May 2, 2008
#4 Shoremen Roll #9 Fords, 11-6, in CC Semis
Cohen Tallies 18 Saves in Victory for Washington

GETTYSBURG, PA -- The fourth-ranked Washington College men's lacrosse team got 18 saves from junior goalie Gordon Cohen (New Canaan, CT/New Canaan) en route to an 11-6 win over ninth-ranked Haverford in the Centennial Conference Semifinals this afternoon on Gettysburg College's Clark Field. The Shoremen (13-2) improved to 19-0 all-time against Haverford and advanced to Sunday's Centennial Conference Championship game against third-ranked host Gettysburg. The winner of the conference championship game will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Fords (11-4) will now await word on a possible at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Washington got on the board just 33 seconds into the game as senior midfielder Andrew Generazio (Springfield, VA/West Springfield/Bridgton, ME) scored off a feed from junior attackman Jimmy Kielek (Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Curley). The Fords knotted the score with 5:37 left in the first quarter on a goal by Max Hjelm. Haverford took a 2-1 lead when Dean Granoff scored off a feed from Jason Leeds with 1:53 to go in the period.

The Shoremen evened the score 59 seconds in the second quarter as Kielek caught a pass from junior midfielder Casey O'Connor (Crownsville, MD/Archbishop Spalding) and flicked the ball in from point-blank range. Freshman attackman Doug Herdegen (Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Curley) put Washington back in front with an unassisted tally with 8:58 remaining in the second quarter and Kielek quickly followed with a goal off an assist from senior midfielder Steve Humphries (Fairfax, VA/Hayfield Secondary) 15 seconds later to make it 4-2 in favor of the Shoremen. Washington's run continued as senior attackman Kolyn Kirby (Chestertown, MD/Kent County) netted an acrobatic score off an assist from junior midfielder Matt Moreton (Darnestown, MD/Northwest) with 3:45 left in the half to give the Shoremen a 5-2 lead at halftime.

Neither team scored in the third quarter until Kirby scored an extra-man goal off an assist from Kielek with 5:32 left. Senior midfielder Nick Gregory (Riva, MD/South River) pushed the lead to five goals with a score off a feed from senior midfielder Mike Sutter (Ellicott City, MD/Mount St. Joseph) with 2:49 to go in the third quarter, making the score 7-2. O'Connor the fired in an extra-man goal off a feed from Kielek to extend the lead to 8-2 with 33 seconds on the clock. Kirby provided the Shoremen's ninth goal of the game scoring off a feed from Kielek as time expired in the third quarter, giving Washington a 9-2 cushion.

Haverford ended Washington's eight-goal run when Mike Distler scored with 13:38 left in the fourth. Hjelm cut the lead to 9-4 with a goal off a feed from Granoff with 11:44 to go. Kielek put a stop to the Haverford spurt with an unassisted goal with 9:01 remaining. Moreton supplied Washington's 11th goal of the game with 5:23 on the clock. Hjelm scored for the Fords off a feed from Distler with 4:12 remaining to cut the margin to 11-5. Shane Hafer rounded out the scoring with a goal off a pass from Matt Handel with 1:43 on the clock to get Haverford back within five goals at 11-6, but the Fords could get no closer.

Cohen made his 18 saves in 54:37 of playing time, allowing just four goals before being replaced by junior Danny Walker (Ellicott City, MD/Glenelg Country School) late in the fourth quarter. Over the middle two periods, Cohen made 12 saves and allowed no goals. Walker allowed Haverford's final two goals.

Kielek paced the Shoremen with three goals and four assists, while Kirby finished with three goals as well. O'Connor and Moreton each had one goal and one assist in the victory. Jake Medlinger made 11 saves in goal for Haverford.

Hjelm led Haverford with three goals, while Distler and Granoff each had one goal and one assist. The Fords held a 41-29 advantage in shots and a 33-26 edge in ground balls in the game.

Sunday's Centennial Conference Championship game is set for 1:00 p.m.

BOX SCORE