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There were two minutes to go and the game was tied at five when Hobart’s Mike Suits came racing down the field to score the game-winner.

This is how the final moments of the dramatic Binghamton University men’s lacrosse match played out at Hobart this Tuesday, as the Bearcats lost their fifth game this season, 6-5.

The close match was played with several players nursing injuries, but there were plenty of positives for Bearcats head coach Ed Stephenson.

“We were a little short-handed yesterday,” he said. “We had a couple guys banged up, so we played a little bit of a different style. It was a good game, it was not a typical game that we like to play; we like to play a bit more up-tempo and use all of our midfields. But we were successful doing what we had to do; we just didn’t get the final [goal] in.”

The first quarter was a back-and-forth between the two teams, and its conclusion left Binghamton trailing Hobart 3-2. The Bearcats buzzed three shots by the Hobart goalie in the second period, while the defense held the Statesmen scoreless. The match and momentum swung in favor of the Bearcats as they carried a 5-3 lead into halftime.

When the Bearcats took the field for the second half, however, their energy level dropped and they went scoreless for the entire second half, allowing the Statesmen to retake the lead and steal the victory.

“It was a battle,” Stephenson said. “We had some good opportunities, but we didn’t finish them. The guys were trying hard, they ran hard, we created some good looks and we hit some pipes; our goalie made some saves, we hit them in the ankle a few times.”

Deciding factors in the Bearcats’ loss were the face-offs and the shot differential. Out of 15, Binghamton won just one face-off. Hobart also outshot the Bearcats 45-27. Stephenson acknowledges the disparities, saying that this did not stop the team from being successful in their goal.

“Hobart got probably about seven of those in the game, so they got a lot of possessions off of that, where we had made a mistake in the face-offs,” he said. “I don’t think we were real sharp, and I just think they got to the ball and were able maneuver it a little bit better than we were and could scoop it up better than we could.”

In reference to the shot differential, Stephenson was not displeased with the turnout. The team took shots with a higher percentage of accuracy because they waited for the right opportunity to shoot — something Hobart did not do.

“We were waiting for high percentage shots,” Stephenson said. “Their team typically shoots any shot they can get. We would rather be going after the ball, getting more shots. But we played a different style, and we were successful doing that. I think we had higher percentage opportunities doing that. They shot more, so with lower percentage opportunities they need to shoot a lot more.”

One player who was not at a loss during this game was goalie Dan Solazzo. The junior recorded 11 saves and has been consistently helping his team out all season.

“He really was stepping well to the ball, seeing it real well,” Stephenson said of Solazzo’s performance. “I thought that was his best game. He really, really kept us in the game. They were shooting a lot of outside shots and they shoot hard, and he was all over it. I thought he did a tremendous job against them.”

The Bearcats are on hiatus until March 30, giving the banged-up team some time to rest. After losing five of six games, the team is looking to make changes to get back in the winning column.

“We’ve lost a lot of close games,” Stephenson said. “What we want to do is do the little things to get over that hump. I think these two weeks are going to be great for us. We’re gonna fine-tune some things on the offensive end. Defensively, I don’t think we’ve played well in the first third of the season. I think this game we played really well, so we’re gonna take the things we did well and continue to work on them.”

The Bearcats are set to face Lehigh at 7 p.m. on March 30.