MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. – St. Bonaventure took the NEC preseason favorites to the wire on the road with a two-goal lead with just over seven minutes to play before Robert Morris rallied in the final minutes to score an 8-7 decision over the Bonnies men's lacrosse team Tuesday afternoon at a frigid Joe Walton Stadium.

RMU outscored the Bonnies by a 4-1 tally during the fourth quarter to rally for the win.

Luke Prezioso tallied the game-winner for the Colonials with 4:15 to go.

In the late going, the Bonnies did not have a chance to set up their offense for an opportunity at the tie as RMU forced back-to-back turnovers and ran out the clock.

With real feel temperatures in the single digits, the entire day was a defensive struggle.

Kyle Pepper registered three points (1G-2A) to pace the Bonnies while both Drew Kenney and Conor Murphy each scored twice.

The game's first goal took 10 minutes to occur but when it did the Bonnies struck first on a laser around the goalie's shoulder off the stick of Murphy following a feed from Kellen Pulera for the lead.

The Bonnies kept the Colonials off the board for over 14 minutes before David Burr tied the score just before the end of the period.

Pepper struck on the man-up 20 seconds into the second quarter, but Burr immediately answered for the tie.

The alternating goals continued as Pepper assisted Kenney for a 3-2 edge with 3:58 left in the half before Burr scored twice in the final 2:34 as the hosts grabbed a 4-3 lead at intermission.

Bona's immediately grabbed momentum back as the second half got underway as Lad Harper won the opening faceoff with the groundball scooped up by Benny Carter. Carter then raced toward the net, finishing with his second goal of the year.  

The Bonnies forced a turnover on the next RMU possession and Kenney scored just seconds after Carter's goal as the visitors pulled ahead, 5-4.

Bona held a 7-5 edge following a goal by Murphy with 8:26 remaining in the fourth before the Colonials started their rally.

Freshman Isaac Farmer made 11 saves as part of a strong showing in the cage.

In addition to his goal, Carter recorded a team-high five groundballs and a caused turnover while Harper won seven faceoffs for the Bonnies (1-3).

Burr led all scorers with four goals and six points for RMU (1-2).

Bona held a 41-35 edge in shots but finished 19-for-25 in clear attempts to RMU's 22-24. SBU finished 1-for-3 in man-up opportunities while successfully killing off all four extra-man chances for the Colonials.

QUOTES FROM HEAD COACH RANDY MEARNS
"Hats off to Robert Morris, the NEC favorite. That certainly was a gritty battle.  Every possession, every faceoff, every groundball; back-and-forth all afternoon.  You could feel the energy! I am so proud of our compete level, grit and will to win. We went blow-for-blow against an excellent squad."
 
"At the end of the day, it's a game of inches and quick decisions and we didn't execute late in the game. Some untimely turnovers in our clear game in the fourth quarter cost us two key possessions. We didn't get the job done, but we will get better from the experience today."

UP NEXT
The Bonnies return home to host Mercyhurst Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 4 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the Bona women's team earlier that day at the Marra Athletics Complex.

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