The University of Hartford men's lacrosse team got off to a slow start, allowing five of the first six goals, and had its comeback attempt fall short as the Hawks fell to Vassar, 11-8, Wednesday on Al-Marzook Field at Alumni Stadium. 

Freshman Aidan Ezra notched three goals while graduate Jake Ojert notched a pair of goals in the loss. 

It was the play of freshman goalkeeper Christopher Ledwick that put the Hawks in position to pull of the potential stunner. Entering following halftime, Ledwick and the Hartford defense held the Brewers scoreless in the third period. With the stout defense, the Hawks pulled to within three goals by scoring a trio of third-period goals. 

Ojert tallied an early goal in the fourth period and the Hartford deficit was just two with more than 14 minutes remaining. However, Vassar finally solved Ledwick for a pair of goals to quelch the Hartford rally. 

INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• Hartford finished with 34 shots, 24 of which were on goal, while Vassar had 35 shots with 25 on goal.
• Hartford finished with two assists on eight goals, while Vassar had 10 assists on 11 goals. 
• Freshman Ethan Hunt and sophomore Aidan Kemp registered their team-high seventh assists.
• Sophomore John Furino tallied his second goal of the season. 
• Freshman Nicholas Forgione and Junior Griffin Weller registered a goal. 
• The Hawks were 12-of-22 in clear attempts, while the Brewers were 21-of-26 in clear attempts.
• Faceoff specialists Ben Costanzo and Cameron James combined to win 15-of-22 faceoffs.

NEXT ON TAP 

Hartford (2-4), will take a two-week hiatus and return to Al-Marzook, hosting Nichols College 3:30 p.m. April 3.