Westminster dropped to 3-1 on the season Sunday, falling to Lynn 14-9 at de Hoernle Sports and Cultural Center in Boca Raton, Fla. The Griffins were unable to overcome a slow start, digging themselves into an early hole before mounting a spirited comeback attempt that fell short.

Game Breakdown

First Quarter

Lynn came out of the gate strong, taking a 5-2 lead after the first quarter. Dom Veratti opened the scoring on a man-up opportunity at 12:10, assisted by Chase Cavalier, before Mario Leone made it 2-0 at 10:05. Westminster responded with back-to-back man-up goals, as Luke Sillstrop converted at 8:13 assisted by Boden Laforce, and Harrison Edwards followed at 7:42 assisted by Sillstrop to tie the game at 2-2. Lynn closed the quarter with three unanswered goals from Mitch Rini at 4:04, Riley Knox at 1:00, and Veratti again at 0:10 to lead 5-2 heading into the second.

Second Quarter

Lynn extended its lead to 7-2 before Westminster got on the board again. Veratti added his third of the game at 7:10, assisted by Rini, and Leone scored at 4:10 to push the lead to five. Daxton Jensen pulled one back for Westminster at 2:33, assisted by Sillstrop, to make it 7-3 at the half.

Third Quarter

The third quarter was Westminster's best, as the Griffins outscored Lynn 3-2 to cut the deficit to 9-6. Sillstrop delivered back-to-back goals — first a man-down tally at 7:07 assisted by Ben Weber, then a man-up goal at 7:04 assisted by Logan Huggard — to make it 5-7. Rhett Rice added another at 4:39, assisted by Charlie Phelps, pulling Westminster within one at 6-7. Lynn responded with goals from Leone at 3:55 and Riley Knox at 1:07 to push the lead back to 9-6 heading into the fourth.

Fourth Quarter

Westminster made a run in the fourth, as Tate Craig scored at 13:54 assisted by Harrison Edwards, and Jensen added his second at 12:04 assisted by Duke DeVault to cut the deficit to 9-8. However, Lynn responded with five unanswered goals — from Landon Scully, Veratti, Leone, Veratti again, and Scully once more — to pull away and seal the 14-9 victory. Sillstrop scored Westminster's final goal at 8:34 but it wasn't enough to overcome the surge.

Griffin Performances

Luke Sillstrop was the standout performer for Westminster with 4 goals, 2 assists, and 6 points on 9 shots, including a remarkable man-down goal in the third quarter.

Daxton Jensen contributed 2 goals and 2 points on 2 shots and 2 ground balls, while Harrison Edwards added 1 goal, 1 assist, and 2 points on 5 shots and 4 ground balls.

Tate Craig and Rhett Rice each chipped in 1 goal and 1 point. Logan Huggard, Ben Weber, Charlie Phelps, Duke DeVault, and Boden Laforce each recorded 1 assist.

In goal, Cade Conahey handled the bulk of the work, playing 48:26 and making 7 saves while allowing 12 goals, while Christian Jones played the first 11:34, making 10 saves before exiting. Westminster won 13 of 25 faceoffs but was outpaced on ground balls 33-23 and struggled with 25 turnovers on the afternoon.

Up Next

Westminster returns to action looking to bounce back as the road trip continues.