BIDDEFORD — Despite entering Saturday on a seven-game losing streak, the number seven meant good things for the University of New England men’s lacrosse team on the seventh day of the week. Junior attacker Geoff Bruno scored seven goals ”“ tying a 7-year-old school record ”“ as the Nor’easters downed Nichols 20-8 in a Commonwealth Coast Conference clash at the Big Blue Turf.

Bad luck was a common theme during UNE’s losing streak, and that looked like it might continue as the Nor’easters hit shots off the post three times in the first five minutes. But Bruno started to turn the team’s luck around as he scored his first goal just over six minutes in to give UNE a 2-0 lead.

“It feels relieving,” Bruno said of finally getting a win. “It was just so frustrating, coming out to practice, working our butts off, and then working our butts off during a game, and ending up having to lose. It’s not a good feeling.”

Bruno scored two more goals in the opening quarter to put the Nor’easters up 5-1, but the lead didn’t last.

The Bison went on a 5-1 run of their own to tie the game up 6-6 with just over five minutes left in the first half, but another Bruno goal gave the Nor’easters the lead back for good, as they went into halftime up 8-7.

“Lately, one quarter seems to slow us down,” said UNE head coach Charlie Burch. “It’s been the quarter that we’ve given up too many goals and not scored enough ourselves, and it’s been costly; it’s cost us the win. Today, (in) the second quarter, we let them back in the game.”

As bad as the second quarter was for UNE, the third quarter was quite the opposite. Bruno scored his sixth and seventh goals as the Nor’easters outscored Nichols 5-0 in the period. Bruno’s career day tied the school’s single-game record for goals set by Dan Leyden almost seven years ago to the day ”“ April 14, 2007.

“We talked about shutting them down at halftime, and fortunately, we were able to do that,” said Burch.

UNE kept rolling in the fourth quarter, squashing any thoughts of extending its losing streak to eight games. The Nor’easters extended their lead to 19-7 before the Bison scored their first goal of the half.

“We stress every single time, ”˜Let’s play a 60-minute game, go hard, leave it all on the field,’ and that’s what we did today,” said Bruno.

“It’s very good to come out and be able to execute, because we haven’t been able to consistently do that all season,” said Burch.

Sophomore goalie John Dusel led the UNE defensive stand in the second half, as he made 10 of his 13 saves after the intermission.

“He didn’t look like he was seeing the ball all that well in the first half. But he stepped up in the second half,” Burch said of Dusel.

Bruno finished with a game-high eight points ”“ one short of the school’s single-game record ”“ while senior Patrick Wolfe pitched in with two goals and a game-high four assists.

“I couldn’t have done it without my teammates,” said Bruno. “I’m really not going to be that selfish, I’m going to give (credit) to my teammates.”

Brian Girard tallied four goals for Nichols.

UNE returns to action Tuesday when the Nor’easters host CCC foe Curry at 4 p.m.

“We’re going to enjoy this win. It’s definitely going to be good to carry it over into Curry,” said Bruno. “We’ve got to basically win the rest of our games to get a good spot in the playoffs.”

“We hope to use this as a springboard,” said Burch.

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.