Wingate, N.C.---- The 15th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs outscored visiting Coker College 11-2 in the second half, with five different players collecting hat tricks Wednesday evening in a 20-8 victory in South Atlantic Conference men's lacrosse action. The two-time defending SAC tournament champion Bulldogs are 9-3 overall and 5-1 in league play, while the Cobras fall to 5-8 overall and 2-5 in conference play.

THOUGHTS FROM TIM BOYLE

"I think we were able to get good looks at the net, we were definitely getting leverage on their poles and their short sticks. We hit a bunch of pipes in the first half and had some unlucky bounces and the game stayed close. We are happy, we've never gotten to 20 goals here, this is the first time we've hit 20 since I have been here. I think it was big for our team to see that we could hit that milestone."
  
KEY STATS
 
- Wingate out-shot Coker 59-28
- 'Dogs held a 29-16 advantage in shots on goal
- The Bulldogs had 50 ground balls, compared to 40 for the Cobras
- WU won 23 face-offs, Coker won nine
- The Cobras went one-for-two in man-up opportunities; while Wingate was zero-for-one
 
KEY BULLDOGS
 
- Ryan Ormerod had a game-high four goals, also handing out one assist
- Conor Gronbach piled up three goals and three assists for a game-high six points
- Bobby Paddden and Alex Llerandi each had three goals and two assists
- Dylan Barry notched three goals on four shots
- Eight Bulldogs scored at least one goal Wednesday
- Wyatt Weiseman won 14-of-18 face-offs and scored one goal
- Alex Cordero collected seven saves for the 'Dogs
 
NOTES
 
- Wingate improves to 4-3 all time against Coker and 2-1 at home
- The 'Dogs notched a season high 20 goals
- Wingate's 30 points and 59 shots were the second highest this season
- The 23-for-32 faceoff wins is the highest win percentage for the Bulldogs this season

FIRST PERIOD
 
- Coker got on the board quick when Joe Venazio found the back of the net at the 11:45 mark
- Wingate tied it at 1-1 with a Llerandi goal with 8:33 to go
- One minute later the Bulldogs would take the 2-1 lead when Barry scored
- Ormerod and Barry each struck again to put the 'Dogs on top 4-1
- The Cobras got another Venazio goal to get Coker within two heading to the second
 
SECOND PERIOD
 
- Jonah Robertson scored the first goal of the frame for Coker at the 12:55 mark
- WU answered with three quick goals, the first coming from Llerandi with 12:14 remaining
- Gronbach and Joe Cooper each scored in the flurry
- The Cobras would make it a one-goal game with a 3-0 run of their own
- Coker got goals from Ethan Irizarry, Lucas Hediger and Matt Murphy
- Goals from Padden and Gronbach in the final 3:30 gave WU a 9-6 halftime lead

THIRD PERIOD
 
- The Wingate offense came out and scored three early goals to extend the lead to six
- Barry, Padden and Ormerod each scored in the opening seven minutes of the half
- Irizarry found the back of the net for the Cobras, while Venazio scored the man-up goal with five minutes remaining
- Wingate ended the game on an 8-0 run
- Dominic Piazza found the back of the net with 2:43 to go
- Llerandi netted the final goal of the frame to give Wingate a 14-8 advantage

FOURTH PERIOD
 
- Gronbach collected the first goal of the final frame with 14 minutes left to play
- Goals from Padden and Cooper midway through the period made it 17-8
- Ormerod netted back-to-back goals for the Bulldogs, extending the lead to 19-8
- Gary Pierpont scored the final goal with 59 seconds left, making it 20-8
 
UP NEXT
 
- Wingate wraps up the regular season home slate against Tusculum Saturday at 1 p.m. on Senior Day
- The Bulldogs hit the road for the final regular season game at Queens April 20