GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Columbia College men's lacrosse team took their first loss of the season Thursday afternoon, falling to Aquinas College 21-7 at Aquinas College to conclude their road trip.
Columbia, now 2-1, was met with a strong Saints squad from the opening faceoff. Aquinas jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first quarter before the Cougars responded with back-to-back goals from Nico Andrews and William Rusk to cut the deficit to 4-2. The Saints pulled away late in the frame, however, taking a 7-3 lead into the second quarter. Drake Morrissey provided a late goal to keep Columbia within striking distance.
The Cougars opened the second quarter with promise, as Brock Pleis cut the lead to three with a goal assisted by Rusk. Aquinas answered with three straight goals to push the advantage to 10-4 heading into halftime.
The third quarter proved to be the Cougars' most difficult stretch, as Aquinas outscored Columbia 7-2 to build a commanding 17-6 lead. Will Rivenburgh and Morrissey each found the back of the net for Columbia, but the Saints' TJ Murphy scored four times in the period alone.
Morrissey capped the scoring for Columbia in the fourth quarter with a man-up goal assisted by Adam Spriggs, but Aquinas added four more to close out the 21-7 final.
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