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Zackery makes crucial save against Albion March 1, 2025
Kodiak Creative
10
Albion ALBION 2-2
13
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 5-0
Albion ALBION
2-2
10
Final
13
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
5-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Albion ALBION 3 4 2 1 10
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 6 3 3 1 13

Game Recap: Men's Lacrosse |

Men’s Lacrosse Downs Britons in Home Opener

Titans improve to 5-0 with 13-10 victory


BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Playing its first game of the 2025 season inside Tucci Stadium, the Illinois Wesleyan University men's lacrosse team defeated Albion College, 13-10, Saturday afternoon, March 1. With the win, IWU improves to 5-0 on the season, while the Britons dip to 2-2.

Senior Sam Weinberg (Highwood, Ill.-Oak Park River Forest) led the team in scoring with six points, coming on a career-high five goals and an assist. Sophomore Timothy McHugh (Orland Park, Ill.-Mount Carmel) was second, as he orchestrated the offense with five of IWU's eight assists, to finish with five points. Junior Noah Dretzka (Delafield, Wis.-Kettle Moraine) finished with four points composed of three goals and an assist. 

At the X, junior Nick Schroeder (Waunakee, Wis.-Waunakee) helped guide the Titans to a 17-of-27 advantage, as he won 13 faceoffs on 21 attempts. Junior Michael Rocco (Libertyville, Ill.-Libertyville) added a four-for-six showing. 

Defensively, senior Sam Skelton (Portland, Ore.-Franklin) led the team with four caused turnovers, tying his career-best, and seven ground balls, smashing his career-high. Freshman Carlo Adams (Knoxville, Tenn.-West) and junior Billy McHugh (Orland Park, Ill.-Mount Carmel) each added six ground balls. 

Freshman Jaymeson Zackery (Saint Paul, Minn.-Eastview) registered his first collegiate win in goal, as he logged all 60 minutes between the iron. Zackery made 13 saves, and added five ground balls and two caused turnovers to his stat line. 

Dretzka leveled the score at one all, but Albion capitalized on an IWU penalty. The Britons struck for two goals during the man-up opportunity, before Skelton laid out a big hit to force an AC turnover. IWU scooped the ball and quickly moved into the attack where fifth-year Gage Black (Peoria, Ill.-Dunlap) fired a shot to pull the Titans within one, 3-2.

The goal proved to be the start of five straight from the Green and White as Weinberg scored off Dretzka's assist to knot the game at three. Just 30 seconds later, Weinberg buried a shot on T. McHugh's dish. Fifth-year Bob Boone (Los Angeles, Calif.-Notre Dame) then connected with Black on a man-up opportunity and freshman Ethan Cavanaugh (Davis, Calif.-Davis Senior) added a goal to give IWU a 6-3 edge after 15 minutes.

The Green and White opened the second quarter with a goal by fifth-year Ike Eastburn (Colorado Springs, Colo.-Cheyenne Mountain) off another assist by T. McHugh. Albion answered, scoring three of the next four goals to cut the Titan lead to two, 8-6.

A rip from Boone flew past the Britons' keeper and made it a three-goal game, but AC scored two minutes later to cut IWU's lead to two, 9-7, at halftime.

Wasting little time, Albion scored the first goal of the second half to pull within one, but T. McHugh dished to Weinberg for goals at the 11:22 and 6:44 marks to give the Titans a three-goal cushion, 11-8.

Dretzka shook off a defender and jumped past another before ripping an unassisted goal into the back of the net. The goal, Dretzka's final of the day, came with 20 seconds left in the third quarter.

Leading 12-9 with 15 minutes remaining, Illinois Wesleyan held off a late push by Albion. The Britons scored with 12:42 to play as IWU's lead stood at two with AC looking to mount a comeback. Adams and junior B. McHugh , combined to cause an Albion turnover in the midfield. B. McHugh scooped up the ground ball and took off downfield, finding his brother T. McHugh cutting towards the crease. He tossed a quick pass to Weinberg, who buried the shot as IWU reclaimed a three-goal lead, 13-10.

Zackery and the Titan defense held off the Britons from that point on, including a point-blank save with three minutes to go that put momentum purely on the side of the Green and White. 

IWU remains home, as the Titans host Wabash College Wednesday, March 5. Action is set to begin inside Tucci Stadium at 6:30 p.m.
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