Flames move Mohs to attack, switch faceoff specialists in breakthrough ALC semifinal upset of Virginia Tech

Saturday, April 27

Lynchburg, VA

3:00 PM

Liberty University Club Sports

Virginia Tech

Flames senior attack Braden Landry celebrates a goal against Virginia Tech in Saturday's ALC semifinal victory. (Photos by Matt Reynolds)

Flames move Mohs to attack, switch faceoff specialists in breakthrough ALC semifinal upset of Virginia Tech

4/27/2024 9:12:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

Liberty broke open an 11-11 tie going into the fourth quarter for an 18-14 triumph that sends it to Sunday's 3 p.m. final against Tennessee.

Gallery: (4-27-2024) ALC semifinal vs. VT

When a 5-0 scoring spurt in the first five minutes of the second half propelled No. 3 Virginia Tech to a three-goal lead, Liberty University's No. 6-ranked men's lacrosse team responded by switching faceoff specialists and turning the tide, outscoring the Hokies 5-2 for the rest of the quarter and 6-2 in the fourth for an 18-14 triumph in Saturday's ALC Tournament semifinal showdown at Lynchburg City Stadium.

"It was a fantastic game, and it was thrilling to be on the winning side of things because that has not been the case for the last couple years," Flames Head Coach Kyle McQuillan said of the two-time-defending ALC Tournament champion Hokies (12-3).

Senior long-stick midfielder Benjamin Chun replaced freshman middie Jayson Houck, who had won only five of his 20 faceoffs, and proceeded to win 14 draws over the final 25 minutes to give the Flames (11-4) the possessions they needed to stop the bleeding.

"There are probably five or six guys that I could make an argument for being the Player of the Game, but Ben Chun deserves a ton of respect," McQuillan said, noting that sophomore LSM Conor Guiltinan received the award. "He was a huge part of us being able to get ourselves back into that game."

Another was senior attack Keaton Mohs (4 goals, 2 assists), who fueled the Flames attack after shifting up from midfield, where he has played his entire career. He arguably outplayed Virginia Tech senior attack Aidan Smith, the reigning MCLA Player of the Year.

"Keaton played attack this game and it just really switched up our entire offense," said freshman attack Easton Cahill (3G, 3A).

Mohs set up the game's first goal with a no-look pass from behind the cage to Cahill, who slammed his shot past Virginia Tech goalie Andrew Wickman at the 11:18 mark of the first quarter.

He generated more than his share of scoring opportunities as well, picking up a loose ball behind the cage and threading a diving shot from just outside the crease into the back of the net for a 2-0 advantage.

"Obviously, Aidan (Smith) is a phenomenal player and he is well deserving of every accolade that he has received, but Keaton showed why we feel like he's the best player in the country today," McQuillan said.

Mohs had an apparent score on an extremely athletic flying catch and release into the back of the net called back after he was called for being in the crease. Smith then set up linemate Darren Cole for a goal with 6:27 left in the first quarter but Cahill responded on the other end, faking a shot before dodging a defender and skipping a sidearmed shot through traffic past Wickham at the 5:34 mark.

With the Hokies down two men due to successive 30-second penalties, sophomore middie Luke Campbell picked up a loose ball and sent an assist over a defender to senior attack Braden Landry (4G, 2A) who rifled a score from the top right of the box for a 4-1 Flames lead after the first.

"That has been the strength of this team from the beginning is that we can score with so many different guys," McQuillan said. "We have so many different variables and that was the key to our success today, the depth and the weapons that we have."

After sophomore attack Luke Branham (3G) had a point-blank shot off an entry pass repelled by Wickman, Mohs had another goal from an impossible angle on the left side denied by an in-the-crease call.

The Flames finally got on the board with 3:39 left in the second quarter when junior middie Will Geary received a pass as he cut in from the left corner and threaded a sharp-angled shot past Wickman to stretch the Liberty lead to 5-3. Then, with the Flames on a man advantage at the 2:20 mark, Branham padded the lead to 6-3 by powering through traffic in the left side of the box and bouncing a shot past Wickman.

Virginia Tech capitalized on a man advantage of its own when Jake Blibaum put away a turnaround shot assisted by fellow midfielder Braden FItzsimmons 1:23 before halftime. With the Hokies still a man-up with possession, Fitzsimmons then scored 12 seconds into the second half to ignite their five-goal spurt.

Alex Ashley ripped a left-handed shot from the right side, giving the Hokies their first lead at 7-6 at the 13:53 mark before Smith fired a dagger from the left side that slit under the crossbar, extending the Hokies' lead to 8-6 with 12:43 still to go in the third.

Chun won a second straight faceoff and freshman attack Hunter Rockhill had his shot deflect off the goalie's stick and off the left post before Campbell took advantage of a short-stick defender, firing a running bounce shot from the top of the box past Wickham with 7:50 left.

After a third straight faceoff win by Chun, Branham caught and released a turnaround shot off an assist from Landry at the 6:54 mark, drawing the Flames to within 9-8.

"Chun has been our main LSM all season, so the fact that he's been a pole and he was able to step in and play faceoff today is insane," Flames junior defensive middie Peyton Doyle said. "He's been practicing in his off time and he knew we were thin on numbers so he's been ready to go if we needed him and we needed him today."

Less than a minute later, Jared Cole put the Hokies back up by two with a snipe from the left side that beat senior goalie Eric Warnstrom (16 saves) under the crossbar at the 5:59 mark before a goal by Ken Dixon stretched the Hokies' lead to 11-8.

Landry brought the Flames back to within 11-9 with a running underhanded finish after receiving Cahill's perfectly placed feed from behind the cage at the 2:44 mark. Then, Liberty finished a fast-break with tic-tac-toe passing from Mohs to Doyle to Landry, who completed his hat trick to make it a one-goal game with 1:07 remaining in the third.

"We were able to push it in transition," Doyle said. "That was the big thing that took them off guard. We're not a big transition team, but we were able to get a couple transition goals that kind of sparked us."

After another faceoff win, this time by Guiltinan, Mohs put away an open-netter off an assist from senior middie Stephen Westlake, knotting the game at 11 with 46 seconds left in the third quarter.
Chun won the opening faceoff of the fourth quarter and the Flames ran the 80-second shot clock all the way down before Mohs worked his magic as he dove from behind the left side of the cage and snuck a shot past Wickham for a 12-11 lead.

Doyle picked up a ground ball after a defensive check jarred the ball loose from a Virginia Tech attackman before freshman Peyton Park extended the Flames' lead to 13-11 with the first goal of his career off a feed from behind the cage.

Smith answered by muscling his way into the left crease past junior defender Bryn Jungles and sticking an overhand shot past Warnstrom before setting up Blibaum on the Hokies' next possession for a sidearm shot from short range up top, tying it at 13-13 with 10:43 remaining in regulation.

Warnstrom, who made 24 saves in last season's `14-13 double-overtime defeat, made a save off a quick restart by Virginia Tech before the Flames capitalized on a fast break to reclaim the lead. Cahill set up Branham, who completed his hat trick from the left side to lift Liberty to a 14-13 advantage with 9:30 to go.

Another high save by Warnstrom and outlet pass to Houck helped transition the attack from Rockhill to Mohs for a finish from the left side and 15-13 edge. Rockhill then set up Landry with a pass from behind the right endline for a submarine shot the ripped into the upper netting to stretch the advantage to 15-13 with 4:56 to play.

Chun won another faceoff before Mohs worked the ball behind the cage and fed Cahill for a howitzer from the left side. With the Hokies in a 10-man ride, Rockhill eluded defenders with the ball as he ran off time from the clock before capitalizing with a diving empty-net score to make it 18-13 with 1:36 to play.

A penalty put the Flames a man down to end the game, but Warnstrom made a spectacular save look easy before Smith capped the scoring with a behind-the-back finish with 1.7 seconds left. Chun won the ensuing faceoff and started the celebration at midfield.

Seeking their first title since the ALC's inaugural season in 2021, the Flames will face No. 10 Tennessee, a 19-12 winner over West Virginia in Saturday's second semifinal, in Sunday's 3 p.m. championship back at City Stadium.

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer