Delea adds pair of goals in collegiate debut

RINDGE, N.H. (March 1, 2015) – On a frigid, unusual, largely spectator-free day at Sodexo Field on Sunday afternoon, senior attack Eddie Noonan (Foxboro, Mass.) matched one program record with nine points (5-4-9), and set new school records for career points and assists, to lead the way for the Franklin Pierce University men's lacrosse team in a 16-3, season-opening win over Dominican (N.Y.) in non-conference play. Junior attack Casey Burnett (Windham, N.H.) added five points (3-2-5) in the win for the Ravens.

With the win, Franklin Pierce opens the season at 1-0 (0-0 Northeast-10), while Dominican falls to 0-1 (0-0 Central Atlantic). The weather presented challenging field conditions for both teams on Sunday. Meanwhile, snow-filled bleachers meant a ban for spectators at the facility, though several hardy souls made their way atop snow banks adjacent to Sodexo Field for a look at the action.

Noonan authored one of the busiest days in program history on Sunday, as he became the fourth Raven to score nine points in a game. The most recent of the other nine-point outings came just last season, against Dominican as well, when Kevin Dargin had nine points on March 8, 2014. The other two both came against Green Mountain, from the sticks of Brendan Rooney (April 5, 2007) and Ryan Boller (April 26, 2006).

More noteworthy though, was what the day meant for Noonan's career standing within the program. His seventh point of the day, a goal with 95 seconds to play in the third quarter, was the 103rd of his career, which tied him with Bill Paradis atop Franklin Pierce's all-time scoring list. Noonan's next point, an assist 22 seconds into the fourth quarter, gave him sole possession of the all-time record. The assist was also the 35th of his career, tying him with Jimmy McInnis atop the program's all-time list. Noonan's next assist, which came 5:58 later, allowed him to claim the record in that category as well.

As for the game, it remained competitive through the first quarter as the two teams used the time to feel out each other and -- perhaps more importantly in the slippery conditions -- the playing surface. From there, Franklin Pierce used a five-goal second quarter -- the only five goals of the period -- to seize control of the afternoon. Burnett had two goals and an assist in the frame, while freshman midfielder Sean Delea (Hampstead, N.H.) added a goal and an assist in his first collegiate game. The second-quarter run allowed the Ravens to stretch their lead from 3-2 after one quarter to 8-2 heading into halftime.

In fact, after the first quarter, Franklin Pierce allowed Dominican just one further goal, outscoring the Chargers 13-1 over the final three quarters. The Ravens enjoyed an 8-1 edge in the second half, surrendering just a tally to freshman midfielder Chris Heegan with 4:46 to play in the third. Meanwhile, Noonan did most of his damage in the second half, as he scored three goals in the third quarter and then added a goal and two assists in the fourth quarter.

In all, Franklin Pierce had four players tally three or more points on the day, as Noonan and Burnett were joined by two goals and an assist from Delea and three goals and an assist from sophomore attack Anthony D'Aprile (Smithtown, N.Y.). Defensively, junior defenseman Dylan Leone (Tewksbury, Mass.) led the way with five ground balls and two caused turnovers. Freshman midfielder Louis Palumbo (Commack, N.Y.) and junior midfielder Brenden Caldeira (Sandwich, Mass.) picked up three ground balls each.

For Dominican, the only offense came from Heegan, freshman attack Jimmy Anderson and freshman midfielder Christopher Augustin, as the trio scored one unassisted goal each. Heegan also led the Chargers defensively, as he picked up five ground balls and caused a pair of turnovers. Freshman midfielder Andrew Larrea added a pair of ground balls.

Senior goalkeeper Don Denman (Exeter, N.H.) finished with five saves against eight shots over 50:20 in goal to pick up the win (1-0) for Franklin Pierce. Sophomore Carlos Villaman logged 45:00 in net for Dominican, made 16 saves against 28 shots and suffered the loss (0-1).

The Ravens return to the field on Saturday, March 7, when they remain home to host Notre Dame de Namur in a non-conference contest. Opening faceoff is set for 1 p.m. at Sodexo Field.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce men's lacrosse apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).