HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. - Behind ten different scorers, the Albertus Magnus College men's lacrosse team cruised to a 25-4 victory over the Cyclones of Centenary University Thursday afternoon at J.E. Reeves Turf Field in non-conference play.

The Falcons were led offensively by Matthew Hutchings (Mt. Kisco, N.Y.), who tallied five goals and an assist, while Zaheim Wilkins (Mastic Beach, N.Y.) and Kader Price (Walden, N.Y.) chipped in with four goals apiece. Derek Ralston (Guilford, Conn.) also recorded an impressive game for the blue-and-white, tallying three goals and a team-high three assists. 

THE BASICS
FINAL: Albertus Magnus 25 | Centenary (N.J.) 4
RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (2-0) | Centenary (0-4)
BOX SCORES

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Albertus opened the first period with the early 5-0 lead behind a pair of goals from Hutchings and goals from Ralston, Rocco Albanese (Nutley, N.J.), and Wilkins.
• At the 3:16 mark, Centenary broke its scoreless drought, 5-1, on a man-up goal from Brian Rosko. 
• A minute later, Hutchings found the back of the net for the Falcons, once again, recording his first hat trick of the season and putting the visitors up five heading into the final 2:09 of the period.
• Trailing 6-1, the Cyclones cut the deficit to within four, 6-2, with 30 seconds left on the clock, but Albanese would strike again, netting his second of the game and putting the Falcons' up 7-2 at the end of the first period.
• The Falcons controlled the second period as the visitors scored nine goals, including a pair of man-up goals from Wilkins and Tyler Landsiedel (Stamford, Conn.), to head into the halftime break with a commanding 16-4 lead over the Cyclones.
• Wilkins' man-up goal was one of three in the second period, while Shane Kelly (Madison, Conn.) scored twice back-to-back.
• Out of the break, Albertus resumed offensive control by scoring seven goals in the third period while also holding the Cyclones scoreless to make the score 23-4.
• Two of the Falcons' seven goals in the third period were scored by Price and Bailey Kirwin (Barrie, Ontario) on a man-up opportunity. 
• The final quarter saw Albertus tack on additional two goals from Alex Jones (Shelton, Conn.) and Will Capalbo (Fairfield, Conn.) to bring the final score to 25-4. 
• Dane Walsh (Bethany, Conn.), Wally Carroll (Long Beach, N.Y.), and Judah LaRose (New Haven, Conn.) all made an appearance in goal for the Falcons and finished with a combined seven saves on 11 shots on goal. 
• Walsh earned the win for the Falcons and improved to 2-0 on the year. 

TOP PERFORMERS

Albertus:
Matthew Hutchings: 5 goals | 1 assist | 7 shots on goal | 1 ground ball | 1 caused turnover
Zaheim Wilkins: 4 goals | 1 assist | 5 shots on goal | 2 ground balls | 1 caused turnover
Kader Price: 4 goals | 2 assists | 4 shots on goal | 2 ground balls
Derek Ralston: 3 goals | 3 assists |  3 shots on goal | 1 ground ball
Rocco Albanese: 3 goals | 1 assist | 3 shots on goal | four ground balls | 7 caused turnovers

Centenary:
Brian Rosko: 2 goals | 2 shots on goal | 1 ground ball | 1 caused turnover
Mark Gilles: 1 goal | 2 shots on goal | 4 ground balls
Brandon Verderber: 1 goal | 5 shots on goal 

NOTEWORTHY

• This is the first all-time meeting between the Falcons and Cyclones.
• The Falcons opened the season with back-to-back wins for the first time in program history. 
• The Falcons had five players record a hat trick in today's road victory.
• DaKari Coleman (Norwalk, Conn.) led the blue-and-white in the face-off circle, going 16-for-25, while Shane Kelly (Madison, Conn.) finished 2-for-6. 
• Albertus was just one goal shy of tying its single-season program record of 26 goals.
• The Falcons outshot the Cyclones 59-24 and finished 6-for-6 in clear attempts. 
• Albanese led the defensive unit with seven caused turnovers. 
• The blue-and-white caused 20 of the Cyclones' 31 turnovers. 

UP NEXT

The men's lacrosse team returns home on Saturday, March 4th, as the Falcons host Thomas (M.E.) College at Celentano Field. The game time is set for 2 pm.