MEQUON, Wis. – Concordia University Wisconsin dominated every facet of Saturday afternoon's 23-0 non-conference victory over the University of Dallas at Fitting Field. The Falcons earned their first shutout of the season and defeated the Crusaders for the fourth-consecutive time, as the regular season finale and Midwest Lacrosse Conference Tournament approach.
CUW overwhelmed the visitors from the start and scored six goals in the first quarter and 10 in the second frame to own a 16-0 lead at the intermission. With a running clock agreed upon for the second half, the Falcons added seven more goals for their first shutout of the season and sixth in program history (second against Dallas).
The Falcons offense was obviously in in rhythm, while its defense made a statement by allowing just one shot in the first 30 minutes of play. They also forced a season-best 32 turnovers of which 12 were caused. CUW won 19-of-26 faceoffs, held a 47-12 lead in ground balls, cleared 23-of-25 attempts and finished with a 63-7 shot differential (38-3 on goal). The 23 goals were tied for the fourth most in a game in program history, while the 63 shots were the second most, 47 ground balls were tied for the eighth most and 19 faceoff wins were tied for the seventh most.
It was a balanced team effort, as 12 different Falcons scored and seven had multi-goal efforts. Seniors David Mueller (Prior Lake, Minn.) and Derek Brueske (Hopkins, Minn.), sophomore Colin Raley (Inverness, Ill.) and freshman Jaeden Gilles (Nanaimo, British Columbia) each finished with a hat trick. Gilles had a career game, while freshmen Zach Aten (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.), Alex Hinkle (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Paul Fisher (Champlin, Minn.) each scored the first goal of their career. Freshman Cameron Torres (Eagan, Minn.) also had a career game with four points (two goals, game-high two assists).
Head coach Michael Fahey decided to rest a few of his usual starters in preparation for the upcoming regular season finale and Midwest Lacrosse Conference Tournament, so freshmen Jacob Murnane (Milwaukee, Wis.) and Matthew Erickson (Antioch, Ill.) each played a half, with Murnane making one save and earning his first career win as the starter.
Fisher led all players with a career-best seven ground balls, while 13 of his teammates picked up at least two ground balls. Mueller and senior Shawn Teixeira (Calgary, Alberta) each caused a game- and career-high two turnovers. In the faceoff circle it was Hinkle who won 12-of-19 attempts and sophomore Zacchariah Strand (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) recorded 5-of-5 faceoff wins. Senior Matt Ray (Andover, Minn.) also won two faceoffs.
The Falcons also tied a program record for margin of victory at 23, which was accomplished on April 24, 2013 during a 27-4 win over MSOE at Fitting Field. They nearly escaped the game unscathed by a whistle, but was witnessed cross checking in the second period. In addition, Brueske tied program's single season record for shots on goal with 68.
CUW (9-7) concludes its regular season on Saturday, April 25 at Cornell College.
