WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The Rivier men's lacrosse team rallied for a 10-7 victory over Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) rival Saint Joseph (Conn.) (USJ) on Saturday afternoon at the USJ Sports Complex.

With the win, the Raiders extended their program-best winning streak to eight games, improving to 10-1 (6-0 GNAC) while the Blue Jays fell to 5-7 (3-3 GNAC).

Despite forcing six USJ turnovers in the opening frame, Rivier struggled offensively and trailed 3-1 after the first quarter. Senior Sawyer Hall tallied the lone Raider goal off a feed from graduate student Coby Mercier.

USJ added a man-up goal early in the second quarter to extend its lead to 4-1. Both offenses continued to battle through scoring droughts until senior Chris Heitmiller found the back of the net with 30 seconds remaining in the half, cutting the deficit to 4-2 heading into the break.

The Raiders came out firing in the second half. Junior Sean Callinan struck first and Heitmiller added two more goals to complete his hat trick to push Rivier ahead for the first time in the contest at 5-4. Senior Michael Zapatka and graduate student Michael Ference added goals to stretch the lead to 7-4. USJ answered with a late goal, making it 7-5 at the end of the third.

Graduate student Connor Eck powered the Raiders in the final frame, scoring three times to complete a hat trick and seal the 10-7 victory.

Ference and Mercier led the team with four points and two ground balls each. Eck and Heitmiller each notched hat tricks, while Callinan contributed a goal, two assists, and a ground ball. On the defensive end, graduate student Adam Hailey caused three turnovers, while sophomore Cole Ronalter and junior Scott Miller had two apiece.

At the faceoff X, sophomore Noah Zeman won 12-of-13 (92.3%) faceoffs and collected a game-high five ground balls. Graduate goalkeeper Sawyer Gagnon recorded eight saves, three ground balls, and a caused turnover.

Rivier outshot USJ 39-26, including a 24-9 advantage in the second half. The Raiders also held a 32-18 edge in ground balls, converted 15-of-16 clears (93.8%), and dominated faceoffs, winning 15-of-18 (83.3%).

The Raiders return to action on Wednesday, April 16 in a clash of GNAC unbeatens as they take on Emmanuel (Mass.). Opening face-off is set for 5:00 p.m. at Joanne Merrill Field.