NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Albertus Magnus College men's lacrosse team improved to 4-1 to start the 2022 season on Tuesday after picking up a 13-7 road victory over in-state foe Mitchell College in New London, Conn.

Senior Derek Ralston (Guilford, Conn.) (3g, 2a) continued his impressive start to the season by tallying a team-best five points against the Mariners. Cody Walczak (Higganun, Conn.) also had a memorable day with a career-high four goals.

THE BASICS
FINAL: Albertus Magnus 13 | Mitchell 7
RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (4-1) | Mitchell (1-6)
BOX SCORE

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Falcons started the game with the first two goals of the contest, as Ralston and Jayme Toro (East Haven, Conn.) each netted a tally within a minute of each other. Ralston found the back of the net first at the 14:34 mark before Toro gave Albertus a 2-0 lead 52 seconds later. Mitchell answered Albertus' early run by scoring the following two goals to tie the score at 2-2.

AMC retook control of the game over the frame's final 9:36, scoring three of the next four goals to take a 5-3 lead into the second quarter. Charles Stewart (Stratford, Conn.) scored first, followed by an Andrew Ten (Trumbull, Conn.) tally 1:06 later. Following a Mitchell goal, the Falcons capped off the quarter with a tally from Walczak to send the home team into the second quarter ahead 5-3.

In the second, the Mariners got a slight edge on the Falcons, outscoring AMC by a 4-3 margin to make it a one-goal game, 7-6, at halftime. Shane Kelly (Madison, Conn.) opened the frame's scoring at the 13:18 mark before man-up strikes by Ralston and Walczak maintained the visitors' lead.

Following a high-scoring first half, the Albertus defense took over the game in the second half. The Falcons held the Mariners scoreless for the remainder of the game, holding the home squad to 13 shots over the final 30 minutes. AMC also forced the Mariners to commit 15 of their 26 turnovers in the second half.

On the other hand, Albertus' offense continued to click, as the Falcons found the back of the net four times in the third quarter. Andrew Luzzi (East Haven, Conn.) joined the scoresheet with the first goal of the third, while Ralston, Walczak, and Stewart all added tallies to their totals.

The Falcons put the finishing touches on their road win with a man-up strike from Walczak with 3:17 remaining to seal their fourth win of the young season.

In cage for Albertus, Dane Walsh (Bethany, Conn.) picked up his fourth win of the year by recording 15 saves against Mitchell. The senior shined brightest in the second half, making eight of his 15 stops over the final two quarters.

BETWEEN THE PIPES
Albertus - Dane Walsh (W, 4-1): 7 Goals-Against | 15 Saves | 22 Shots on Goal
Mitchell - Ryan Almeida (L, 0-3): 11 Goals-Against | 10 Saves | 21 Shots on Goal | 57:20
Steven Turchetta: 2 Goals-Against | 0 Saves | 2 Shots on Goal | 2:40

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• The Falcons owned a sizable 45-34 advantage in shots.
• Albertus won 13-of-24 face-offs.
• Mitchell committed 26 turnovers to AMC's 25.
• The Falcons picked up nine more ground balls than the Mariners, 39-30.
• Albertus scored three man-up goals.
• Walczak led all players with 11 shots and seven shots on goal.

Albertus:
Derek Ralston: 3 goals | 2 assists | 4 shots on goal | 3 ground balls | 1 caused turnover
Cody Walczak: 4 goals | 7 shots on goal | 2 ground balls
Jayme Toro: 1 goal | 2 assists | 2 shots on goal | 5 ground balls
Andrew Ten: 1 goal | 2 assists | 2 shots on goal | 1 ground ball

Mitchell:
James Giovanniello: 1 goal | 2 assists | 3 shots on goal
Aidan Messuri: 3 goals | 4 shots on goal | 1 ground ball
Ethan LePain: 2 goals | 2 shots on goal

NOTEWORTHY

• The Falcons improve to 4-1 on the season, with three wins coming on the road.
• With the win today, Albertus improves to 4-5 all-time versus Mitchell.
• Walczak tallied new career-highs with four points and four goals.
• Ralston has scored in every game this season, netting three-plus goals in back-to-back games.
• Ten has tallied multiple points in all but one game this year.
• Toro has scored a goal in all three of his games this season.
• Stewart posted multiple goals in back-to-back games.
• Walsh tied a season-high with 15 saves today.

UP NEXT
The Falcons kick off Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play on Saturday, March 19, with a 1 p.m. clash against the AMCATS of Anna Maria College at Celentano Field.