Alec Rzepkowski

Mr. Szoke
Sports Reporting
21 February 2013
Royals Come Close, but Out-Gunned by Long Island Powerhouse
On February 17, 2013, the Queens University of Charlotte Mens Lacrosse Team faced off with
the Inside Lacrosse #10 ranked LIU Post Pioneers. After the Royals trouncing of the Wingate
Bulldogs in their home opener, they had to quickly prepare for their first big test of the season.
With the Royals second game at Dickson field season, the LIU Post Pioneers started their season
off against the young Royals squad. It was a brisk afternoon at Dickson field as the fans poured
into the Royals sports complex. As the bleachers started to fill up, the players made their way
out onto the field for their long pregame rituals. The Royals seemed to have a lot of energy
coming out of the locker room and seemed to be on fire during warm-ups. Passes were crisp and
shots were fast and on target. However, on the opposite end of the field, the Pioneers were
content and quiet, focusing on the task at hand. There was a sense of pride and quiet
determination coming from the Post players as their pregame was crisp and fluid as well. With
only five minutes left to go until game time, the Royals jogged back to their locker room to put
on their game jerseys and burst out of the tunnel with style. With the Royals looking to make a
statement in the Division II lacrosse world, the LIU Post Pioneers hoped to silence them with
their first win of the season.
With their new coach, former Syracuse midfielder and current MLL Charlotte Hounds
star Jovan miller, the Royals looked to used energy as their ally to keep them in this game against
a speedy Long Island team. The whistle blew as the two teams faced-off for first possession of
the game. Sophmore Timmy Cloud and Senior Ty Baugh ran in from the wings to win the ball
for the Royals. However, Post gained possession and it stayed that way for quite a while. Starting
in goal for the Royals is Sophmore Nick Simonetti and for the Pioneers is Tim Bradley. Within
the first two minutes of the game, the Pioneers managed to make their way around the Royals
defense and put two quick goals in the back of the net to silence the Royals energy. In the 1st
quarter, the Pioneers were able to maintain possession of the ball for the majority as they
capitalized on any turnovers that the Royals had when they touched the ball. The Pioneers looked
extremely strong and quick as the Royals tried to keep up with the fast-paced run and gun style
they threw at them. Another area where the Royals struggled in the first quarter was with
clearing attempts. They were unable to execute successful clears and therefore turned the ball
over to the Pioneers who were able to fire one into the back of the net past Simonetti. However,
the Royals were able to capitalize on a breakaway and feed to Sophmore Casey Hock who was
able to put bounce a shot past Bradley to get them on the scoreboard. After receiving a 2-minute
unreleasable penalty for cross-checking, the Royals were forced to try and hold the Pioneers
while man-down. Post was able to put 2 goals past Simonetti during the attempted stand by the
Royals. Discipline seemed to be a large wound in the side of the Royals at this point. The 1st
quarter ended 5-1 Pioneers as this game looked to be over early.

After a long talk during the 2nd quarter break, the teams met back on the field to either
continue the flow of the game or to change the path of where this game was headed. After a few
minutes of back-and-forth possession, the Royals were able to place a shot past the shoulder of
Bradley to pull the team out of the gutter. But after a clean takeaway from Junior Dillon Draper,
the ball was turned over again and the Pioneers were able to capitalize on another Royals
turnover. Once the Royals were able to settle the ball down, Senior Matt Michael was able to
sneak in and place a shot around Kelly to make it 6-3. Penalties and discipline seemed to be a
problem for the Royals all game and Post was again able to capitalize by putting a goal in the
back of the net. At 4:30, the Royals were able to win a face-off and settle the ball down which
would eventually lead to a quick-stick goal by Sophomore Nick Wilkinson to give the Pioneers
only a 3 goal lead going into halftime at 7-4. Statistics seemed relatively equal at halftime with
face-off wins equal at 6-6 and turnovers at 12-11. However Post took more shots leading the stats
at 21-16.
The Royals came out of the locker room with a new light it seemed being only down by 3
to a well-renowned team. After a crucial man-down stop by the Royals, Evan Farkas was able to
ping a shot to the top left corner of the Post goal to bring the deficit to two. Momentum seemed
to be on the Royals side as the Pioneers looked shell-shocked. The 3rd quarter was one of strong
defensive presences by both teams with both goalies making key saves to halt any momentum
one way. There were several key saves made by the Post goalie to keep the Royals from
breaching the 2-goal deficit. Toward the end of the quarter at the 2-minute mark, the Pioneers
were finally able to break through the stout Royal defense as Pioneer Ryan Slane blasted a shot
past a good-formed Simonetti. The teams would go into the fourth quarter 8-5 with the advantage
going to Post. The Pioneers looked extremely poised to keep their lead at this point in the game,
having being bolstered by their goalie.
Soon after the start of the 4th quarter, sophomore Jimmy Chickarella was able to finagle
his way through the Post defense to bring the score with in 2 as he carefully pinned a shot past
Bradley. Post is able to ride much of the clock out until 3:10 when the Royals receive and extraman opportunity off of a Post penalty. However, the Royals turn over the ball and LIU Post
proceeds to clear the ball successfully and eats up some of the clock on the way. With 57 seconds
left and the Royals defense outstretched to force a turnover, Post is able to put another in the
board. Post wins another face-off and is able to stick another in the back of the net as Simonetti
comes out of the goal to stop the pass to the player in front of the net.
Even though the final score ended at 10-6, The Royals stayed in the game for most of the
time. Turnovers and lack of converted goal-scoring opportunities hurt the Royals in the end from
causing the upset. However, the future looks promising for the young Royal squad. In the end,
the Pioneers were able to outgun the Royals to secure their #10 rank in the nation. The Royals
will now look toward an even larger test in facing #2 ranked Mercyhurst next Sunday, February
24th at 1 p.m at Dickson Field.