The John Carroll men's lacrosse team (2-4) held a 9-5 advantage, but could not hold on in a frigid Saturday contest.

JCU closed out non-conference play with a 17-15 loss to the Illinois Wesleyan Titans (4-2) at Don Shula Stadium in University Heights, Ohio.

Michael Hubert had five goals and two assists on the day. Skyler Blake had five goals and one assist of his own.

It was a shootout in the opening quarter as both teams had players with first period hat tricks. John Carroll freshman Blake and IWU's Michael Julius each had three as the teams traded goals back and forth. Ryan Bleggi scored with 4.9 seconds left to give the Blue Streaks a 6-4 lead after one.

The second quarter was a series of runs as the Blue Streaks jumped out to a 9-5 lead with two goals from Hubert and Blake's fourth of the day. But the Titans fought back and eventually tied the game after Tim Maibeucher's two goals and goals from Mike Winter and Jacob Perry. Both teams headed to the locker rooms tied 9-9 at the half.

Blake had four first half points on four goals and Hubert and Declan O'Grady combined for five of their own (3 G, 2 A).

The second half looked a lot like Christmas rather than St. Patrick's Day as the snow began to fall to start the third quarter. The quarter started slowly as there was not much scoring but once the floodgates opened, there was no lack of goals. Hubert, Pike and Neitzelt each scored for the Blue Streaks, but it was the Titan offense who exploded for five goals to give them a 14-12 lead headed to the final frame.

The fourth quarter was a battle as both teams fought hard to get scoring chances. Christian Torres and Tim Smith scored for the Titans to extend their lead to four. Mike Hubert scored two goals in the final minutes but it was not enough as Alex Doorenbos put the game away with 30 seconds left, securing the 17-15 win for Illinois Wesleyan.

Declan O'Grady is now only three points away from becoming the first player in program history to notch 200 career points (197).

The Blue Streaks will travel to Columbus, Ohio to open up OAC play against Capital on Saturday, Mar. 25.