Ashland, Va.----Wingate University junior attack Jeremy Sullivan (Crofton, Md.) netted the game-winning goal with 1:50 remaining in the overtime period to boost the 15th-ranked Bulldogs over fourth-ranked Mercyhurst University by a final score of 12-11 in NCAA Division II men's lacrosse action from Day Field on the campus of Randolph-Macon Sunday. Wingate rallied from a 5-0 deficit late in the first quarter for the epic comeback victory.
 
The Bulldogs avenge a 9-8 four-overtime loss to (then) 11th-ranked Mercyhurst last season on Feb. 21, 2016. With the triumph, Wingate improves to 9-3 overall on the season. Mercyhurst's four-game win streak comes to an end, as the Lakers fall to 6-2 overall. The Bulldogs return to action this Saturday for the final regular season home contest versus Brevard on Senior Day from Graham Gill Field. First face-off is slated for a 3 p.m. start. Mercyhurst hosts Alderson- Broaddus University Tuesday at 1 p.m.
 
"We are very proud of the way the boys competed and stayed together today," Wingate head men's lacrosse coach Tim Boyle says. "We had a slow start and went down several goals, but to their credit…they didn't panic and they stayed the course. They battled back into the game and were able to come away with a very gutsy win in the end. We know this is a big win and we will celebrate for a few hours and then it's back to work as we have more to do this season."

Sullivan finished with two goals in the contest to increase his season total to 17. Wingate senior attack Austin Murphy (Orillia, Ontario) and sophomore attack Alex Llerandi (Marietta, Ga.) lead the WU scoring efforts with three goals each. Murphy also finished with a game-high six assists and now has tallied 51 total points on the season (22 goals, 29 assists). Four other Bulldogs finished with one goal each.
 
For Mercyhurst, sophomore midfielder Kurtis Woodland (Fergus, Ontario) led all scorers with four tallies, while senior attack Derek Richards (Rochester, N.Y.) added three goals and two assists for the Lakers. Four other Mercyhurst players contributed one tally each.
 
Mercyhurst started the contest strong with five unanswered goals to grab an early 5-0 advantage with 4:53 left in the first quarter. Wingate closed out the opening frame with four consecutive tallies of its own to trim the deficit down to 5-4 with two seconds on the clock.
 
The Lakers began the second stanza with a goal from Woodland to increase the lead to 6-4 at the 13:47 mark, but the Bulldogs answered with back-to-back scores from Sullivan and senior midfielder Vinny Aiello (Centereach, N.Y.) to tie the contest up at 6-6 with four minutes left in the second stanza. The score remained tied up at 6-6 heading into the halftime intermission.
 
Another tally from Woodland gave Mercyhurst the 7-6 lead; however, three straight goals from Wingate gave the visiting Bulldogs their first advantages of the game at 9-7 with 7:31 in the third quarter. Murphy netted the go-ahead eighth tally, while senior attack Tanner Kotch (Butler, Pa.) added the insurance goal.
 
Mercyhurst would rally to knot the score at 9-9 with consecutive goals from Richards with 23 seconds left in the third frame. The game was a back-and-forth affair in the final quarter of play with WU redshirt senior attack Ryan Vogrig (Vancouver, B.C.) scoring the go-ahead goals to make the score 10-9 Bulldogs at the 13-minute mark.
 
The neutral-site host Lakers tied the game up again at 10-10 one minute later before Llerandi found the back of the net for the third time to give the Bulldogs an 11-10 advantage with 4:02 to go. Woodland then scored at the buzzer for Mercyhurst to send the game to overtime. With 1:50 on the clock in the overtime period, Sullivan netted his second career overtime goal to give the Wingate Bulldogs their second victory over a top-five opponent this season.
 
Both goalies played the full 62:10 Sunday afternoon. Wingate junior goalkeeper Will Sheridan (Woodstock, Ga.) tallied five saves and got the win, improving his record to 8-3. Mercyhurst graduate student goalie Matt Wells (Fayetteville, N.Y.) tallied six stops and took the loss. Mercyhurst outshot Wingate 33-27 and netted two goals on four man-up opportunities. The Bulldogs held the 28-25 advantage in ground balls, while winning 13-12 in total face-offs.
 
(Wingate University athletic media relations/sports network student assistant Jackson Kaplan contributed this article. A sophomore from Raleigh, Kaplan is a Communication Studies major at Wingate.)