford (1 save, 3 shots) and Thai Pay (1 save, 2 shots) each saw time in the second half.
The Wheeling University Men's Lacrosse team returns to action on Sunday, March 6th, when they hit the road to face Chowan with opening faceoff scheduled for noon.
