Contact: Ben Badua

HARTFORD, Conn. – Senior midfielder Nick Shaheen netted the game winner with just 1:13 left in overtime as Trinity rallied from a two-goal deficit to hand the Amherst men's lacrosse team a heartbreaking 17-16 loss on Jessee/Miller Field.

Down 16-14 with under four minutes to go in regulation, the Bantams netted a pair of scores just 1:13 apart to tie the game. Scoreless through the first two-plus minutes of the extra session, Matt Cohen '13 fed Shaheen, who ripped a shot past first-year goalkeeper Thomas Gilligan.

Finishing the regular season with a 3-7 conference slate, Amherst fell into a tie with Williams and Trinity for the conference's final playoff spot. In head-to-head competition, all teams were 1-1 with an 0-4 mark against the top four teams. Holding a better record against the top eight teams (3-6) Amherst locked up the final slot and will face top-seeded Middlebury in the NESCAC championship quarterfinals on Saturday, Apr. 27 at 1 p.m.  

Quinn Moroney '16 led the Jeff attack with two goals and five assists, while Jeff Izzo '13 turned in a hat-trick. Patrick Moroney '14 and Devin Acton '14 each had a pair of scores, while Dylan Park '16 had a goal and an assist.

Cohen and Rob Nogueras '13 each finished with four goals, while Shaheen had four points on three goals and a helper. 

Wasting no time getting on the board, Nogueras scored just 40 seconds after the opening faceoff. The senior attackman doubled the lead with another tally at 8:16 before Park answered with a goal just 1:09 later. 

Cohen came right back with a score 49 seconds after the restart before Patrick Routh '15 and Tim Reichert '14 exchanged goals six seconds apart. Aaron Mathias '14 kept the Jeffs rolling with another tally at 5:32 before Patrick Moroney capped off a frantic stretch with Amherst's third score in a span of 46 seconds. 

With time winding down in a see-saw first quarter, Danny Gold '13 gave the visitors their first lead of the afternoon, finding the back of the net with just 39 seconds on the clock. Pulling Trinity even, Matthew Hauck '15 beat the buzzer, burying the game's 10th tally just as time expired.

Park put the Purple & White back on top, beating goalkeeper Henry Coote '16 just 49 seconds into the second period before Quinn Moroney added to the tally to make it 7-5. Cohen momentarily brought the Bantams within one, but another Quinn Moroney tally coupled with an Acton goal gave the Jeffs a 9-6 edge.

Trying to keep pace, Cohen scored with 1:58 left in the half before later notching his fourth goal of the day. Pushing forward in the waning moments of the period, Izzo ripped a shot past Coote with one second left to put Amherst up 10-8 at the intermission. 

Starting the second half strong, Nogueras once again made it a one-goal game at 13:51before Shaheen knotted it at 10-10 with a tally just 49 seconds later. Amherst answered with consecutive Eric Grein '15 and Kane Haffey '16 markers, but Shaheen and Dom Piselli '13 responded to keep Trinity level.

Jumpstarting the Jeff attack, Sam Lawlor '16 scored with 7:32 left in the third quarter before Izzo and Patrick Moroney upped the margin to 15-12. Nogueras put the brakes on the 3-0 Amherst spurt with his fourth of the contest as the Bantams headed into the final frame with a two-goal deficit.

Huack cut it to 15-14 midway through the fourth, but Izzo found Acton for another Jeff goal just 47 seconds later. Still down two with under five minutes to go, Chase Growney '14 cut into the Amherst lead. Just over a minute later, Nogueras linked up with Hauck to suddenly tie it at 16-16. With neither team able to pull ahead in the final 2:13 of regulation and first 2:47 of overtime, Shaheen netted the game winner to seal the Bantams' comeback victory.

Winning 25-of-36 face-offs, Amherst finished with a 39-34 edge in ground balls, going 12-for-17 on clear attempts. Trinity held a decisive 50-36 advantage in shots, with Gilligan making 12 saves. Coote collected four stops in the first half, before being replaced by Makar Zaverucha '15, who had seven saves in the final 32:47 minutes.

2013 NESCAC Men's Lacrosse Championship
Saturday, April 27 at Higher Seeds
Quarterfinal Games
No. 8 Amherst at No. 1 Middlebury – 1 p.m.
No. 7 Hamilton at No. 2 Connecticut College – 1 p.m.
No. 6 Bates at No. 3 Tufts – 1 p.m.
No. 5 Bowdoin at No. 4 Wesleyan – 1 p.m.

Saturday, May 4 at Highest Remaining Seed
Semifinals – games at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. 
Highest remaining seed vs. lowest remaining seed
Remaining first round winners

Sunday, May 5
Final - 12 p.m.
Semifinal winners