Montclair, NJ (3/20/07) – Junior attack J.R. Oreskovich (San Diego, CA/LaCosta Canyon) scored five goals while senior goalkeeper Jack Dunderdale (Ridgefield, CT/Immaculate) made 16 saves as ninth-ranked Stevens held off Montclair State, 11-8 in Skyline Conference men's lacrosse action on Tuesday evening.

Sophomore attack Eric Smith (Oswego, NY/Oswego) added three goals and two assists as the Ducks won their third straight and improved to 5-1 overall, 3-0 in the Skyline Conference. Stevens also posted it 10th consecutive victory over Montclair State and cut the series lead to 15-12 in favor of MSU.

Sophomore attack TYLER MEIXNER (Hamburg, NJ/Vernon) had two goals for the Red Hawks, who dropped their second straight, falling to 1-3 in their conference opener.

A 1-1 tie after the first period, the Ducks quickly grabbed a 3-1 lead 1:45 into the second quarter. Smith scored unassisted 43 seconds in and then fed Oreskovich with 13:15 left. Montclair's BRYAN KLIMCHAK (Clark, NJ/AL Johnson) answered with a man-advantage tally with 8:54 remaining to make it a one-goal contest, but Stephen Pascone (Slekirk, NY/Albany Academy) countered 27 seconds later.  

Meixner's first goal of the game off an assist from EVAN WEHMEYER (Succasunna, NJ/Pope John XXIII) again brought the Red Hawks within 4-3, however Stevens scored the final two goals of the half to take a 6-3 lead into the break. John Dolny (Mountain Lakes, NJ/Mountain Lakes) scored with 5:42 to go on an assist from Mark Bielicky (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan). Bielicky then beat the first-half horn, scoring with a second left as Stevens enjoyed the three-goal cushion.

Oreskovich and Smith would combine for two goals in the third quarter as Stevens extended its lead to 8-4, but Montclair cut the deficit to two as Wehmeyer scored with 5:19 left on the clock and ROBERT GLANDER (Vernon, NJ/Vernon Township) got one past Dunderdale to make the score 8-6. But Smith restored the lead to three with 1:19 left in the period and Alex Richards (Beaverton, OR/Century) and Oreskovich netted goals 29 seconds apart in the fourth as the Ducks led 11-6 with 10:30 to play.

A.J. Bachman (Montville, NJ/Mountain Lakes) and JOHN DELLA PESCA (Fair Lawn, NJ/Fair Lawn) accounted for MSU's final two goals.  

MSU goalkeeper THOMAS BOWERS (Hamburg, NJ/Pope John XXIII) posted eight saves for the Red Hawks, who outshot Stevens, 38-28. Montclair also held the advantage in ground balls (39-27), but failed to capitalize on 8-of-9 man-up opportunities, including a three-minute penalty in the first quarter for an illegal stick.  Wehmeyer finished with two assists, three faceoff wins and five ground balls.  

Bielicky had a goal and two assists while Bobby Steinhauser (Boonton Township, NJ/Mountain Lakes) had nine face off wins and five ground balls for Stevens. Richards added four ground balls and three caused turnovers.  

Both teams return to action over the weekend. Montclair State will host Richard Stockton in a Skyline matchup at Sprague Field on Saturday, March 24 at 1:00 pm. The following day, Stevens will entertain No. 2 Rochester Tech at DeBaun Field. That game is also slated for 1:00 pm.