ANDERSON, S.C.  – The sixth-seeded Maryville men's lacrosse team used a decisive 6-0 burst in the first half and cruised to a 16-10 upset at third-seed Anderson in the opening round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The win is the first NCAA triumph in Saints program history. The Saints advance to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinal round and will travel to No. 2 seed Limestone, which defeated No. 7 North Greenville, Sunday, May 11, at Noon CT / 1 p.m. ET in Gaffney, S.C.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Anderson scored on the game's opening possession, but the Saints roared back with six unanswered goals. Maryville tied it when Clayton Cerett bounced in a goal. Justin Simonson slipped past a pair of defenders on the right side and fired in a shot on the far side for a 2-1 lead. Trent Zimay, who tallied the GLVC-championship winning goal in overtime against Lewis, worked from behind the Anderson goal and tucked a shot just under the crossbar for a 3-1 lead at the 10:27 mark. The defenses took control and the quarter ended with Maryville up 3-1.
 
Connor Kvaal circled the Anderson cage and bounced in a goal as the Saints extended their lead to 4-1 three minutes into the second. Two minutes later, Cerett went low to high and rocketed in a goal for a 5-1 advantage. Chris Anderson took a long shot from up top as the Saints pushed their advantage to 6-1 with 6:20 left in the quarter. The Trojans finally broke through the Maryville defense to close the gap to 6-2 five minutes before intermission. Cerett threaded in a shot that found the back of the net to complete a first-half hat trick and a 7-2 halftime margin. The Saints had 18 shots on goal in the first 30 minutes, while holding Anderson to just four.
 
Early in the third, Dagan Carlson fed Colin Tobias for a quick strike as the margin ballooned to 8-2. Jake Grebe powered in a man-up goal, and Ben Mickett fired in a howitzer into the upper corner as the Saints reached double figures. Maryville won the ensuing faceoff, and Chris Anderson fired in a low shot inside the left post for an 11-3 lead. The Trojans pulled a trio of goals back before Simonson fed Mickett who bounced in a goal to make it 12-6 after three.
 
The Trojans scored early in the fourth but Cerett found Tobias parked in front of the Anderson goal and tucked in a shot to restore a 13-7 lead. The hosts scored a man-up goal but the Saints answered when Shea Raeburn won the following faceoff and stormed in for a goal with nine minutes to play. Anderson scored to make it 14-9 and tried a full ride but Grebe tucked in a goal to make it 15-9 with 5:44 to go to seal the victory.
 
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Goals: Clayton Cerett - 3
Assists: Justin Simonson - 3
Points: Clayton Cerett and Justin Simonson - 4
Ground Balls: Carter Bies and Justin Simonson - 4
Caused Turnovers: Carter Bies and Zach Johnson - 3
Faceoff Wins: Shea Raeburn - 7
Saves: Dylan Radke - 9
 
RECORDS
(6) Maryville: 13-4
(3) Anderson: 13-5 Read Full Article