Scranton, Pa. – Senior Danny Kugler (Wappingers Falls, N.Y.) scored four goals and finished with five points on Saturday, but the Mount Saint Mary College Men's Lacrosse team came up a goal short at Marywood, dropping the season opener to the Pacers by a score of 12-11.
 
After allowing the first two goals of the game, the Mount rattled off the next eight goals to pull in front 8-2 on a Kugler tally early in the third stanza. The Mount outscored Marywood 5-0 in the second frame, getting two goals from Kugler and Ryan Maraio (Staten Island, N.Y.) on its way to a 7-2 halftime advantage.
 
The Knights outshot Marywood 22-10 in the opening 30 minutes, including 13-6 in shots on goal, and held a commanding 9-2 advantage in face-offs at the intermission. The Knights went a perfect 10-for-10 in first half clearing chances and picked up 16 groundballs before halftime.
 
Marywood stopped the Mount Saint Mary scoring run in the third period with a pair of Rob Maini tallies and after the two teams traded goals, the Pacers netted seven of the final eight goals of the game to steal the win.
 
 Austin Maylor gave the Pacers their first lead since 2-1 on a goal with 8:31 left to play and after Dylan De Meo (Franklin Square, N.Y.) tied the game for the Knights at the 8:05 mark of the fourth period, Matt Casto potted the game winner with just over six minutes left in regulation time.
 
Marywood outscored the Knights 10-4 after halftime, including 6-1 in the fourth period. The Pacers picked up 24 groundballs after halftime and held a 9-7 edge in face-offs.
 
Kugler led the scoring attack with four goals and an assist, while De Meo contributed one goal and three helpers. Maraio posted a hat trick in the season opener, while Kenneth Gallagher (Northport, N.Y.) won 15 face-offs and picked up a team-high six groundballs.
 
Maini led the Marywood scoring attack with four goals, with Casto potting three to go along with four groundballs. Ryan Matthews picked up eight groundballs in the game, while Riley Litman won 11 face-offs.
 
Mount Saint Mary finished the game with the advantage in shots 36-31, shot on goal 20-19 and face-offs 16-11. The Knights went 14-for-16 in clearing chances, while Marywood held the edge in groundballs 41-31.
 
At 0-1 overall on the season, Mount Saint Mary opens the home scheduled on February 28 when it plays host to Western Connecticut. Face-off with the Colonials is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.