GETTYSBURG, Pa. (March 18, 2017) – Sophomore Matt Horton (Emmaus, Pa.) turned away 13 shots between the pipes, but it wasn't enough, as the Widener University men's lacrosse team fell to #14 Gettysburg by a 9-3 score on Saturday afternoon at Shirk Field.
 
Gettysburg (4-3) scored two quick goals just 41 seconds apart on unassisted tallies by Reed Barbe and Tommy Heller, but the Pride's defense, along with Horton, did not surrender another marker for the more than 25 minutes to keep the visitors in the game. Horton made nine saves in the first half, including one which led to the Pride's first goal.
 
Widener got on the board at the 2:59 mark of the second quarter, as junior Shane Cook (Lincoln, Pa.) raced down the field in transition shortly after a Horton stop and passed to sophomore Brady Franks. Before the Bullets could set up their defense, Franks found classmate Kevin Kerby (Scotch Plains, N.J.) for the team's first goal of the game. Despite being outshot by a 27-6 margin through 30 minutes, the Pride only trailed 3-1 at the recess.
 
After surrendering a goal early in the third quarter, Widener took advantage of an opportunity in which they played two men up and sliced the margin back down to a pair of goals when senior Tyler Schulte (Southampton, N.J.) found the back of the net for the 14th time this season.
 
The Pride thought they had a goal to bring the deficit down to one when Mitchell Phillips (Wyomissing, Pa.) came from behind the net and unleashed a shot that trickled in with three minutes left, but the junior was called for a crease violation. The Bullets then came back the other way and scored on a Blake Gray strike to move ahead by three at 5-2 before Jack Harvey later added a man-down goal midway through the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
 
Barbee led a balanced Gettysburg attack by accumulating a team-high three points on one goal and two assists. Harvey scored twice with both goals coming in the fourth quarter, while Heller and Gray also added two markers apiece. Goalkeeper Tim Brady redirected five shots for the Bullets, who finished with a commanding 48-19 advantage in total shots in the contest.
 
In addition to Horton, the Pride also got strong contributions from junior John Ferguson (Springfield, Pa.) and Cook in the setback. Ferguson scooped up five ground balls and caused two turnovers, and Cook picked up four ground balls. Schulte and Franks each recorded a goal and an assist.
 
Widener (2-4) is slated to return to action when it hosts DeSales on Saturday, March 25 at 1:00 p.m.