Courtesy Tufts Sports Information

Box Score

MEDFORD, Mass. - Wesleyan University recorded the first shutout in the NESCAC men's lacrosse tournament's seven-year history when they blanked Williams College, 8-0, in the semi-final round on Saturday afternoon at Tufts University's Bello Field.

The Cardinals move on to play Middlebury College in the NESCAC championship game on Sunday at noon, with the winner earning an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. The two teams will be playing each other in the conference championship game for the fourth straight year. Williams finishes its season with an 8-6 record.

The shutout is the first for Wesleyan since 1970 when they blanked Tufts 7-0, and it is the fourth shutout in the team's 47-year history.

The Cardinals limited the Ephs to just 13 shots, seven on net. Senior Charlie Congleton (Groton, Mass.) had six saves in 53 minutes for the Cardinals, and sophomore Mike Borrero (Bayport, N.Y.) stopped one shot in seven minutes to combine for the shutout.

In the first half, the Wesleyan offense was slow to get started as well. The teams played a scoreless first period. The Cardinals then took a 2-0 advantage into halftime on second-period goals scored 31 seconds apart by Russ Follansbee (Deerfield, Mass.) at 12:03 and Jason Ben-Eliyahu (East Setauket, N.Y.) at 11:32.

Wesleyan added two man-up goals 37 seconds apart by Mike Hines (Newburyport, Mass.) to its lead in the third quarter. Grayson Connors (Princeton Junction, N.J.) scored a pair in the fourth quarter helping the Cardinals add up to the 8-0 final. Hines led the Cardinals with three points, adding an assist to his two goals.

The Cardinals, 16-1 overall and ranked fourth nationally, finished with a 39-13 advantage in shots and 44-29 in ground balls. Williams failed on 11 of 29 clears and just couldn't get its game going. Sophomore Michael Gerbush (Glen Head, N.Y.) stopped 15 shots in the Williams cage.