Shreveport – The Centenary lacrosse team fell 16-10 in its season opener on Saturday afternoon to the Cornell College Rams in a non-conference contest at Mayo Field.
The Gents (0-1) and Rams (0-1) were meeting for the first time. Centenary has joined the Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse Conference (HCLC) this season while the Rams, located in Mount Vernon, Iowa, are a member of the Midwest Conference.
The Rams finished with a 5-4 lead after an action-packed first quarter and then took a 9-5 lead into halftime after outscoring the Maroon and White 4-1 in the second period. Cornell finished with a 4-2 advantage in the third quarter and then the teams finished even (3-3) in the fourth. The 8-3 edge in the second and third periods combined allowed the Rams to secure the win on a sunny, cool day in front of a large crowd on the Gents' home field.
Four Gents scored two goals each on Saturday and freshman GK Alex Nicks-Davis (Nashville, Tenn.) made his first collegiate start and recorded 14 saves. Junior M/A Kyle Comi (Allen, Texas), Freshman MF Marc Mackey (Houston, Texas), freshman A Braxton Parchman (Shreveport, La.), and freshman A G'Colby Spivey (Dallas, Texas) each scored a pair of goals and Sophomore midfielder Jordan Cook (Bryant, Ark.) and junior MF Blake Federico (Boerne, Texas) each scored one.
Kyle Jussila (6) and Warren Wiberg (4) combined to score 10 of the Rams' 16 goals, Jackson Kinart scored three, Luke Baldwin scored a pair, and Matt Norwood added one goal.
Cornell finished with a 43-37 edge in shots and had five assists for its 16 goals with Baldwin and Jussila each picking up a pair of assists. The Rams had 29 ground balls to 16 for the Gents and Cornell went a perfect 10-10 on clears while Centenary finished 6-8. Cornell won 22 of 29 face off opportunities compared to 7-29 for the Maroon and White.
Cornell used a pair of goalkeepers on Saturday, as Evan Begner (1-0) started and played the first 50:12 and recorded 16 saves and allowed seven goals. Thomas Cook relieved him and played the final 9:48, making four saves and allowing three goals.
Cook, the 2021 SCAC Co-Newcomer of the Year last season as a freshman, added two assists to go with his goal and finished with eight shots (six on goal), four caused turnovers and a ground ball. Comi took four shots, all on goal, and had three ground balls with one caused turnover.
Mackey was one of a handful of Gents to turn in impressive debuts as he took seven shots, six on goal, with four ground balls and one caused turnover. Parchman also took seven shots, six on goal, and recorded a ground ball. Spivey finished with four shots, three on goal, and had a ground ball. Nicks-Davis played all 60 minutes in his collegiate debut for the Gents in goal and picked up the 14 saves.
Centenary remains at home to face the Huntingdon College Hawks next Sunday, Feb. 13 at 1 p.m.
See the Gents' complete season schedule here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/mlax/2021-22/schedule
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