HENNIKER, N.H. – Maine Maritime Academy men's lacrosse fell to New England College 20-10 in the North Atlantic Conference Semifinals on Tuesday afternoon.

New England College jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead before Nicholas Betti (Upper Saddle River, N.J.) put the Mariners on the board with 11:10 remaining in the first quarter.

The two teams exchanged goals back-and-forth, before the Pilgrims went on a three-goal run. The Mariners went on a three-goal run of their own, sparked by a pair of goals from Betti, and a goal from Bronson Guimond (Portland, Maine). New England College scored three-straight goals to end the second half, taking an 11-6 lead into the halftime. 

Dean Samuelson (Ellsworth, Maine) opened up the scoring in the second half, closing the Pilgrim lead to 11-7. The Pilgrims broke a seven-minute scoreless span with three-straight goals, jumping out to a 14-7 lead. Betti closed out the third quarter with his fourth game of the goal.

The Pilgrims outscored the Mariners 6-2 in the final quarter, clinching the 20-10 victory, and the rights to advance to the NAC Championship. 

Betti ended the day with four goals and an assist, while Samuelson and Mike Fuller (Portland, Maine) added a goal and an assist each. Guimond, Tim Grant (East Northport, N.Y.), Alex Grant-Roy (Biddeford, Maine), and A.J. Larrabee (Farmington, Maine) grabbed the other scores for the Mariners.

Jack Tragert (Naples, Maine) scooped up 10 ground balls for the Mariners, while going 19-of-26 on the face-off, and Grant went 4-of-7 on the face-off. Tragert and Grant led the Mariners defensively with two caused turnovers.

Nick Herzog scored six goals, and an assist to lead the Pilgrims, Sean Largay added five goals while Matt Richard added three goals and five helpers. Asa Weisberg and Cody Kitson scooped up a team-high five ground balls.

James Wilgus (Phippsburg, Maine) stopped eight shots in net for the Mariners, while Chris Galluzzo stopped 18 shots in net for the Pilgrims.

The Mariners conclude their 2015 campaign with a 7-8 overall record, and the Pilgrims advance to play the #1 seed Castleton on Saturday.