NEW LONDON, Conn. - The Bowdoin College men's lacrosse team used a suffocating defensive effort to earn a key NESCAC road victory at Connecticut College on Saturday afternoon, 9-5. The Polar Bears, who held the Camels to just 14 shots on the afternoon, improve to 3-4 and net their first NESCAC win of the season and stand at 1-3 in league play. The Camels bow to 2-6 (0-4 NESCAC) with the loss.

A trio of Polar Bears posted two-goal, one-assist efforts, including Patrick Lawlor, Keegan Mehlhorn and Owen Smith. Connecticut College's Mark Mangano led all scorers with three goals and an assist in defeat.

Bowdoin used a four-goal run to close the first quarter and open the second to claim a 4-1 lead that they would never relinquish. Mehlhorn and Smith scored 26 seconds apart to key the run, which included another goal by Smith and Lawlor's first tally. The Camels were able to cut the lead to a single goal twice in the third quarter, but Bowdoin answered each time. Russell Halliday capped the period with a goal and sparked a 3-0 Polar Bear surge that carried into the final quarter as Bowdoin permitted just one Conn. College goal over the final 17:03 and accounted for four of the game's final five scores.

Robert Burkhardt made five saves in net for Bowdoin, who dominated possession thanks to outstanding work by face-off specialists Brendan Hughes (7-for-9) and Brian Durkin (6-for-9). The Polar Bears held a 45-14 edge in shots, a 32-18 advantage in ground balls and converted two of three with the man advantage. Bowdoin's Matthew Egan led all players with seven ground balls in the win. John Lenehan kept the Camels in the contest with a 19-save effort in goal for the home team.