SALEM, Va.– Eastern University Men's Lacrosse started its Spring Break with its second game against a ranked opponent this year. The Eagles traveled to Virginia to take on the No. 17 Roanoke College Maroons for the first time in program history. The Eagles went toe-to-toe with the unbeaten hosts but fell 12-9. Roanoke's only three-goal lead of the game came with three minutes left.

"We came ready to play," Head Coach Kevin Wallace said after the game. "The guys fought on every play and did not back down. This was a big step forward for our team. We still have some things we can do better and some mistakes we can eliminate, but I am proud of the way we competed."

The Maroons scored the first two goals of the game, but the Eagles responded with three straight goals to claim the lead at the end of the first quarter. Trevor Gallion put the Eagles on the board on Eastern's first man-up chance with nine minutes to go in the period, and shortly after that Jake Billera scored his first of two on the game to level the score.

Mark Buannic dropped in his first of four on the game to put the Eagles up with a minute to play in the period.

Eastern's success in the rally came in part out of Zach Bauer's work at the faceoff X. The sophomore won the first five duals of the game and 15-of-25 in the game. The Eagles, according to Wallace, were good on the wings as well. Chris Durning scooped up three of his team-high nine ground balls on first-half face-offs

Roanoke scored the first two goals of the second period, but the Eagles again responded with goals from Trent Ashton and Billera to go up 5-4. Roanoke, however, responded with a pair of goals in short order. The first came on a failed clear, and the second came off the ensuing faceoff.

"When they can run and gun, they are very good," Wallace said. "We needed to control tempo and avoid the unsettled situations. They took advantage of a couple turnovers in the clearing game for some big opportunities. Jameal made some huge saves to keep us in the game, and we were very solid when we played six-on-six."

Jameal Hadeed made five of his 16 saves in the second quarter.

Roanoke scored the opening goal of the second half, and the two teams traded goals until Matt Auletti scored to close the gap to 10-9 with 4:13 on the clock.

Bauer won the ensuing faceoff, but the Eagles had to go backwards with the ball to keep possession. A Roanoke attack man intercepted a pass back to Hadeed and the Maroons restored the two-goal edge with 4:02 on the clock. When Roanoke won the next faceoff, the Eagles had to press out to force a turnover. The Maroons capitalized for their first three-goal lead of the game.

Wallace noted that his team made some changes to where players were playing, but he felt that the team's attitude and mindset was what made the biggest difference in the game today.

"If we compete this hard every day," Wallace concluded. "We will be in every game."

Eastern will travel to coastal Virginia for a game at Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday.