AMHERST - Will Manny added to his impressive early season resume for the University of Massachusetts men's lacrosse team, but he was far from the Minutemen's only standout Saturday.

UMass got big plays and strong performances up and down its roster to hold off Bucknell 11-9 at Garber Field.

The biggest of Minuteman goalie Tim McCormack's six saves came with 3 minutes, 24 seconds left. Bucknell had momentum after trimming its deficit from 11-7 to 11-9, Billy Eisenreich, who was a big reason for that momentum by scoring the eighth goal and setting up the ninth for the Bison, aimed for a spot just inside the right post, but McCormack's stick beat the ball there.

"That save really sparked us," UMass senior Anthony Biscardi said. "Right there I knew we had the game. Tim makes those great saves for us all the time."

Bucknell never got another shot off. The Minutemen got possession with just under two minutes left and never gave the ball up. The crowd of 1,005 on the unseasonably warm afternoon gave UMass (2-0) an ovation as Manny flipped the ball in the air when the clock ran out.

"We need contributions from every guy in every game," UMass coach Greg Cannella said. "Everyone makes a big deal about what Manny did last week. If you count on him to do that every week, it's not going to happen. Other people have to step up. That's when you're successful as a team."

Manny scored seven goals and added two assists in a 12-9 win at Army on Feb. 10. He followed that with three goals and four assists Saturday, including two goals and an assist in the fourth quarter. The junior attackman picked up his 100th career point in the first quarter.

Biscardi did not register a point in the game, but two Minuteman goals were the direct result of plays he made. The senior midfielder's hitting ability has made him a crowd favorite.

With 8:12 remaining in the first quarter, Biscardi barreled over John Scally of Bucknell with a hit any safety would be proud of as the ball popped loose. Manny got the ground ball and fed Kyle Smith (three goals, one assist) at the far post, who tucked it behind Bison goalie Kyle Feeney (13 saves) to put UMass ahead 2-0.

Another Biscardi collision led to freshman Grant Whiteway's first collegiate goal late in the second quarter. That goal gave the Minutemen a 5-3 halftime lead despite Bucknell's 8-1 faceoff advantage in the first half. But Biscardi helped UMass force 11 turnovers before intermission (17 overall) to make up for the faceoff difference.

"That's our team mentality," Biscardi said "We wanted to come out and beat 'em up a little bit and test their toughness. We want the reputation that it's tough to play on Garber Field. We don't want anyone coming in here thinking they can win."

Manny said Biscardi set a tone for the Minutemen.

"Anthony was flying around with his head cut off hitting people all over the field," Manny said. ... "He makes plays a captain is supposed to make.

"We try to be tougher than every team that comes here," Manny added. "This was Bucknell's first time ever coming here. We wanted to show them what UMass lacrosse is all about and that's being tougher than other teams."

UMass never trailed but could not put the Bison away as they cut the Minutemen's lead to two every time it was stretched to four goals. Bucknell (0-2) wiped out a five-goal deficit to force overtime last week against Delaware,

But the UMass close defense of Jake Smith, Greg Anderson and Tom Celentani seemed to get that much tougher every time Bucknell got closer.

Senior Mike Fetterly added a career-high four points with a goal and three assists for the Minutemen, while Art Kell scored his first goal of the season and set up two others.

UMass is at Ohio State at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Follow UMass coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/GazetteUMass. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at http://www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage.