Men’s Lacrosse: Terriers Fall Short in Charles River Rivalry Against No. 4 Harvard
Featured image by Jenny Chen
By Kasie Costalas
Boston University Men’s Lacrosse (5-4, 3-2 PL) lost a hard fought battle on Tuesday evening to Harvard University (8-0). The Terriers put up a fight, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Crimson— ranked #3 in the country— in the 2nd annual Charles River Rivalry.
“Everything from what we wanted to see in this game— outside of the win— was pointed in the right direction, and now we just have to keep it going,” said BU Head Coach Ryan Polley
The Terriers took the first lead of the game, starting with a crease roll from freshman attacker Peyton Forte, and junior Jimmy Kohr followed it up with a second BU goal.
The Crimson responded with a three goal run, but Kohr— this time assisted by sophomore attacker Timothy Shannehan— managed to score off a quickstick shot. Harvard regained a short-lived lead, but some long pole chemistry allowed the Terriers to tie it 4-4 before the first quarter expired.
BU defender Logan Styles stripped the ball from the Crimson with a perfectly-timed back check. As the Terriers pushed the transition opportunity, defender and senior captain, Connor Kehm, collected a ground ball near the top of the box and ripped a shot to score for the first time in his career.
Back and forth goals kept the pressure high in a low-scoring second frame.
It didn’t take long for midfielder Sam Burnes to reclaim the Terriers’ lead. Harvard scored on a speedy self-start from the endline, but Forte added his second goal to make it 5-4 going into the half.
The third quarter told a different story. The Crimson shifted the game’s momentum with 5 unanswered goals. Harvard’s goalie, Graham Stevens, only let up on two BU shots towards the end of the period. The sophomore made it difficult on the Terriers’ attack as he set a career high with 23 saves, totaling 67% for the day.
Down by two going into the final 15 minutes of play, BU was determined to fight to the end. Sophomore midfielder Andrew Pape used his signature left-handed cannon to score from up top for the Terriers. On the next possession, an extra man opportunity provided the perfect look for Shannehan, who was unguarded as he collected a pass on the doorstep, tying the game 10-10.
Despite only 11 turnovers from BU— a substantial improvement after an uncharacteristic 20 over the weekend— errors peaked in the fourth quarter to shut them out of a win.
“We had two [turnovers] at just really critical moments, both in one goal games, and they both turned into goals,” Polley said.
A throw away pass from the Terriers’ attack proved to be costly as the Crimson found a goal coming off the fastbreak. Harvard followed it up by capitalizing on the 10 man ride and scored on an empty net from behind the midfield.
Although Pape found one more goal to lead BU for the day with four points, the Crimson managed their clock well. With two final goals to end the game 14-11, Harvard secured their undefeated streak and handed the Terriers their second straight loss for the first time this season.
“We’re in a great position,” Polley said. “I know our record is a little disappointing at 5-4…but we’re 3-1 in the Patriot League, still in first place. We control our own destiny.”
The Terriers will travel to Baltimore and resume conference play on April 4 in their next game against Loyola Maryland.