NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College men's lacrosse team dropped a 14-8 decision to No. 16 Amherst College on Wednesday night in a NESCAC showdown at Silfen Field.

Bob Gross led all scorers with four goals and two assists as the Mammoths improved to 7-3 overall and 4-2 in league action. Brendan Reilly and Jake Bennett also recorded hat tricks for Amherst, and Brooks Catlin finished with 15 saves in goal.

Nick McLaughlin (Wilbraham, Mass.) and Lorenzo Vogliano (New York, N.Y.) each recorded two goals and an assist to pace Conn. JJ Ford (Clinton, Conn.) also tacked on two goals while Liam Horkan (Malden, Mass.) and Aidan McAvoy (Charlotte, N.C.) each added a score.

The Camels hung tough in a first half that saw both teams hold leads. McAvoy notched the game's first goal nine minutes in with a left-handed shot from the point, but the Mammoths scored twice in the final 4:12 of the period to lead 2-1.  

Vogliano's first goal came off a feed from Bobby Chang (South Salem, N.Y.) in the opening 30 seconds of the second quarter. Minutes later, McLaughlin snatched a ground ball out of a crowd on the defensive end and went coast-to-coast for the go-ahead tally.

Amherst capitalized on the first penalty of the game to tie the score on a man-up goal by Gross with 6:45 left in the half. The Mammoths later took a 4-3 lead on Reilly's second goal with nine seconds remaining in the stanza.

Amherst seized control in the third quarter, outscoring Conn by a 6-2 margin. Bennett found the back of the cage twice in the period, and a goal by Alex Giacobbe gave the visitors a 9-5 lead heading into the final quarter.

Gross added his second man-up tally in the fourth quarter to keep the momentum with the Mammoths. The Camels scored three goals in the final period but couldn't make up any ground. Vogliano tacked on his second marker of the night and assisted on the first of two goals by Ford that came in the final 5:34 of the contest.

Will Rice (New Rochelle, N.Y.) faced 43 shots and finished with 11 saves. Ryan Breheny (Bridgewater, Mass.) and Zach Bucher (Verona, N.J.) each caused a pair of turnovers while Aidan Gaudet (Cheshire, Conn.) scooped up a team-high six ground balls.

Amherst went 3-for-5 with the extra man and killed off both of Conn's chances, including a two-minute, locked-in penalty in the third quarter. Nicholas Kopp went 15-for-26 at the faceoff spot and led the Mammoths with eight ground balls.

Conn (3-6 overall, 1-6 NESCAC) will next play at Nichols College on Friday, April 12 at 7:00 p.m.