NEWPORT, R.I. – Mount Ida College men's lacrosse opened their season at the annual Frostbite Classic and took a 2-0 lead on host Salve Regina University, but were ultimately victimized by a late Seahawks goal and suffered a 7-6 defeat in their 2016 opener, a non-conference tilt.
Junior attack Nick LoCicero (Lynbrook, N.Y.) broke a 6-6 tie late in the fourth quarter for the Seahawks, who start the season 4-0 and improve to 7-3 all time in the series.
LoCicero also collected four ground balls for the Seahawks, while sophomore Alex Makoske (Shoreham, N.Y.) notched two assists and four GB's.
After seeing a 2-0 lead slip away into a one-goal halftime deficit, Mount Ida continued to answer the bell and stop Salve from pulling away.
Every time the Seahawks looked like they were going to pull away, the Mustangs were able to answer and keep the game close. Stralka scored his third goal of the game with 5:20 to go in the fourth to tie the game 6-6, capping a 2-0 run for the Mustangs.
The game had the feel like it was destined for overtime, but 48 seconds later Nick LoCicero took a pass from Andrew Fera (Crantson, R.I.) and fired it in from point blank range to give the Seahawks the lead.
The Seahawks outshot the Mustangs 43-25 and were able to convert 2-7 man up situations while the Mustangs were 0-4 with the man advantage.
Cam Hayward (Derry, N.H.) made 15 saves in the game for the Mustangs. His play kept Mount Ida close, turning away some excellent chances from the Seahawks.
The Mustangs held a 9-7 advantage in faceoffs. Alex Zito (Marlboro, Mass.) won all nine for the Mustangs while Jake Gonzalez (Tolland, Conn.) and Luc Copeland (Climax, Mich.) combined for the Seahawks seven faceoff wins.
Matt D'Amore (Duxbury, Mass.) made eight stops for the Seahawks to improve to 4-0 on the season.
With two more goals Sharp Jones (Scituate, Mass.) continues to lead the Seahawks in points and goals this season. He has 14 goals and 16 total points so far in 2016.
The Mustang's early 2-0 lead was the largest deficit the Seahawks had faced all season.
Next up for Mount Ida is another road date on Saturday, a 1:00 pm non-conference affair at Becker.
Salve looks to stay undefeated at noon on Saturday at Farmingdale State.