James (8G, 2A) Leads USM Past Thomas 25-8

            GORHAM, Maine -- Sophomore Nick James (Portland, Maine/Deering) scored a University of Southern Maine single-game record eight goals and dished out two assists as the Huskies defeated the visiting Thomas College Terriers 25-8 in a non-conference men's lacrosse game Tuesday afternoon at Hannaford Field.

            The win was the second straight for the Huskies who improve to 2-1 on the season.  The Terriers are winless through three games this spring.

            It was a record-setting day for the Huskies' offense as they equaled the single-game mark with 25 goals set against the University of Maine at Farmington on March 16, 2016..  James' eight goals surpassed the previous record of seven set by Seth Wing against New England College on March 14, 2015.  And senior Tristan Dundas (Abbotsford, B.C.) became the ninth player in program history to reach the 100-point plateau.

            Dundas finished the day with seven goals and one assist.  Sophomore Colin Kinney (Belgrade, Maine/Messalonskee) had a big day with nine points on four goals and five assists, and rookie Curtis Judd (Saco, Maine/Albany Academies) added five goals and three assists.

            Freshman Ian Cooke (Lyman, Maine/Hyde School) earned the win in goal allowing no goals and making seven saves over the opening 23:06.  Sophomore Alex Bonin (South Berwick, Maine) took over and posted three saves over the final 36:54.

            For the Terriers, freshmen Mathew Crisco (North Haven, Conn.), Kurt Heywood (Yarmouth, Maine) and Max Irons (Limerick, Maine/Massabesic) had two goals apiece.  Rookie goalie Patrick Buxton (Portland, Maine/Deering) recorded 16 saves.

            The Terriers stay close to the Huskies through the first quarter as Buxton made nine saves.  Kinney had a pair of goals, and Dundas had one, to give the Huskies a 3-0 lead after 15 minutes.

            Southern Maine exploded for nine goals in the second quarter to build a 12-2 advantage going into the halftime break.  James had five of his eight goals in the quarter.

            James added two more goals to his total in the third quarter, and netted his record breaking marker in the opening minute of the fourth quarter.  Dundas tallied his milestone 100th point with USM's last goal midway into the final quarter.

            Southern Maine outshot Thomas 67-41 (41-18 on goal) and had a 47-19 edge in ground balls.  The Huskies dominated the faceoffs winning 32 of 36.  Junior Cruise Lizotte-Johnson (Sanford, Maine) won 17 of 19 on the way to scooping up a game-high 16 ground balls.

            The Huskies hit the road on Saturday (1 p.m.) traveling to Norwich University for a non-conference game.  Thomas will open North Atlantic Conference play on Saturday (1 p.m.) hosting SUNY Canton.

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