Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/7/12
From Press Release
T.J. Holston scored an outstanding double-OT winner as the visiting Albright College men’s lacrosse team kicked off its conference schedule by defeating two-time defending champion Widener, 11-10 on Saturday at the HEADstrong Rivalry Games.
Holston was being knocked to the ground as he flipped in an underhand shot in the second overtime period, off an assist from Philip Potter, as the young Lions immediately established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in their first-ever conference game.
Widener has been the class of the league for over a decade, winning the last two Middle Atlantic Conference championships and 13 of the last 16.
Holston finished with a team-high four goals, while national assists leader Potter added two goals and three helpers. Justin Brown added a pair of goals.
Freshman goalie Andrew Torak came up big, making 12 saves in almost 65 minutes of action. With ball possession of utmost importance, rookie Darian Meador won 12-of-23 face-offs and picked up a game-high eight ground balls.
The game was tied after the first and second periods, although the Lions did have Widener on the ropes after scoring six unanswered goals in a span of 14:08.
Albright let the Pride back in the game by committing five penalties in the final six minutes of the second quarter. Two led to Widener man-up goals, and the Pride scored four straight to pull level at the break.
The visitors kept their cool however, and after shutting Widener out for over 19 consecutive minutes in the first half they kept a shutout for the entire third period. Potter assisted Holston twice late in the quarter to give Albright a 9-7 lead.
Holston tallied all four of his goals after halftime and scored again in the fourth, but Widener struck three times to force overtime. Holston nearly ended things with 17 seconds left in the first OT period, but his shot hit the post.
Johnny Casey (Abington) struck six times for the Pride, while Robert Clemens (Sun valley) added six assists. Goalie Mac Nestler came off the bench to make six saves while alllowing just four goals (including Holston’s winner).
Albright is now 11-1, and 1-0 in the Commonwealth. Widener is 2-7, with four losses coming to nationally-ranked teams, two to established and highly-regarded Ursinus and Dickinson, and now one to the first-year Lions.
