The University of Utah men’s lacrosse team achieved a historic victory over Iona, winning 32-4 in Salt Lake City on Saturday. The game set several program records and marked one of the most dominant performances in school history.
Utah’s 32 goals tied for the fourth most scored in a single NCAA Division I game and broke the previous team record of 26. This also made Utah the first team since 1999 to score more than 30 goals in a game. The team’s 48 total points, which included a program-record 16 assists, matched Notre Dame for the highest in a single game this season.
The Utes started strong with 14 unanswered goals in the first quarter and led 22-2 at halftime. They finished with an eight-goal run to close out the match. Utah had significant advantages across statistics, including a 61-25 lead in shots taken. The team won 30 out of 39 faceoffs, recorded a perfect clearance rate on all 21 attempts, and collected 52 ground balls—ranking third most since joining Division I.
Allowing only four goals, Utah recorded its second-best defensive showing ever and held an opponent to five or fewer goals for the sixth time.
Sophomore Luke McNamara led with a school-record ten goals and added an assist for a career-high eleven points. He became the first Division I player to score double-digit goals in one game since Jason Knox of Hobart did so in 2020. His eleven points are tied for most by any player nationally this season.
Fifteen other Utah players scored during the match. Karson Sparks and Luke Sheppard each achieved their first career hat tricks, while Ryan Stines, Jordan Reed, and Sean Siracusa scored multiple times as well. Sparks, Will Overly, and Nathan Chalmers each contributed two assists among thirteen different players who provided helpers.
Defensively, Nikko DiPonio picked up nine ground balls—a personal best—and added both a caused turnover and an assist. Tyler Kloeckl was effective at faceoffs, winning thirteen out of fifteen attempts along with ten ground balls; his win percentage ranks third-best for a single game at Utah.
Goalkeepers Colin Lenskold and Matthew Dineen combined for ten saves with a save percentage of over seventy percent.
The Utes quickly took control after scoring just over one minute into play. Jordan Reed opened scoring on Utah’s second shot before Ben Trask followed up moments later. Kloeckl won subsequent faceoffs that led directly to additional goals from McNamara and others throughout the opening period.
In the second quarter, Iona managed its first goal but Utah responded with seven consecutive scores before slowing down their pace late in the half. At halftime, Utah led by twenty points.
During the third quarter, Dineen entered as goalkeeper and made three saves per quarter played. Both teams struggled offensively early before Conner Flanagan scored another pole goal for Utah midway through the period.
McNamara set his ninth goal early in the fourth quarter—breaking his own program record—before adding his tenth later on an assist from Overly. Sheppard completed his hat trick late in regulation to close out scoring.
Utah will remain at home next week to face Dartmouth at Rice-Eccles Stadium on March 7 at noon.
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