High Point MLAX Drops 16-11 Decision at St. John’s

• Freshman Asher Nolting upped his streak of at least three points per game to five straight with three goals and an assist on the day.
• Senior Connor Robinson tallied his third straight hat trick and has 13 goals so far this season.
• High Point posted a 5-1 run in the second half to pull within one, 12-11, before St. John’s closed the game on a 4-0 spurt.

QUEENS, N.Y. – The High Point University men’s lacrosse team nearly erased a six-goal deficit pulling within one in the fourth quarter before falling 16-11 at St. John’s on Saturday afternoon.

Freshman Asher Nolting became the first Panther since Michael LeClair in 2016 to score at least three points in five straight games with three goals and one assist. Meanwhile, senior Connor Robinson tallied his third straight hat trick scoring two goals in the second-half run for the Panthers (0-5). The Red Storm (2-1) was led by four goals and an assist from Joe Madsen.

“Hats off to St. John’s because they beat us in every facet of the game today,” head coach Jon Torpey said. “In the last 18 days we have played the toughest schedule in the country and today we struggled to compete at a high level. I’m hoping that the experience these young men are gaining will lead to a more consistent effort and better execution as we continue our season.”

HPU has played No. 1 Duke, No. 2 Maryland, No. 6 Virginia along with road games at Georgetown and St. John’s in the last two and a half weeks.

Supporting the attacking duo of Nolting and Robinson, sophomore Dalton Sulver and freshman Koby Russell notched two goals apiece. Rounding out the scoring, senior Chris Young scored the first goal of the afternoon.

At the ‘X’ sophomore Davis Sampere shook off a slow start to go 11-of-21 while grabbing seven ground balls on the day. Overall, St. John’s earned a 16-14 margin in face-offs and a 32-30 edge on the ground.

Defensively, freshman Clayton Krol set a career high with three caused turnovers. Meanwhile, senior Terrell Sands chipped in with three ground balls and a caused turnover while freshman Colin Clothier posted a ground ball, caused turnover and an assist. Sophomore Chris Price also earned an assist in the contest.

Senior Zach Tuell got the start in the crease making three saves before sophomore Tim Troutner Jr. made five saves during the final 38 minutes of action.

Young opened the scoring scooping up a loose ball in front of the crease and depositing it in the back of the net. After St. John’s answered, HPU went back on top as Clothier caused a turnover and raced down field to feed Robinson to give HPU a 2-1 lead at 11:42. However, using a 5-1 run, the Red Storm built a 6-2 edge with 8:13 left in the first.

High Point held St. John’s without a goal for the next 11 minutes cutting the deficit to two at 6-4, but was outscored 4-2 in the second to enter the break down 10-6.

Out of the break, the Red Storm extended its lead to 11-6 before Robinson and Nolting both scored twice and Russell added a goal at the 13:36 mark to make it 12-11. However, the Panthers wouldn’t dent the scoreboard again falling 16-11.

The Panthers remain on the road next weekend when they take on Robert Morris in Moon Township, Pa. at 4:00 p.m.