Buccaneers Defeat Vikings 23-9

SALEM, Mass. -- Mitchell Maida (Burlington, Mass.) and Spencer Jones (Hyannis, Mass.) combined for nine goals and three assists as Mass Maritime cruised to a 23-9 win over Salem State in the inaugural game of 2021 men's lacrosse season. The Buccaneers (1-0) raced out to 7-0 lead and held an 11-4 halftime advantage before settling for the 14-goal victory.

Maida opened up the game with back-to-back scores and tallied three of Mass Maritime's first five goals as the Buccaneers built a 5-0 lead with 5:51 remaining in the first period.  Colby Unterstein (Ellington, Conn.) and Gage Coolahan (Abingdon, Md.) notched two more scores before Kevin Albert (Canton, Mass.) and Patrick Guinee (Gloucester, Mass.) put Salem State on the board, making the score. 7-2. Following two more Mass Maritime goals, Guinee added his second score and Preston Dougherty (Upton, Mass.) answered another Buccaneers' spurt with his first of the game as the Vikings (0-1) trailed 11-4 heading into halftime.

Maida and Jones continued the Mass Maritime attack in the third, starting a string of six unanswered goals to push the lead to 17-4 with 5:59 left. Aidan Hollingsworth (Methuen, Mass.) got one back for Salem State before Hunter Spencer (Beverly, Mass.) closed the quarter with successive man-up goals.

Spencer added his third of the game early in the fourth to draw the Vikings closer, but Mass Maritime closed out the game with a 5-0 run, making the final 23-9.

Viktor Wright (Plymouth, Mass.) earned the win in net for the Buccaneers, making 11 saves. Jon Crutchfield (Boylston, Mass.) took the loss in goal for Salem State, stopping 15 shots. Colby Spear (Chicopee, Mass.) and Derek Martineau (Saugus, Mass.) combined to stop eight shots in relief for the Vikings.

Inside The Numbers

• Mass Maritime owned the faceoff circle (25-35), led by Colby Unterstein (Ellington, Conn.) – who went 17-18 with 18 groundballs.
• The Buccaneers combined for 59 groundballs while owning a 60-31 advantage in shots
• Ryan Cameron (Franklin, Mass.), Trey Guerrini (Foxborough, Mass.), Alexandre Lucas (Walpole, Mass.) and Colby Unterstein (Ellington, Conn.) all notched two goals apiece while Unterstein had a four assist night for Mass Maritime. 
• Spencer finished with three goals while Dougherty and Patrick Guinee added two apiece for Salem State.