CHESTER, Pa. (Feb. 18, 2017) – Senior Tyler Schulte (Southampton, N.J.) keyed a fourth-quarter rally by setting up a goal and netting the eventual game-winning marker to lift the Widener University men's lacrosse team to a thrilling 9-8 win over Virginia Wesleyan in the season opener for both schools on an unseasonably warm Saturday afternoon at Leslie C. Quick Stadium.
 
Widener (1-0) trailed 8-6 after three quarters, but the defense being anchored by junior John Ferguson (Springfield, Pa.) and senior Scott Allison (Chester Springs, Pa.) only allowed the Marlins to attempt three shots in the final frame, and goalkeeper Matt Horton (Emmaus, Pa.) came up with two saves to keep the visitors off the board. With the Pride controlling play in their offensive end, Schulte found sophomore Kevin Kerby (Scotch Plains, N.J.) for his first marker of the season with 12:15 remaining to slice the Virginia Wesleyan lead in half and kickstart a rally. Freshman Paz Gismondi (West Deptford, N.J.) then found the back of the net to tie the game at 8-all with 5:14 on the clock, and Schulte provided the game-winning marker by faking out goalkeeper Chris McTague at the 3:02 mark.
 
Virginia Wesleyan, however, did not go down without a fight and had a golden opportunity to tie the score when a routine pass was mishandled by the Pride behind the goal. The Marlins were able to successfully clear the ball and called a timeout, but Matt Baldwin turned it over before the team could attempt a shot. Ferguson scooped up the ground ball, and the ensuing clear attempt was successful to allow the hosts to run out the rest of the clock and hang on for the one-goal win.
 
The Pride got off to a fast start by scoring two goals less than 10 seconds apart to take a quick 2-0 lead. Sophomore Shane Taylor (Philadelphia, Pa.) and junior Chris Drake (Morristown, N.J.) each found the back of the to give the hosts a lead they would never concede in the opening half. The Pride then jumped out to a 5-1 advantage early in the second quarter by getting another marker from Taylor and carried a one-goal lead into the break before rallying from behind in the fourth to come away with the victory.
 
Widener, which outshot its opponent by a count of 46-30, got balanced scoring and was led by Gismondi on the offensive end. The freshman recorded a team-high four points on two goals and two assists in his collegiate debut. Taylor notched a hat trick, and Drake added two goals and a helper. Horton turned away seven shots on the defensive end, while Ferguson picked up four ground balls to help the hosts come away with the win.
 
Virginia Wesleyan (0-1) was paced by Justin Metzger and Baldwin in the setback. Metzger tallied a game-high three assists, while Baldwin added two goals and one helper. McTague was strong between the pipes, turning away 10 shots and also scooping up five ground balls.
 
The Pride will return to action when they visit Swarthmore on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 1 p.m.