Wingate, N.C----University of Mount Olive senior midfielder Alysha Kulka (Calgary, Alberta) led the Trojan scoring attack with three goals and senior attack Claire Wigler (Syracuse, N.Y.) followed right behind her with two goals as the 12th-ranked Mount Olive Trojans claimed a close 6-5 victory over Wingate University on Graham Gill Field at the Irwin Belk Track Complex. The Trojans improve upon their undefeated record to 4-0 overall, while the Bulldogs fall to 0-1 overall in their season opener.
 
"Today was a great performance by our team," Wingate head women's lacrosse coach Caline Olmsted says. "Obviously, we came up short…but I am very proud of our effort. We will build on this effort as we get ready for Belmont Abbey Wednesday."
 
Wingate redshirt sophomore attack Shannon O'Neal (Severna Park, Md.) and junior midfielder Paulena Dempsey (Jarrettsville, Md.) led the Bulldogs in scoring with two goals each. Both Dempsey and O'Neal also recorded an assist as well. Freshman defender Megan Amrein (Abingdon, Md.) recorded her first collegiate goal this afternoon to give the Bulldogs a 4-3 lead with 18:53 remaining in the second half. She also had her first career assist on a goal by O'Neal to tie the game at 1-1 with 23:31 left in the first half.
 
Mount Olive began the scoring early on an unassisted goal by Kulka to give the Trojans a 1-0 lead with 25:15 to go in the first half. Wingate then followed with three consecutive goals to give the Bulldogs a 3-1 lead. The Trojans closed the gap to make it a 3-2 deficit with 14:23 in the first half on another unassisted goal by Kulka. The score remained at 3-2 going into halftime.
 
It was a back-and-forth affair from that point on as the Bulldogs took the lead twice at 4-3 (Amrein, 18:53) and 5-4 (Dempsey, 14:23), but the Trojans fought back to tie the game twice. It remained a 5-5 contest until senior midfielder Candace Corkin (Calgary, Alberta) netted the go-ahead goal to give Mount Olive a 6-5 advantage with 8:10 remaining in the game. This goal would ultimately seal the deal for the Trojans.
 
Wingate freshman goalie Arion Pierre (Haymarket, Va.) earned the start in her first collegiate contest for the Bulldogs. She recorded 13 total saves and five groundballs as well. Mount Olive senior goalie Hannah Knight (Rochester, N.Y.) had five saves to improve her overall record to 4-0.
 
The Wingate University women's lacrosse team will be back in action on Wednesday evening at 5 p.m., when they take on the Belmont Abbey College Crusaders on Graham Gill Field at the Irwin Belk Track Complex. The University of Mount Olive Trojans will return home on Feb. 20 as they face Pfeiffer University at Amon Field.
 
(Wingate University sports information/sports network student assistant Jackson Kaplan contributed this article. A freshman from Raleigh, Kaplan is a Communication Studies major at Wingate. The former Millbrook High School baseball player is the son of Harrison and Dona Kaplan.)