Box Score FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Tristan Sperry turned and fired the game-winning goal one minute into the second overtime period as the Fairfield University men's lacrosse team outlasted visiting Delaware, 12-11, on Saturday afternoon at Rafferty Stadium. Sperry and Drew Federico each tallied four points for the Stags in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) win.
Sperry and Federico each scored two goals and handed out two assists for Fairfield (8-5, 3-1 CAA). The Stags also got a pair of markers from TJ Neubauer and Joe Rodrigues, who picked up an assist for a career-best three points on the day. Colin McLinden, Dave Fleming, Nick Guida and Jake Knostman also scored goals for Fairfield.
Neubauer also collected six ground balls, and Sperry picked up four as Fairfield battled to a 40-24 advantage in that category.
The Stags were dominant at the faceoff 'X', led by a 16-for-24 showing from Will Fox. The three-time CAA Rookie of the Week also hauled in 10 ground balls off of draws. Joe DeLasho added a 3-for-3 day in the circle to round out Fairfield's 19-for-27 (.704) win percentage.
Tyler Behring made 10 saves between the posts with two ground balls. Also on the defensive end, Matt Borda picked up three ground balls and Tom Lukacovic recorded a pair of caused turnovers.
The Delaware (4-10, 0-4 CAA) offense was run through Beau Jones, who scored a goal to go along with five assists. Brett Anton made 16 saves for the Blue Hens.
The squads traded the first six goals of the day before McLinden's tally in the closing seconds of the first quarter staked the Stags to a 4-3 lead after 15 minutes of action. The marker was also the start of a four-spurt with Federico, Neubauer and Rodrigues (man-up) all finding the back of the net to extend the Fairfield advantage to 7-3 with 10 minutes to play in the opening half. Though Delaware would net a pair before the intermission, the Stags maintained a 7-5 lead heading into the locker room.
Knostman and Sperry started the scoring in the third quarter, rebuilding the four-point cushion at 9-5. After a Blue Hens' goal, Guida and Federico each struck as Fairfield carried an 11-6 lead into the fourth quarter.
Delaware, however, closed the gap with five goals in a span of 8:23 to knot the contest at 11-11 with 5:55 to play in regulation. Behring made two saves with the clock winding down to preserve the deadlock and send Fairfield to its second overtime contest of the season.
Behring made another save on the first possession of the extra session and, after a turnover each way, Anton responded with a stop for Delaware. Fairfield would retain possession and manage two more shots, but neither one was on target as the clock expired.
Fox came up with his career-high 16th win at the faceoff 'X' and 10th ground ball to start the second overtime, and the Stags capitalized as Sperry netted the unassisted game-winner to give Fairfield a pivotal CAA victory by a final score of 12-11.
The win comes in the Stags' seventh one-goal game of the spring. It was also Fairfield's first double-overtime contest since a 9-8 win over Bryant in the 2012 campaign.
Fairfield concludes the regular season on Conway Field at Rafferty Stadium on Friday, April 24 with a visit from CAA preseason favorite Hofstra (5-8, 2-2 CAA). Faceoff under the lights in Fairfield, Connecticut is slated for 7 p.m.
The Stags will enter the final weekend of CAA action still in contention for at least a share of the regular-season title and still in the hunt for the top seed in upcoming CAA Championship (April 30-May 2).
