STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – After trailing by an 8-7 score at the halftime break, the Lafayette men's lacrosse team locked in defensively and converted its chances on the other end in the second half, registering its first road win of the season at Wagner on Friday afternoon, 13-10.

Freshman Ryan Ness made six of his eight saves on the day in the second half of play, while three hat tricks led the Leopards on the offensive end. Senior Connar Dehnert and sophomores Andrew Robbins and Bryan Hess all registered a trio in the scoring column, and senior co-captain Conor Walters netted a goal and two assists for a three-point day. Sophomore Pat Tully was a forced on the defensive end, causing a team-best three turnovers and picking up five ground balls. 

Wagner controlled the opening quarter, leading 4-1 into the final minute, but the Leopards sent the game to the second with momentum. With less than a second remaining, sophomore Bryan Hess found junior Chris Adamo, who beat the buzzer with a low shot to the bottom right corner, cutting the lead in half at 4-2.

In the second, Lafayette netted two of the first three to make it a one-goal game at the 10:14 mark, 5-4. Wagner answered with the next two, but three straight, including two from Dehnert tied it at 7-7 into the final minute. The Seahawks stemmed the tide with 13 seconds remaining to push the game to intermission with the Leopards trailing, 8-7.

The third period swung momentum to the Maroon and White with Walters finding Robbins at 4:27 on the clock to give Lafayette its first lead of the day, 10-9. Into the fourth, that run continued as the Leopards used solid defensive play and continued conversions offensively to open up an insurmountable 13-9 advantage. Wagner's score with 27 seconds proved too little, too late, as the clock ran out on a 13-10 win.

The victory moves Lafayette above the .500 mark on the year with an overall record of 2-1. Wagner drops to 1-2 this season in defeat.

Sophomore Gabe Smithline held a 13-of-25 advantage at the X with the Leopards carrying advantages in ground balls (33-25) and turnovers, forcing 17 and committing just 12. Shots also finished in favor of the Maroon and White, 40-31.

Lafayette heads back to New York on Tuesday, making the trip to Riverdale to battle with Manhattan at 7 p.m.