Syracuse, N.Y. – Behind a balanced scoring effort, the top-ranked Le Moyne College men's lacrosse team knocked off Saint Michael's, 7-3, in Northeast-10 Conference action at the Thomas J. Niland Athletic Conference Saturday afternoon. Sophomore midfielder Matt Chadderdon (Auburn, N.Y./Auburn) led Le Moyne's offense with a pair of goals. Senior goalkeeper Doug McIver (Altamont, N.Y./Albany Academy) stopped six shots between the pipes for the Dolphins.

Six different Le Moyne players scored the team's seven goals. The Dolphins never trailed and scored the game's first goal 4:35 into the action when senior midfielder Brooks Robinson (Preble, N.Y./Tully) sent in his sixth tally of the campaign. Robinson's marker was the only goal scored by either side in the first quarter. Midfielder Brian Welch (Ithaca, N.Y./Ithaca) pushed the Le Moyne lead to 2-0 just over three minutes into the second quarter. The senior, who is second on the team with 31 points on the season, netted his fifth goal in three games.

The Purple Knights put their first goal on the scoreboard 33 seconds after Welch's score, when James Baghai's unassisted goal cut Le Moyne's lead in half. Chadderdon scored his first goal of the game with a minute left in the first half to give the Dolphins a 3-1 lead at the break. After being outshot 6-5 in the first 15 minutes of action, Le Moyne managed an 18-1 advantage in the shots category for the second quarter.

Three different sophomores accounted for Le Moyne's three goals in the third quarter to help the team pull away. Midfielder Nick DiSarro (Niskayuna, N.Y./Niskayuna) and attackman Jack Harmatuk (Syracuse, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy/Syracuse U.) wrapped a pair of goals around a Sean Leahy score for Saint Michael's to give the Dolphins a 5-2 lead by the 8:47 mark of the quarter. Welch fed attackman Jack Venditti (Baldwinsville, N.Y./Baldwinsville) near the four-minute mark and the sophomore deposited the ball in the back of the net for his ninth goal of the season.

Each team netted a goal in the game's final quarter. The Purple Knights cut Le Moyne's lead to three, at 6-3, when Charles Seelinger struck at the 11:23 mark of the quarter. But Chadderdon netted his second goal of the afternoon with 6:35 remaining to produce the game's 7-3 final score. Over the final three quarters, the Dolphins outshot the Purple Knights, 37-8.

Le Moyne's defense forced 18 turnovers and held its opponent to less than four goals for the seventh straight game. The team has allowed five goals or less in 11 of 12 games so far this season. Zach Jandl recorded 14 saves for Saint Michael's (5-6, NE-10 3-4) in defeat.

No. 1 Le Moyne (12-0, NE-10 8-0) clinched a share of the Northeast-10 Conference regular season title with the win. The Dolphins travel to conference opponent Southern New Hampshire for a 1 p.m. game next Saturday.