GUELPH – The Guelph Gryphons men's lacrosse team needed a strong performance. They definitely produced one Sunday afternoon. The Gryphons were sharp in a 15-6 win over the visiting McMaster Marauders at the Gryphon Soccer Complex.

Guelph (2-2) showed a lot of resiliency in overcoming a slow start, and the lingering effects of a 16-4 loss to Brock the day before, to dominate the Marauders. The Gryphons scored 10 times in the second half, eventually running away with the match.

"We did not shoot well in the first half of the game," said Gryphons' coach Sam Kosakowski. "We had a number of good opportunities but did not finish, and as a result, the game was much closer in the first half than it could have been."

Michael Berger led the way with four goals and an assist, while James Short had three goals and two assists. Mitchell Ogilvie (three goals and an assist), Colin Walker (two goals), Alec Simons (one goal, one assist), Joshua Toguri (one goal) and Brandon Tanacs (one goal) rounded out the scoring. Jackson Nishimura had 2 helpers.

Early in the game, it looked like the team was struggling with their hangover from the Brock loss.  Despite significantly outshooting McMaster in the first quarter, the Gryphons only led 2-1 after the first frame and held a slim 5-3 lead at the half.

But there were bright spots. Guelph's defense held McMaster to three goals, two of which came from broken, fluky plays. Mac got a lucky one when a shot from a Marauder midfielder ricocheted off Guelph midfielder Robert Stanley (Welland, ON) and in behind goalie Hayden Walsh (Burlington, ON). They added another with just three seconds remaining in the half when McMaster attackman Patrick Sullivan scored despite having Gryphon longstick defender Matthew Sykes (Oakville, ON) in perfect position, draped all over him.

Guelph looked like a different team from the outset of the second half. Joshua Manangan (Rexdale, ON) easily won the opening face-off, giving Guelph an important possession. Less than a minute later, Gryphons' midfielder Simons (Mimico, ON) scored his only goal of the game, giving Guelph a 6-3 lead. McMaster quickly responded, keeping the game within two. The Gryphons then exploded for five unanswered goals from Ogilvie (Peterborough, ON), Short (Kitchener, ON) and Berger (Uxbridge, ON), to brek the game wide open.

While McMaster had an early goal to start the final quarter, the remainder of the game was all Guelph.  Manangan and rookie Jonah Boehm (Waterloo, ON) shared duties at face-offs and between the two of them, did not lose a draw. The Gryphons, who benefit from a great deal of depth this year, were able to roll through their entire lineup. The hosts outscored McMaster 4-2 in the fourth quarter with two goals coming from attackman Walker (Toronto, ON), one from midfielder Toguri (Etobicoke, ON) and another from Tanacs (Toronto, ON), a rookie who notched his first as a Gryphon.

Next up for the Gryphons will be their annual road trip to Sudbury next Sunday, September 24 to face Laurentian. The following weekend they will travel to Toronto to take on the Varsity Blues and then, in a pivotal rematch, will host Brock on October 1^st at 1pm.