WPU Closes its Season at NAIA Quarterfinals

Savannah, Ga.--The William Penn men's lacrosse team put up a spirited fight but came up short in the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Invitational, falling 16-7 to top-seeded Keiser (Fla.) on Wednesday.

In their first appearance at the inaugural NAIA Championship, the No. 8 seed Statesmen (12-4) were narrowly outshot by the Seahawks (13-1), 47-43.

Keiser opened the scoring in the first quarter, but Garrett Katrana (Fr., Parker, Colo., Industrial Technology) quickly responded off an assist from Kenny Bohney (Jr., Moorhead, Minn., Exercise Science) to tie the game. The Seahawks closed out the period with two more goals to take a 3-1 lead.

Max Taylor (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Business Management) struck early in the second quarter to pull WPU within one, but Keiser answered with a pair of goals. Nate Blasingame (Sr., Portland, Ore., Business Management) found the net to keep the Statesmen in it, though the Seahawks regained control with two more scores to head into halftime up 8-3.

Keiser extended its lead to open the third, but unassisted goals from Blasingame and Bohney gave WPU a spark. That momentum was quickly snuffed out as the Seahawks reeled off four straight goals to stretch their lead to 12-6.

Bohney added his second goal in the final quarter, but the Seahawks tacked on four more to seal the win.

Blasingame led the way for the Statesmen with a hat trick, while Bohney contributed two goals and an assist. Katrana added a goal and an assist of his own.

Faceoffs proved to be a challenge for WPU, winning just 10 of 26. Bryce Campbell (Jr., Boise, Idaho) was a bright spot, winning 10-of-15 on his attempts.

Goalkeeper Connor Russell (Jr., Grand Haven, Mich., Applied Computer Science) kept the Statesmen in the contest with 12 saves, but 19 turnovers proved costly. Despite the turnover woes, William Penn's defense forced 13 of Keiser's 23 giveaways. Bradley Howell (Jr., Layton, Utah, Psychology) led the charge with six caused turnovers, while Max Standage (Sr., Gilbert, Ariz., Business Management) forced two.

Keiser also held the edge in ground balls, 36-29. Russell led WPU with six, while Campbell and Marcus Davis (Sr., Sacramento, Calif., New Media) collected two each.

Both teams were efficient in clear attempts, with William Penn converting 22-of-27 and Keiser finishing 21-of-24.

"Really proud of our guy's effort today, but just the wrong game to have our most mistake-prone performance of the year. Credit to Keiser for taking advantage of those opportunities," said Head Coach Luke Christiansen. "This team will go down as our best team so far by sweeping the conference. Our senior class has a lot to be proud of and laid the foundation for our program to be a power for years to come."