Little Drama in 2nd Quarterfinal Session
SALT LAKE CITY – After a first session packed with drama, the second quarterfinals featured a quartet of relatively lopsided quarterfinal contests.
DIVISION I BRACKET | DIVISION II BRACKET
No. 5 Grand Valley State (8-4) d. No. 4 St. John’s (10-6), 11-9
This internecine UMLC squabble looked to be going the way of a rout as Grand Valley State raced out to a 5-0 lead and held a commanding, 8-1, bulge at the half.
While the lead was never in peril, the dogged Johnnies posted a 5-1 fourth quarter to bring the final to two goals.
Zack Crawford posted a dominant performance for the Lakers with seven goals and an assist while Jackson Iciek turned away 15 shots.
Tommy Kraus had two goals and a dime for the Johnnies in the loss.
The win gave GVSU coach Tim Murray his 100th career victory.
The Lakers will clash with top-seeded St. Thomas in the first semifinal on Thursday at 11 a.m.
Big win for @MSU_Lacrosse tonight! Check out this goalie goal from @Kev_Boland to close it out! Onto the semi finals! #SCTop10 @MCLA @SportsCenter pic.twitter.com/YgQbpU1tzC
— Cam Holding (@CamHolding19) May 9, 2018
No. 3 Michigan State (16-1) d. No. 6 Virginia Tech (13-5), 9-3
Michigan State goalie Kevin Boland not only made 14 saves to keep the Virginia Tech offense at bay, but also scored a nearly full-field goal (video above) to help the Spartans win, 9-3.
State took a 3-0 after the first quarter and weren’t really threatened the rest of the way.
Charlie Pistner led the MSU offense with a pair of goals and an assist.
Michigan State will face Brigham Young in the second Division I semifinal at 7:15 p.m.
No. 5 South Carolina (18-1) d. No. 13 California (12-6), 14-9
Jake Ellis scored five consecutive goals to help South Carolina pull away from Cal, 14-9, and reach the semifinals in the Gamecocks' first nationals appearance.
The lead was 6-1 at the half and 12-4 after three quarters as the outcome was never in doubt despite a valiant fourth-quarter effort by Cal.
Colin Hains made 14 saves in the win for South Carolina while Nick Beattie had 13 stops for Cal. Jake Pistotnik had four goals and two assists for the Bears.
South Carolina will face top-seeded Chapman in the first Division I semifinal on Thursday at 4:30 p.m.
No. 3 Minn.-Duluth (12-5) d. No. 6 Kennesaw State (9-5), 16-4
Scott McNamara scored four goals, helping Minn.-Duluth race out to a 10-2 halftime edge and the Bulldogs never looked back in a 16-4 victory.
Three goalies combined for 18 saves for Duluth while a pair of Kennesaw State goalies made eight stops. Four different players scored goals for the Owls.
Duluth will face UMLC rival North Dakota State in the second Division II semifinal at 1:45 p.m.