The Howard Community College men's lacrosse team advanced to the NJCAA national semifinals with a 16-9 win over Harford Community College last Saturday at HCC.  The victory for the Dragons was the third this season against the Fighting Owls. 
 
For Howard, it was much of the same story: a high-powered offense combined with a stingy defense, which led to another win.  The Dragons showed that they could move the ball around and get many players involved in the scoring, as its offense produced one of the most balanced performances all season.  Sophomores played a dominant role in the victory.  Ian Decker (Orlando, FL/Dr. Phillips) (4 goals, 2 assists) and Will Smith (Rockville, MD/Rockville) (3 goals, 2 assists) led Howard's scoring efforts.  Behind Decker and Smith, four Dragons each scored two goals. Midfielder Jesse Ekstrom (Fulton, MD/Reservoir) led the team with 3 assists.
 
Defensively, goalie TJ Ellis (Mount Airy, MD/Oakdale) was impressive and made 18 saves.  Freshmen Dayton Fisher (Hanover, MD/Howard) showed again that he is capable of shutting down opposing attackers.  He also pitched in 2 goals for the Dragons and led the team with 6 ground balls and 3 caused turnovers. 
 
Next up, Howard will face-off against defending champion Onondaga Community College in the first national semifinal this Saturday, May 12 at 1 p.m. on the Onondaga campus in Syracuse, New York.   The game will be a rematch of last season's national title game in which Howard fell just short to the Lazers, 15-14.  The other semifinal participants will be Nassau Community College and Genesee Community College.  The championship game will be on Sunday, May 13 at 1 p.m.