EMMITSBURG, Md.—The Hobart College lacrosse team suffered a 15-14 Northeast Conference loss at Mount St. Mary's University this afternoon. The Statesmen had two excellent scoring opportunities snuffed out by backup goalie Matt Vierheller in the final 72 seconds of regulation.
 
Junior faceoff specialist Matthew Pedicine tied Hobart's Division I record for ground balls in a game with 16. He equaled Tim Booth's 2001 record (vs. Loyola) and matched by Bobby Dattilo in 2012 (vs. Robert Morris). Pedicine, who now has 82 ground balls on the season, leapt up from 18th to eighth on Hobart's Division I season list. He entered the game sixth in the nation in faceoff winning percentage and stayed hot at the X, winning 20-of-31 faceoffs against the Mountaineers.
 
Hobart senior long-stick midfielder Christopher Willman had a pair of caused turnovers, raising his career total to 50. He's just the third Statesman to reach that milestone, joining Arik Andreen '17 (61) and Sean Regan '13 (60). Willman also picked up a pair of ground balls and scored a goal in the second quarter.
 
Sophomore Eric Holden led the offense with two goals and three assists. Juniors Chris Aslanian and Koko Avedisian, sophomore Justin Scott and first-year Ryan Archer each contributed three points. Avedisian, Archer and Scott all scored a pair of goals with an assist, while Aslanian scored once and dished out two helpers.
 
The Statesmen slip to 4-8 on the season, 1-3 in the NEC. All three of Hobart's conference losses have been by a single goal.
 
Hobart built a 2-0 lead before the game was four minutes old thanks to goals by senior Mason Burr and Aslanian, but Mount St. Mary's (4-8, 1-3) countered with three straight for a 3-2 lead at the end of 15 minutes.
 
Willman tied the game early in the second, but the Mountaineers surged ahead with six consecutive goals. Joe Bethke started the run with back-to-back goals and Chris DiPretoro capped it with consecutive scores of his own. DiPretoro finished with four goals. Junior Stanny Gilbertson got one back for the Statesmen before halftime, sending the visitors into the break down 9-4.
 
Hobart flipped the script in the third quarter, starting the frame with a 6-1 run that tied the game at 10. Archer finished a feed from Aslanian to open the second half scoring. Holden had a hand in the next three goals, scoring off an Aslanian assist at the 9:30 mark, setting up a tally by junior Bryan Hancock 21 seconds later, and firing home a pass from Avedisian with just under four minutes left in the third. Mount St. Mary's got one back, but Avedisian and senior J. Andrew Spallanzani hit the back of the net 18 seconds apart in the final minute to draw Hobart even. The Mountaineers reclaimed the lead with 16 seconds left in the quarter.
 
Early in the fourth quarter, Scott tied the game at 11, but Mount St. Mary's rattled off four straight goals in a span of less than three minutes. Brendan McCarthy, who had a game-high seven points on a goal and six assists, led the charge with a goal and two assists.
 
Hobart rallied again with Avedisian, Archer and Scott scoring in succession to close the gap to just one with 2:34 remaining. Avedisian's goal chased the Mountaineers' starting goalie, Dylan Furnback (5 saves), from the game. Vierheller came on in relief and made two critical saves in the final 72 seconds. Holden took the first shot from 7-yards out. His sidearm offering was at Vierheller's feet, but the senior got his stick down to stop the shot. Aslanian took the final shot of the game, launching a jump shot with about eight seconds left, but Vierheller made the stop to preserve the victory.
 
The Statesmen will make their final road trip of the regular season on Saturday, April 21, when they visit Bryant (6-6, 4-1). The opening faceoff in Smithfield, R.I., is scheduled for 2 p.m.