Charlotte, N.C.---- The 15th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs ended the game on a 7-2 run Saturday afternoon, prevailing 11-9 at No. 14 Queens University in South Atlantic Conference men's lacrosse action. Wingate wins its fifth straight, improving to 11-3 overall and 7-1 in league play. The victory, along with Tusculum's 11-10 upset over Catawba gives Wingate the outright regular season SAC title for the first time in program history. The Royals fall to 11-3 overall and 6-2 in conference.

THOUGHTS FROM TIM BOYLE:
 
"I think it's big for our seniors' legacies. This is something that the program has never done, winning a regular season SAC championship. That's huge for them, but I know that they want more. Hopefully we can continue this momentum we've had lately and get a win in the semifinals, and then have a chance to win our third straight conference tournament title. We had some big transition goals late, with Sean Moran scoring the winner and Cordero making a couple huge saves. All the credit goes to the players, from 7-4 down on, they really played hard and got the job done."
 
KEY STATS
 
- Wingate held a 40-39 advantage in shots
- The 'Dogs had 25-20 edge in shots on goal
- Both teams had 21 ground balls  
- The two-time defending SAC champion Bulldogs won 12-of-23 face-offs
- The Royals converted two-of-seven extra-man opportunities; the 'Dogs were zero-of-four

KEY BULLDOGS
 
- Alex Llerandi had three goals and an assist
- Ryan Ormerod and Bobby Padden contributed two goals and one assist each
- Conor Gronbach and Dominic Piazza had one goal and one assist each
- Freshman Alex Cordero had 11 saves
- James Houston led the team with four ground balls and two caused turnovers
- Wyatt Weiseman won 10-of-20 face-offs
 
NOTES
 
- Wingate moves to 4-6 all time against Queens, getting its first regular season road win against The Royals
- WU has won three straight against the Royals
- Llerandi notches his 10th hat trick of the season, the Bulldogs are 9-1 in those games
 
FIRST PERIOD
 
- Queens scored first when Kevin Barry found the back of the net just one minute into the game
- The Bulldogs answered with a Padden goal to tie it at one with 12:40 to go
- A.J. Curtiss gave the Royals the one-goal advantage with 13 seconds remaining in the first frame
 
SECOND PERIOD
 
- At the 13-minute mark Llerandi scored for Wingate to tie it at two
- After seven scoreless minutes Gary Pierpont scored to give the 'Dogs the one-goal advantage
- Queens scored two goals in the final three minutes of the half to take a 4-3 halftime lead

THIRD PERIOD
 
- The Bulldogs got on the board first in the third frame when Gronbach found the back of the net to tie it at 4-4
- The Royals went on a 3-0 run, with Reed Murphy's goal making it 7-4 at the 9:46 mark
- Wingate would score the next five; collecting three more goals in the third frame
- Ormerod started the run for the 'Dogs with a goal at the 9:28 mark
- Padden found the back of the net one minute later; Piazza netted the final goal of the frame with 1:57 to go to tie it
 
FOURTH PERIOD
 
- At the 13-minute mark Llerandi gave Wingate the 8-7 advantage
- Two minutes later Ormerod pushed the Bulldogs advantage to two
- After being held scoreless for 20 minutes by the Wingate defense, Barry found the back of the net for the Royals
- With two minutes remaining, Eric Fitz tied it at 9-9
- Just 30 seconds later Sean Moran netted the game winner for the Bulldogs
- Wingate got an insurance goal from Llerandi with 46 seconds to go
- Cordero registered five saves in the final frame
 
UP NEXT
 
- Wingate is the number two one seed in the SAC Tournament
- The Bulldogs get a bye in the opening round
- The 'Dogs will be action in the semifinals Friday
- Wingate is hosting the SAC Tournament semifinals and finals