HARTSVILLE, S.C. - The Coker University men's lacrosse team cruised past Chowan for a 17-5 non-conference victory, while senior attackman Matt Murphy recorded his 100th career point.
The Cobras scored the first three goals of the game off the sticks of Andrew Dappen (William Pollok, 8:47) Henry Haskett (Dappen, 4:36) and Ethan Irizarry (2:59), before Chowan would get on the board in the final minute of the quarter to get within 3-1. Joe Venazio would beat the first quarter horn off an assist from Murphy, as the Cobras would take a 4-1 lead to the second quarter.
Coker would score the first goal of the second quarter two and a half minutes in when Dappen scored off a Venazio assist, before Chowan would net its second goal of the game with under nine minutes to play in the period. Coker would score the final three goals of the second quarter to build an 8-2 lead at the half. Venazio scored from Richie Timothee just 37 seconds after the Chowan marker, before Venazio would find Murphy for a goal and Murphy's 100th career point with just over six minutes to play in the quarter. Murphy becomes the seventh player in program history and the third player on the active roster to achieve the century mark in the point category.
Coke continued its scoring run into the third, netting the first two goals of the frame in the first four minutes. Haskett scored from Venzio two and a half minutes in, before Dominic Madlang scored from Dappen with 11 minutes to play in the period. Chowan would get one back with a goal around the nine-minute mark, before the Cobras rattled off five straight markers to end the period. Haskett scored from Venazio just 52 seconds after the Chowan marker, before Irizarry scored unassisted just 23 seconds later. Venazio scored from Dappen just over a minute later. Timothee would score just 46 seconds later, before Venazio would beat the buzzer again at the end of the third off an assist from Irizarry.
Each team would score twice in the fourth quarter, while the Cobras got things started less than three minutes into the period when Murphy scored from Dappen. The teams would go scoreless until the five-minute mark when Chowan would net their fourth of the game. The game would tick down into the final two minutes, before Dappen would score unassisted for the final Coker marker of the game. Chowan would net the final goal of the game in the final minute.
Venazio paced all scorers with five goals, while Haskett and Dappen each netted hat tricks in the win. Irizarry and Murphy each scored twice, while Madlang and Timothee each scored once. Venazio also dished out a game-high four assists to total a game-high nine points, while Dappen also registered four assists in the game. Four other Cobras helped on goals in the victory. Coker totaled 60 ground balls in the win, just one off the program's single-game record set last year against Lees-McRae (61, Feb. 2, 2020). Murphy paced the Cobras with seven ground balls, while Timothee and Venazio each picked up six and five others each totaled five ground balls for the day. Eight other Cobras were active on the ground balls in the game. The Cobras also tied a program single-game record in caused turnovers with 17, led by five from James Brugger. Seven other Cobras caused turnovers in the game. Chris Hagy (1-1) earned the win between the popes, making three saves through three quarters. Ethan Hofert also played the fourth quarter in relief, making two saves in his collegiate debut.
The Cobras are back in action Saturday night (Feb. 27) to host No. 7/8 Lenoir-Rhyne in a South Atlantic Conference showdown. The matchup is set for 7:00 p.m. from the Coker Athletic Field, with video and live stats available at www.cokercobras.com.
Coker University will continue to assess the NCAA, federal, state and local developments and provide updated revisions as additional information is available.
McDonald's Co-Players of the Game - Matt Murphy/Joe Venazio