JJ Sillstrop put most, if not all, reminders of Denver’s slow start to bed with one flashy play.

Sillstrop, sneaking through the middle and positioning himself atop the crease, took the inside feed from Ethan Walker and skirted to his right. With a defender catching up, Sillstrop fired behind his head while falling, giving the Pioneers a three-goal cushion with 9:30 remaining.

That score proved integral as Utah mounted a scrappy comeback. Tyler Bradbury assisted Drew Wasserman before scoring a goal of his own to cut the deficit to one goal with 1:53 remaining, but it wasn’t enough. Host Denver earned the season-opening 9-8 win over a Utah team that impressed with its defense for most of the contest.

 

 

 

 

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Utah went into the break with a 3-1 lead on a pole goal from Sammy Cambere with 2:05 left in the half. Denver outshot Utah 25-17 in the half, but Utah defenders closed quickly and forced the Pios into tough looks. When the looks were on cage, Zack Johns was there. He made nine of his 16 saves in the first half.

Jack Hannah came out firing to open the third quarter, scoring twice in the first four minutes and tying the score at 3. It was a back-and-forth second half until Walker (three goals, one assist) scored off a feed from Yale transfer Jackson Morrill (one goal, two assists) for a 6-5 lead with 14 seconds left in the third quarter.

That served as a spark, as the Pios scored four of the next five goals for a 9-6 lead on Sillstrop’s highlight.

BELLARMINE 9, MERCER 7

Mercer’s Ashton Wood kicked off the 2021 season in style, winning 18 of 19 faceoffs and scoring on the very first possession of the season (it took just seven seconds), but Bellarmine overcame its dismal showing at the faceoff dot to defeat host Mercer 9-7.

SoCon foes playing a non-conference game to represent the first lacrosse action since mid-March because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bellarmine and Mercer played a clean game that went off without a hitch. Mercer missed the contributions of Sean Goldsmith, who Chris Jastrzembski reported will miss about six weeks due to injury, and Bellarmine took advantage.

Two goals apiece from grad student Eric Rubak and sophomore Jesse Roth led the offense, while a staunch defensive unit anchored by goalkeeper Ian Reilly (seven saves) held the Bears in check. Rubak, an LSM, picked up six groundballs and caused three turnovers. Jon Robbins recorded five turnovers and three ground balls.

Mercer tied the score at 6 at the end of the third quarter, but Rubak’s transition goal just under 3 minutes into the fourth quarter and Benny O’Rourk’s goal with 10:38 remaining gave Bellarmine the advantage. Nick Rockefeller’s score put Mercer down one goal with 6:56 left, but that’s as close as Mercer would come in the final quarter.

Brayden Brown put the Knights back up two goals when he finished a Kyle Playsted feed with 3:55 left.

The first lacrosse game of the season was not livestreamed by host Mercer, but Bellarmine junior Cameron Herbert, who was inactive due to a bout with mononucleosis, livestreamed the game on Periscope for all of Lacrosse Twitter to see.

Nelson Rice caught up with Herbert on the bus ride home.