Men’s lacrosse topples Georgetown for the first time in program's history

The No. 14 Spiders walked onto Cooper Field in Washington, D.C., with three consecutive losses to No. 13 Georgetown University, never having won a game. 

Undeterred, Richmond narrowly pushed past the Hoyas 13-12 with a strong first half, picking up two wins against ranked opponents in a season for the first time since 2022. Last season, then No. 17 Richmond took a hard 14-8 fall to the Hoyas.

Georgetown didn’t take the loss without a fight, nearly taking the game back in the final quarter. Snapping a three game winning streak, the Hoyas dropped to 5-3 for the season while the Spiders improved to 6-3.

Richmond sprung into action as the game started, snagging the first two goals of the game. The O’Neil brothers led the charge as junior attacker Aidan O’Neil assisted junior midfielder Joe Sheridan in the first goal, followed by first-year attacker Evan O’Neil netting his third goal of the season. 

The Hoyas and Spiders swapped goal attempts for the next six minutes before Georgetown finally found the back of the cage. Richmond answered with another goal a minute later, bringing the score to 3-1. Both teams tallied five shots on goal, but the Hoyas didn’t manage to save any while the graduate goalkeeper Zach Vigue carded 2. The Spiders continued to outmaneuver Georgetown, outsourcing it 5-3 at the buzzer.

The second quarter proved to be the lowest scoring quarter of the contest, with two large scoring droughts eating up most of the game clock. The teams swapped early points before an eight minute pause in goals. GU vigorously tried to tally a goal, but kept missing the cage while the Spiders struggled to find opportunities to even attempt to score. 

Aidan O’Neil finally took advantage of the field, scoring with an assist from sophomore attacker Lucas Littlejohn with five and a half minutes remaining in the half. The Hoyas continued to stumble, ultimately calling a timeout after another shot flew wide with under two minutes left. However, they couldn’t produce a goal as the Spiders managed the last point with just eight seconds left, allowing Richmond to double the Georgetown score 8-4 at the break. 

Playing a vital role in the quarter, O’Neil played a part in all three goals, picking up two assists and a goal. 

The two teams were completely locked in the third quarter, matching each other in shots on goal and saves. UR and GU swapped points to open the half before the Spiders pressured the Hoyas with a 3-0 run, taking a seven point lead. However, Georgetown pushed back, scoring three straight goals of its own to finish off the quarter. 

Richmond carded its one and only goal for the fourth quarter a little over a minute in. What came next rattled its four point lead. A scoring drought struck the field until GU netted a goal with five and a half minutes left in the game, closing the gap to 13-10. Desperately, defending their three game winning streak against the Spiders, the Hoyas searched for opportunities to score, but Richmond held. 

One minute and eighteen seconds remaining. 

The Hoyas push back-to-back goals within mere seconds. The Spiders were up by one point. 

One minute and eight seconds remaining. 

Georgetown flung two more shots, one high and the other saved by Vigue. Regaining possession, the Spiders grasped the ball for the last moments of the game, clinging to their first ever victory against GU.

This victory wrapped up non-conference play for Richmond, as the Spiders will go on to face St. Bonaventure University on March 29 at 2 p.m. at the Robins Stadium. Last season, UR boasted a strong 4-1 conference record, only falling to Saint Joseph’s University. 

St. Bonaventure has yet to card a victory against the Spiders, suffering definitive losses. The smallest margin of victory for Richmond against the Bonnies was 19-8 in 2024. 

Contact sports editor Abigail Finney at abigail.finney@richmond.edu