Box Score Box Score

DENVER—The Hobart lacrosse team's rally from an eight-goal third quarter deficit came up short in a 17-13 ECAC loss at Denver this afternoon. Senior Kevin Curtin led the ill-fated charge with three of his team-high five points in the late stages of the game.

Offense was the name of the game right from the opening whistle, when sophomore Bobby Dattilo scooped up the faceoff and went straight to goal for his first collegiate goal, taking just six seconds off the clock and giving Hobart the early lead. Six minutes later, senior Mike Suits scored to double the Statesmen advantage.

Denver (6-4, 1-0) netted back-to-back goals to tie the game with 4:19 remaining in the opening quarter. Senior Tyler Cassell put the Statesmen back in front with 2:45 left, but Patrick Rodgers scored the second of his three goals with 55 seconds left to send the teams into the second quarter tied 3-3.

Dattilo got off to a great start, winning five of the first seven faceoffs, but the Pioneers got the better of him in the second quarter (5 of 8) and really turned it on after halftime, winning nine of 10 in the third quarter. Denver translated those possessions into goals, outscoring Hobart 5-2 in the second quarter and 6-3 in the third.

The teams traded goals to start the second frame with Hobart forging ties at 4-all (on Curtin's first goal) and 5-all (on a strike by junior Tim Bigelow), but Denver rattled off three straight to take an 8-5 lead into halftime. Alex Demopoulos led the run with a goal and an assist.

First-year Tyler Simmons opened the second half scoring, off an assist from sophomore Chris Pedersen, but the Pioneers blitzed the Statesmen with six unanswered goals in less than three minutes to take control of the game. Demopoulos kicked things off with consecutive scores. He produced a game-high six points (4-2). Dillon Roy ended the flurry by winning the faceoff and heading straight to the cage for a 14-6 lead. He was 13-of-24 at the X and collected a game-high 12 ground balls.

Hobart (2-6, 0-3) kept fighting. Pedersen and sophomore Sam Miller scored off Curtin assists before the end of the third quarter to trim the deficit to 14-8 with 15 minutes to play.

Denver scored to start the fourth quarter, but the Statesmen struck back with four in a row from Pedersen, Cassell, Suits, and Curtin to make it a 15-12 game with 7:10 to play. Dattilo, who got back in the groove in the fourth quarter winning 7-of-8, won the ensuing faceoff and gave Hobart a chance to make it a two-goal game, but the team's first shot went wide and the Pioneers backed it up to claim possession.

Denver made the most of the opportunity, scoring with 6:00 left and again at 3:48 to put the game out of reach. Miller completed the day's scoring with 1:46 left on the clock.

Pedersen finished with four points (2-2) and a team-high seven ground balls. In addition to Miller's two goals, he also caused a team-high three turnovers. Dattilo was 16-of-32 at the X with six ground balls.

The Pioneers' Peter Lowell earned the win with 10 saves, while senior Max Silberlicht took the loss with 11 saves.

Hobart will return home for another ECAC contest on April 10, when the Ohio State Buckeyes visit McCooey Field. Faceoff is scheduled for noon.

GAME NOTES: The 13 goals are the most scored by Hobart this season, while Denver's 17 are the most against the Statesmen this year. ... The 30 combined goals is the most in a Hobart game since the Statesmen and Penn State combined for 32 goals on April 9, 2005. The Nittany Lions won that game 19-13. ... Curtin has scored at least one point in 22 consecutive games. ... Dattilo's previous career-high for faceoff attempts was 26 against Canisius last season. ... Silberlicht raised his career save total to 480, passing Mike Borsz '03 (473) for second place on Hobart's Division I list.