David Schamis

On Saturday night, the men’s lacrosse team (5–6, 3–2 Ivy) fell to the University of Albany Great Danes (6–8, 3–2 AmEast) in a tight match-up that went into 2:23 of overtime. The loss marked the end of the team’s four-game winning streak.

The Bulldogs have historically defeated the Great Danes since 2018, with a 17–10 triumph last year. However, after downing the University of Vermont 15–11 the week before, the Great Danes were ready to snap Yale’s winning streak.

Yale took an early lead in the first period with powerhouse midfielder Johnny Keib ’25 scoring the first two goals of the game. Captain Max Krevsky ’25 assisted Keib to net the first at 13:20, and less than a minute later, Keib scored the second unassisted. 

However, UAlbany quickly responded with two back-to-back goals. The Bulldogs refused to let the score stay tied for long, though, responding seconds later with an unassisted goal from Yale attackman Leo Johnson ’25, advancing Yale’s lead to 3–2. 

Play continued to go back and forth with UAlbany tying it up at 10:35. Johnson’s assist to attackman Chris Lyons ’25 returned Yale’s one-goal lead, only to see that lead slip away two minutes later when UAlbany narrowed the deficit once again.

Nevertheless, the Bulldogs persevered, scoring three consecutive goals. Johnson scored his second goal of the game with an assist from midfielder Brad Sharp ’25, followed by unassisted goals from midfielder Cole Cashion ’27 and Johnson to bring the score to 7–4. These three goals, including Johnson’s first-quarter hat trick, gave the Elis a comfortable three-goal lead.

The second period was slower than the first, with both sides holding up strong defenses. However, UAlbany soon picked up momentum, scoring three back-to-back goals to tie it up. Despite Yale’s attempts to protect the net, UAlbany continued to dominate. 

With two more goals, Albany had the lead. When 48 seconds were remaining, Johnson and Lyons tag-teamed to put Yale on the scoreboard. Lyons’ goal, his twenty-sixth of the season, narrowed UAlbany’s lead to 9–8 at the end of the half.

The Elis charged into the third period determined to take back the lead with two back-to-back goals. Johnson’s assist to attackman David Anderson ’26 put the score at 9–9. Attackman Peter Moynihan ’27, with an assist from Cashion, then netted a goal to advance Yale’s lead to 10–9. 

However, the Great Danes continued to have answers, responding with two goals of their own. Lyons’ hat trick at 7:54 returned the score to 11–11. With two more consecutive goals from attackman William Sheehan ’26, assisted by Lyons on a man-up opportunity, and Anderson’s unassisted goal, the Elis led 13–11 at the end of the third quarter.

The Bulldogs sought to cement their lead in the final period. Lyons claimed the first goal at 12:13, scoring his fourth goal of the game. However, UAlbany answered with three consecutive goals to tie up the game at 6:54. With Yale’s Jared Paquette ’25 blocking two more shots on the goal, UAlbany did not score for the remainder of the period, forcing the game into overtime.

UAlbany goalkeeper Brady Smith’s save on Lyons’ shot allowed the Great Danes to score at 2:23 into overtime. The Bulldogs fell to the Great Danes 14–15. 

Despite the tough loss, several Bulldogs had impressive performances. Lyons led with four goals, followed by Johnson with three, and Anderson and Keib with two each. Lyons’ four goals brought his total number to 28 this season, and Johnson’s hat trick was his fifth of the season. 

The Bulldogs will now seek to recover from this setback as they spend the rest of the week preparing for their final regular-season game against No. 2 Princeton. 

The team will travel to Princeton, N.J. for a 12 p.m. faceoff on Saturday. The game will be live-streamed on ESPNU.