Men’s Lacrosse Takes Medaille to School
Goalie Smolev Scores Second Goal of the Season
BY BROOK WHITMORE
 

There is a phrase that comes to mind when a team deconstructs another’s defense, shuts down their offense and wins the game. The phrase is “beat down.” 

A fine example of this was exhibited last Saturday as the Oberlin men’s lacrosse team ripped apart the visiting Medaille squad from New York in a 15-7 victory. 


(photo by Claire Sturm)

“A couple of guys had the game of their lives Saturday. Erik [Vachon] had a great game with something like four goals, Mike [Wexler] had a great game, he took smarter shots than he had been in previous games, and they paid off. He scored a season high six goals in the game. His haircut might have actually been good for his game,” junior goalkeeper David Smolev said.

“Logan Hegg, Tyler Smith, Noah Hoskins-Forsythe, and Gabe Hendricks all played pretty solid defense. And even our resident connie, Bryan ‘the ghetto-ass’ Lange scored a couple of goals,” Smolev continued to say. Oberlin was in scoring mode from the get go, in the first quarter alone they posted more goals than in the entire last game.
The visiting Medaille team started well in the first quarter, racking up three goals of their own, but Medaille’s luck was soon coming to an end. Going into the second quarter the game was tied at three apiece. The scoring continued, and Oberlin came with a barrage of attacks that stunned the struggling Medaille defense. 

The men scored on a variety of shots and plays, passing well and keeping up the hustle factor. The surge produced three more scores in the second, giving Oberlin a taste of having the lead and the scent of possible victory. The scrappy Medaille team was able to hold on by the strings of their sticks, posting another three of their own before halftime, tying the score, 6-6. 
Head Coach Jim Donovan must have put something in the water at halftime because the Yeomen entered the third quarter on fire. The squad came out with a flare of tenacity that hasn’t been seen in quite some time.

In the third quarter the defense shut down Medaille’s offense — completely. OC put up some numbers in the third that have been rarely seen, they scored five times. This gave them a runaway lead and created some breathing room, allowing people to work in positions that they are unfamiliar with.

Even with the mixed lineup the scoring couldn’t be stopped. Oberlin goal keeper David Smolev even got a chance to play offense. He proved that goalies can move too, quickly slamming one into the back of Medaille’s net. 

Smolev modestly said, “Yeah I scored my second goal of the year off a nice pass from Erik Vachon.”

As the last few minutes of the third quarter ticked away it was clear what the outcome of the game was going to be. The Yeomen had stepped up their level of play and gotten the job done.

Going into the fourth quarter the game was obviously already over — Oberlin had a commanding five-goal lead and Medaille looked like they wanted to quit and go home. This didn’t stop the attacks, though. Oberlin continued to score, netting four more goals before the final whistle blew. 

Medaille was able to squeeze off one more goal in the fourth, but no damage was done. Oberlin had officially taken the Medaille team, exploited their defense, shut down their offense, and came out with a strong victory. 

After the game, Smolev said, “It felt nice to win, we’ve been having some trouble doing that this year and it’s nice to finally see some payoff for what we’ve been doing all along.”

 

 

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