WESTPORT, Conn. - Graduate student Louis Perfetto notched his 100th career assist as part of a seven-point performance and junior goalkeeper Will Barnes made 18 saves in his first collegiate start to help lead the No. 18 Boston University men's lacrosse team to a 14-10 victory over Saint Joseph's on Tuesday at Staples High School.

Perfetto is just the second Terrier in program history to reach 100 career assists and is now only two assists away from setting a new school record of 103. He finished the night with four goals and three helpers for seven points to lead all scorers. Graduate student Jake Cates led BU with five goals while classmate Vince D'Alto totaled three goals and two assists for five points. Graduate student Thomas Niedringhaus found the back of the net and sophomore Charlie Huntley scored a goal in his Terrier debut.

Barnes stole the show in the first half with 15 saves, including several highlight-reel stops. He is the third straight Terrier goalkeeper to win his first collegiate start in a season opener, as former standout (and Staples graduate) Matt Garber made 18 saves in his debut start at Merrimack on Feb. 20, 2021, and Joe McSorley recorded a 12-save win over Providence on Feb. 3, 2018.

Junior Brenden Kelly and graduate student Patrick Morrison each recorded an assist. Morrison was also outstanding on the defensive end, as the preseason All-American finished with four ground balls and three caused turnovers. Senior Dane DeGoler also had three caused turnovers and led BU with six ground balls. Junior Matthew Fritz impressed in his Terrier debut, going 10-of-15 at the faceoff X with five ground balls.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Toron Eccleston scored his first of five goals on the night to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead just 46 seconds into the contest.
• Perfetto and Cates scored 30 seconds apart to give BU a 2-1 lead with 10:23 left in the first quarter.
• Carter Page evened the score with 5:23 to go in the opening quarter, but Cates regained the Terriers' lead with 2:13 to go after two oustanding saves by Barnes kept the Hawks from going in front.
• Cates then opened the scoring in the second stanza with a ridiculous no-look diving shot.
• After the Hawks cut the lead to 4-3, Niedringhaus ripped home a goal 38 seconds later.
• Perfetto needed little-to-no angle to score on a backhander after dodging from X to extend the lead to 6-3 with 9:48 left in the half.
• Cates and D'Alto closed out a four-goal run to push the Terriers' advantage to 8-3 before St. Joe's got a goal back to enter the break down by four.
• The Hawks scored four of the next five goals to get within one at 9-8 with 5:09 left in the third, but Cates and D'Alto scored back-to-back goals in a span of 29 seconds to regain a three-goal lead entering the final 15 minutes.
• Page made it an 11-9 game with 10:42 to go, but Huntley's first goal as a Terrier off a great play in transition from Morrison made it 12-9 just 16 seconds after Page's strike.
• Perfetto then extended the lead to 13-9 with 9:20 to go. The teams traded goals to close out the contest.

GAME NOTES

• Barnes' 18-save effort was the sixth time a Terrier goalkeeper recorded 18 or more saves in a game and the first time since Garber did so at Navy on March 31, 2023.
• D'Alto is now four points away from matching Timmy Ley's program record of 215 points.
• The Terriers' man-down unit went 5-for-6 on Tuesday.
• Each team won 14 faceoffs.
• BU finished with 34 ground balls, with 14 different Terriers collecting at least one.

UP NEXT

• BU will host Vermont on Saturday, Feb. 10, at Nickerson Field.
• Opening faceoff is scheduled for 12 p.m.