Contact: Matthew Eaker, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, mreaker@noctrl.edu 

Apr. 16, 2022 - After jumping out to an early lead, the North Central men's lacrosse team held on to take down the Elmhurst University Bluejays 9-8 on a beautiful afternoon inside Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. 

The Cardinals (5-6, 1-2 CCIW) wasted no time getting the scoring started as Tom Eberhardt tallied two quick goals off assists from Jack Moran and Rylan McQueary to put them up two just three minutes into the contest. The Bluejays would respond as Marcus Yandall cut the lead to one with 11 minutes remaining in the opening quarter. However, McQueary would put the Cardinals back up by two as he scored off an assist from Anthony Zowin. Yandall would tally his second goal of the game, cutting the Cardinal lead to one once again. The Cardinals would extend their lead to three as Eberhardt started a three goal stretch for the Cardinals which would put the Cardinals up 6-3 heading into the second half. 

The Bluejays came out firing in the second half as they kept the Cardinals off the board and scored four unanswered goals to tie the game at six heading into the final quarter of play. The Cardinals were not phased as Nick Rubino scored off an assist from Scott Allgood to put them up by one before Collin Kaiser would put the Cardinals up by two with just 12 minutes remaining. The Bluejays were not going out without a fight as Jake Grebe tallied two unanswered goals to tie the game back up at eight with seven minutes remaining. With just under five minutes remaining, Rubino would sneak past the defense and put one past the Bluejays goalkeeper to give the Cardinals a 9-8 lead. The Bluejays were looking to send the game into overtime as the Cardinals were called offsides, giving them a man-up opportunity. With just 19 seconds remaining, Grebe had an open shot on cage to send the game to overtime but freshman Aidan Murphy made a great save, shutting down the Bluejays scoring attempt and giving the Cardinals a 9-8 win. 

Eberhardt led the team with three goals while Rubino had two and McQueary, Moran, Allgood and Kaiser each had one goal. Dylan Mlinarich led the defense with three caused turnovers while senior Steven Dale had four ground balls and two caused turnovers. In his first start as a Cardinal, Murphy tallied ten saves and got his first win in net in his young Cardinal career. 

The Cardinals are back in action on Wednesday, Apr. 20 as they take a trip to Carroll University to take on the Pioneers in a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) matchup. The opening faceoff is set for 4 pm inside Schneider Stadium. 

Download the free North Central Cardinals app, available for iOS and Android devices, to receive up-to-the-minute news, scores and updates on your favorite North Central teams. Click HERE for more information