By: Athletic Communications Student Assistant Joe Meyer '24

BEREA, Ohio - The Baldwin Wallace University men's lacrosse team advanced to the championship game of the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament for a third consecutive season with a win over Ohio Northern University in the OAC Semifinals. The top-seeded Yellow Jackets took down the fourth-seeded Polar Bears by a final score of 10-6 on the Tressel Field inside George Finnie Stadium, and extend their record-breaking win streak to 16.

In the win, junior All-OAC and Academic All-OAC midfielder Jake Nanosky (Medina) registered his 100th career goal on his third and final tally of the evening. Nanosky is the fourth player in program history to reach the 100-career goal mark and the first to hit the century mark as a junior. 

BW (16-2) was led by Nanosky and senior All-OAC attack/midfielder Kyler Byerly (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny), the only other active member of BW's 100-goal club, as both players registered three goals and an assist. Freshman attack/midfielder Bennet Trout (Pickerington/North) matched the duo's game-high point total with three assists and one goal. 

Senior All-OAC goalkeeper Joe Storner (Louisville, Ky./St. Xavier) anchored a strong effort by the nation's top-performing defense, tallying ten saves in the win. His ten saves pushed his program-record career total to 206 saves as he became the first player in program history to eclipse the 200-save mark. 

ONU (12-6) was led by senior attack Alex Reimer, as he finished with a team-high three goals after scoring a first-half hat trick. Junior midfielder Andrew Caliri scored twice and was the only other Polar Bear to record multiple points. 

FIRST QUARTER

• 13:52 & 12:51 - Ohio Northern jumped out to a 2-0 lead, as Reimer and senior midfielder Riley O'Neil scored a minute apart.
• 6:53 - Nanosky scored to get the Yellow Jackets on the board.
• 2:39 - BW tied the game at two on a goal by Byerly, assisted by Nanosky.
• 0:16 - Senior All-OAC defender Richie Roskoph (Strongsville) tallied his first career postseason goal, assisted by Byerly, to give BW a lead in the dying seconds of the first. 

SECOND QUARTER

• 10:30 - A BW goal by freshman attack/midfielder Reichen Geiselhart (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley) capped a 4-0 run by the Yellow Jackets.
• 6:35 & 4:14 - ONU's Reimer added two goals in as many minutes, tying the game at four heading into halftime. 

THIRD QUARTER

• 13:29 - Senior All-OAC midfielder Jonas Aquilla (Westlake/St. Edward) put BW back in front with his first goal of the game, assisted by Trout.
• 8:14 - The Yellow Jackets extended the lead to 6-4 on another goal by Nanosky, assisted by Trout.
• 5:57 - The Polar Bears' Caliri scored to cut the lead to one.
• 3:08 - Nanosky made it a hat trick with his 100th career goal, giving BW a 7-5 lead.
• 1:24 - The lead grew to three after Byerly grabbed his second goal of the night in the final 90 seconds of the quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER

• 12:55 - ONU's Caliri scored again, cutting the BW lead to 8-6.
• 10:12 - Byerly made it a hat trick, scoring his third goal of the evening off of Trout's third assist of the night.
• 3:16 - Trout tallied BW's tenth and final goal of the evening as the Yellow Jackets closed out a 10-6 victory to secure a spot in the OAC tournament championship game for a third straight season.

BW will host second-seeded, crosstown rival John Carroll University in the OAC Tournament Championship game on Saturday, May 6. The game is set for 7:00 p.m. on the Tressel Field inside George Finnie Stadium.