Columbia, MD – The Howard Dragons men's lacrosse team made history as they defeated the vaunted Onondaga Lazers for the first time in program history, prevailing against the #5 ranked team in the nation in a 13-12 instant classic.
 
The Dragons got out to a great start when a Chris Peterson (Saline, MI/Saline) save allowed Max Bruno (Ellicott City, MD/Howard) to get an open run and fire into the net to give Howard the early lead. A nice give-and-go had Cole Blanche (Mount Airy, MD/Linganore) get set up by Caleb Tatum (Kingswood, TX/Kingswood) with Tatum then scoring a power play goal 30 seconds later to put the Dragons up 3-1. Onondaga went on to score three unanswered goals to take the lead, but a fantastic defensive play by Jack Slack (Ellicott City, MD/Marriotts Ridge) stopped a fast break for the Lazers with Chase Noah (Darnestown, MD/St. Andrews Episcopal) scoring on the other end to tie the game.
 
Noah scored his second goal of the game right out of the gates in the second quarter to give Howard the lead back, which was extended by Zane Dalpe (Belle River, ON/Saint Anne) before Onondaga scored the last three goals of the first half to lead 7-6 at halftime.
 
Onondaga extended their lead starting the third quarter, but Philip Petersen (Vail, CO/Eagle Valley) curled around from behind the goal to snag one back before setting up Dalpe's second right after to tie the game at 8-8. Dalpe completed his hat trick and Tatum scored his second on a fast break to make it a 4-0 run for Howard. The Lazers scored one to halve the lead, but Dalpe came right back with a shorthanded goal and added one more for his fifth of the game to close out the third quarter with Howard ahead 12-9.
 
The Lazers charged back in the fourth quarter, scoring two straight before a huge Brennan Treacy (Woodbine, MD/Saint Pauls) goal slowed down the momentum to give the Dragons a much needed insurance goal with seven minutes remaining. The Dragons defense led by the trio of Connor Gladstone (Warrenton, VA/Kettle Run), Nik Pinto (Sykesville, MD/South Carroll), and Jimmy Connor did a fantastic job to hold Onondaga scoreless for the next six minutes, but the Lazers scored with 40 seconds left to make it a 13-12 Howard lead. The nerves were increased when Onondaga won the ensuing face-off, but Peterson came up with his 25^th save in the final seconds of the game to give the Dragons the historic victory.
 
The Dragons will next host Genesee, the preseason #4 nationally ranked team, on Friday March 18 at 4:30 PM.