Stiff Defense Leads WPU to Upset of #4 Indiana Tech

Atchison, Kan.--A great defensive effort helped the Statesmen men's lacrosse team overcome a season low in goals as it knocked off #4 Indiana Tech 11-7 in non-conference action Tuesday.

Playing at a neutral site (Benedictine College's campus), #6 William Penn (7-1) recorded its first-ever win over a top-five program.  The navy and gold only held a 48-38 edge in shots, but were remarkable in transition defense, denying the Warriors (1-3) on 15 of their 27 clear attempts.  Conversely, the Statesmen were 15-for-21 in clears.

The low-scoring affair was not one of beauty as the sides combined for 56 turnovers (27 for WPU, 29 for ITU).

Indiana Tech started hot with a pair of goals in the first five minutes, but once the Statesmen got going, they quickly took control.

WPU finally got on the board with 8:42 left in the first quarter as Wyatt Christensen (So., Madison, Wis., Biology) fired in a pass from Max Standage (So., Gilbert, Ariz., Public Accounting).

Just 26 seconds later, Kenny Bohney (So., Moorhead, Minn., Exercise Science) tied the contest at 2-2 with Christensen assisting.  A few minutes later, Boston Romero (Sr., Las Vegas, Nev., Business Management), with help from Nate Blasingame (Jr., Portland, Ore., Business Management), put the Statesmen on top for good as WPU headed into the second quarter up 3-2.

Three days earlier, William Penn scored nine goals in a dominating second period against Ottawa (Kan.).  The squad was not quite that proficient Tuesday, but did own the quarter with a 4-1 advantage.  Jeff Kohl (So., Gilbert, Ariz., Business Management), from Breck Putzier (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn., Exercise Science), started the run, while Romero was unassisted in his score.

Putzier then broke through with Christiansen collecting the assist.  Following a Warrior goal that trimmed the margin to three at 6-3, Christiansen and Putzier switched roles with Christensen posting the goal with only 26 seconds left until halftime.

The second half was an even battle as both sides managed four goals, but ITU never getting any closer than three goals.  Max Taylor (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn., Business Management) led the way with two tallies, while Romero and Huettl also scored.  Putzier tallied three assists in the latter half.

Putzier put on his proverbial distribution hat with five assists in addition to his one goal. Romero topped the victors with three goals, while Christiansen scored twice and assisted twice.  Bohney added one goal and one assist in the win.

Collin Baliva (Sr., St. Louis, Mo., Mechanical Engineering) and Standage each collected four ground balls, while Standage and Marcus Davis (Jr., Sacramento, Calif., New Media) both notched a pair of caused turnovers.

The 20 faceoffs were split down the middle with each team managing 10 wins, including Blasingame going 6-for-11.

Eric Garigan (Grad., Tucson, Ariz., Master's of Organizational Leadership) secured the win with 13 big saves.

"This is a big win that will mean a lot for the program on a few levels," Head Coach Luke Christiansen said.  "Championship teams know how to win ugly and we definitely did that today.  The defense stepped up and proved that we can win against elite offenses.  This win contains tons of lessons that we can build upon."

Next Up: William Penn travels to Fremont, Neb. next Thursday to face Midland in non-conference play at 4 p.m.