THE BASICS:
 
RESULT: Hartford 10, UMBC 4
RECORDS: Hartford (7-4, 3-1 AE); UMBC (2-7, 0-3 AE)
LOCATION: UMBC Stadium (Baltimore, Md.)
ATTENDANCE: 383

THE LEAD:

A stifling defensive effort coupled with solid outings from attackman Dylan Jinks and faceoff specialist Dylan Protesto led the University of Hartford men's lacrosse team to a 10-4 victory at UMBC on Saturday afternoon.  The Hawks, who never trailed in the contest, have won five of their last six, including three-straight.

Jinks scored a game- and career-high five goals, including three in a crucial, second-quarter run, while Protesto continued his dominance at the faceoff X by winning 12-of-15 draws. Between the posts, Vanderford made eight of his 11 saves in the second half to help Hartford close the door on the Retrievers. Nate Lewnes and Jack Gannon each scored two goals to lead the host team.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Hawks never trailed their league foes in the outing, as sophomore Trevor O'Brien broke open a 1-1 tie and gave the Hawks a lead they would not relinquish with 10 seconds left in the opening quarter.
• Hartford won the opening faceoff in the second quarter, and quickly took a 3-1 advantage behind Jinks' first goal of the game 24 seconds in. But Lewnes providing an answer for UMBC, scoring a man-up goal at the 2:47 mark to close the gap to one (3-2).
• The squads went on to exchange a pair of scores to make it a 4-3 game at the 8:29 mark. From there, Jinks put together a momentum-shifting run, as he reached the back of the net three times in a span of 2:39 to give Hartford a 7-3 halftime lead. During that pivotal second quarter, the Hawks won all eight faceoffs, with Protesto taking six duels and sophomore Spencer Andrews winning both of his attempts.
• The third quarter saw UMBC reach the scoreboard first, as Gannon converted on the Retrievers' second man-up opportunity midway through the stanza. That would be the last shot to get past the Hawks' defense, though, as Vanderford turned away each of the last six UMBC shots on goal to help seal the win.
• Before the end of the third, the Hawks regained their four-goal edge in the closing seconds behind a goal from Will Dulin. Hartford would go on to add two more scores in the fourth quarter, taking its largest lead of the afternoon on an unassisted score from Alex Borja with 95 seconds left to play.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Hartford held advantages in shots (33-31), shots on goal (20-15), faceoffs (14-3) and ground balls (26-17).
• The Retrievers did force the Hawks into 10 turnovers while committing just five of their own.
• With six points (5g, 1a) against the Retrievers, Jinks pushed his season total to 47, a team-best. He has posted the fifth-most points by a Hartford rookie in program history. In addition, his 24 goals are the sixth most scored by a Hawk freshman while his 23 assists rank him third.
• Inside of the circle, Protesto, who entered the weekend as the nation's top faceoff specialist, won 12-of-15 duels, adding nine ground balls. In 232 faceoff attempts, he has won 170 times for a .733 win percentage.
• Vanderford picked up his 14th victory between the pipes with Saturday's triumph. He is currently ranked seventh all-time in career victories.
• Borja, a freshman, recorded his first career multi-goal game, adding a pair for the Hawks.
• Contributing an assist, junior Jaedon Henderson extended his point-scoring streak to 11 games.
• The four goals conceded to UMBC matches a season-best effort on the defensive end for the Hawks. Hartford also held Manhattan to just four goals – the fewest since conceding just three to Quinnipiac in 2014 – last month.

 
NEXT ON TAP:
The Hawks will be idle for the next week before returning home to host Siena in a non-conference tilt on Saturday, April 16. Opening faceoff from Al-Marzook Field at Alumni Stadium is scheduled for 1 p.m.