Rain and 40-degree temperatures did not make it feel like a late April lacrosse game, but the stakes felt appropriate with No. 6 Cornell (10-3, 5-1 Ivy) taking on No. 10 Harvard (9-3, 3-3 Ivy) with heavy Ivy League and NCAA playoff implications.
“Definitely an ugly game, rainy and everything, but that's kind of our weather. We take pride in that,” said junior attackman Ryan Goldstein.
The crescent held a strong contingent of Cornell’s most loyal fans, pushing through the elements to see men’s lacrosse’s biggest game of the season and senior ceremonies. As it turned out, they also got to see the Red celebrate the Ivy League regular season championship, with an 11-9 Cornell win.
“That was a big one, and that's a great team, and it wasn't always pretty at times, but we found enough plays and opportunities to pull it out,” said head coach Connor Buczek ’15 MBA ’17. ”I think it’s a testament to our seniors on senior day, and the group that we have, that we find different ways to win.”
The game did not start as Cornell had hoped, with the Red losing the opening faceoff, despite having the advantage on paper. Harvard scored on this opening possession, and then pushed the lead to 2-0.
Junior attackman Willem Firth got the Red on the board with a solo dodge, but after a stretch of sloppy play, Harvard scored again. On the next possession, junior midfielder AJ Nikolic made his return to action for the Red after missing most of the season due to an injury. He dodged along the wing, but his shot was stopped by the Harvard goalkeeper.
Willem Firth '27 takes a shot against Harvard.
Junior goalkeeper Matt Tully and both defenses stood tall through the end of the quarter. Harvard found the top corner early in the second to push its lead to 4-1.
Then, junior midfielder Ryan Waldman snuck through a bounce shot from the outside. Goldstein followed by dropping his man to the wet turf on a dodge from behind the cage and scoring. Firth scored in transition to tie the game up at 4-4.
Senior midfielder Brian Luzzi then scored on a speed dodge to give Cornell its first lead of the game. The four goal run gave the Red a 5-4 lead as it entered halftime.
Goldstein opened the second half with another successful dodge from X, getting inside of his defender right on the crease and scoring. Harvard answered on a bouncer, and nearly tied the game on a transition chance after a failed clear, but Tully made two fantastic saves.
Firth pushed the lead back to two with a backhand shot through heavy traffic on the man-up. But Harvard got one right back to bring the score to 7-6 Cornell at the end of the third.
Harvard scored nine seconds into the fourth quarter, and added another a minute later to take the lead back. Goldstein tied the game by collecting his own rebound off the post on the man-up.
Harvard coughed up the ball immediately after a Cornell offside, and Goldstein assisted Firth in transition. Harvard tied the game up yet again after a few big saves from the Crimson goalie.
Senior faceoff Jack Cascadden won the ensuing faceoff and passed to Goldstein, who dodged through traffic and scored. Off of another Cascadden faceoff win, Firth scored a jump shot to put Cornell up two with under three minutes to go.
A massive save from Tully and a turnover by the Cornell defense iced the game, securing an 11-9 victory for the Red.
Goldstein and Firth led the way for Cornell, combining for 13 of Cornell’s 16 total points. Goldstein had four goals and three assists, while Firth had five goals and one assist. The Red’s offensive unit took a while to get going, but mustered 10 goals in the last three quarters to bring home the win.
“The defense has been great for us all year. I think in the first quarter we only had one goal, it was still 3-1, and we didn't feel like we were playing our best,” Goldstein said. “We have so much trust in [the defense], so much trust in Jack to get us the ball a lot. And we just keep trusting our system.”
Cascadden won 16 of 24 faceoffs for a 67% win percentage, again springing forward numerous unsettled chances for the Red offense.
Tully saved 12 of 21 shots for a 57% save percentage. The defense in front of Tully was also fantastic, and have been one of the highlights of the team this year after being overshadowed by a historic offense last season.
“It’s the culmination of a lot of hard work. If you look at our group it’s very senior, junior, heavy, guys that have been improving and learning over the last three or four years,” said senior defender Brendan Staub. “Having Matty [Tully] behind us, he's been so exceptional, having Jack [Cascadden] at the X getting us more possessions, they take the weight off of us sometimes.”
In the senior night ceremony, Cornell honored Antonio Topouzis, Griffin McGovern, Matt Perfetto, Anthony Bartolotto, Charlie Box, Brian Luzzi, Brendan Staub, JK Kelly, Eddie Rayhill, Ethan Ruller and Matt Dooley.
The Red honors its senior class after defeating Harvard.
“It’s crazy it’s been four years. Pretty surreal to be in this moment,” Staub said. “I think back to my freshman, sophomore year, looking up at these guys and idolizing them, and just wanting to be in their shoes.”
“They walk in here as boys and leave here as men,” Buczek said.
Notably, Cascadden did not take part in the ceremony, and will return to Cornell next year, likely filing for a medical redshirt, granting him another year of eligibility due to his sophomore year injury.
With the win, Cornell has earned the right to host the Ivy League tournament next weekend. The Red will find itself in a rematch against Harvard in the semifinals at 4 p.m. on May 1. Coverage will be available on ESPN+.
