NEW HAVEN, CT - The Purchase College men's lacrosse team kicked off its 2020 campaign with win Friday evening, topping Albertus Magnus College in overtime by the score of 7-6.

Sophomore Connor Schwenker (Westhampton, NY) was the hero on the night, as he scored the game-winning man-up goal off a feed from Ben Erkan (JR/Bellport, NY) with 1:40 remaining in the first overtime.

The goal and win came with a sigh of relief for the Panthers, as the visitors nearly lost the game late following five second-half goals from the Falcons.

To start the contest, Purchase jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first quarter. Joseph Ely (SO/North Salem, NY) scored the opening goal of the season on a man-up opportunity, while Dan Ohrem (SR/Ridgefield, CT) scored the next two for the Panthers.

In the second, Ohrem added his third-straight goal on a man-up chance with 6:33 remaining to push the Purchase lead to 4-0. One minute later, the hosts managed to get on the board with a strike from Sinmisola Lawal (FR/Bridgeport, CT), as that ended the scoring over the first 30 minutes.

In the second half, it was the Falcons who came out firing. The hosts were rewarded with a pair of strikes over a 10-minute span, cutting their deficit to just one, before Erkan finished off the third period with an individual effort, pushing the Panthers' lead back to two.

Once the fourth frame began, Albertus Magnus continued to strike offensively. The Falcons produced a goal a little over a minute into the period, before a tally from Schwenker wih 10:02 left pushed the margin back to two goals, 6-4.

After that, the two sides remained scoreless for five minutes, until Albertus Magnus finally broke the streak with a goal from Jon Olson (FR/Bellmore, NY) with 4:57 to go. Just a over a minute later, the hosts added another strike, tying the contest with 3:30 remaining.

Over the final 3:30, the two sides renewed their scoreless streak, meaning overtime was needed to settle the contest. 

Luckily for the Panthers, they didn't need many chances to win it. In fact, Schwenker scored on the only Purchase shot in the frame to secure the opening-day win.

On the night, Purchase outshot Albertus Magnus, 36-30. Turnovers between the two teams were nearly identical, but successful clears, ground balls and face offs all went in favor of the hosts.

Extra-man opportunities are where the Panthers were able to secure the win however, as they went 4-for-8 in the category. Meanwhile, the Falcons were just 1-for-13 in the loss.

Individually, Erkan led all players with five points (1g, 4a). Ohrem finished with three goals, while Schwenker recorded two goals on the night.

Ely had the one goal and four ground balls. Freshman Riley Donovan (Billerica, MA) collected his first collegiate point with an assist and four ground balls in the win.

Alexander Golik (SO/Rocky Point, NY) also collected four ground balls and caused three turnovers, while Bridger Carreau (SR/Marietta, GA) tallied four ground balls and two caused turnovers. 

For Albertus Magnus, Olson finished with three points (2g, 1a), as seven players recorded at least a point.

Up next for Purchase is a two-week layoff, before the squad returns to the field for the home opener against New Paltz. That game is set for March 11th at 7 p.m. and you can follow it here.