Hickory, N.C.----The third-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs jumped out to a 9-1 lead Friday afternoon, then held off a furious rally to pick up a 14-10 victory over #13 Limestone University in the semifinals of the 2021 South Atlantic Conference men's lacrosse tournament. The three-time defending SAC Tournament champion Bulldogs improve to 11-1 overall, advancing to Sunday's SAC title game, while the Saints fall to 9-4 on the season. The 'Dogs have won seven straight, while defeating Limestone for the second time this season.

KEY STATS

- Limestone held a 54-39 advantage in shots
- The Saints had a 24-22 edge in shots on goal
- Limestone committed 23 turnovers compared to Wingate's 13
- The 'Dogs registered 10 caused turnovers on the day
- The Saints won 20-of-27 face-offs and had a 40-24 advantage in ground balls
- WU went 22-for-23 on clears; Limestone was 17-for-22

KEY BULLDOGS

- Adam Vodovnik had four goals and three assists
- Vodovnik is just the second player in league history to hit the 50-goal mark in a season
- His 52 goals this year are the second-most in conference history
- Willie Grieco added three goals and five assists
- Grieco is the first player in SAC history with 50 assists in a season
- The first team All-SAC selection now has 77 points on the year, good for third in league history
- Bobby Padden contributed three goals and an assist
- Danny Riley, Gary Pierpont, Liam Johnson and Dominic Piazza added a goal each
- KC Carlson piled up 14 saves
- Reese Orman had four caused turnovers and three ground balls
- Mark Taccard added a CT, four ground balls and an assist
- James Kotcamp won four face-offs and picked up two ground balls

FIRST PERIOD

- Wingate outscored Limestone 3-0 in the first frame
- Grieco scored the first goal of the game eight minutes in
- The sophomore made it 2-0 with a goal at the 3:58 mark
- Vodovnik scored off a Padden assist with two minutes left to put WU on top by three

SECOND PERIOD

- The 'Dogs scored the first four goals of the second period to take a 7-0 advantage
- Vodovnik's 50th goal of the season came off a Grieco assist to start the scoring three minutes in
- Padden scored twice in a two-minute span, both coming off Vodovnik assists to make it 6-0
- Piazza's goal at the 5:44 mark off another Grieco assist put the Bulldogs on top by seven
- Limestone got on the board with 3:35 left in the half, but Wingate had the answer
- Johnson and Vodovnik scored in a 75-second stretch to give the 'Dogs a 9-1 lead
- Christ Erneston scored with a minute left to pull Limestone within seven at halftime

THIRD PERIOD

- Limestone scored seven unanswered goals to tie it
- Connor Grauer started the spurt three minute in, while Erneston added back-to-back goals
- It was another Grauer goal with 2:53 left that tied it at nine
- Vodovnik scored with 37 seconds left in the frame to put the Bulldogs back on top

FOURTH PERIOD

- Padden's goal three minutes in gave Wingate an 11-9 advantage
- Erneston scored a minute later to pull the Saints back within one
- That was the last goal of the day for Limestone
- Grieco scored off a Vodovnik assist at the 9:40 mark to make it 12-10
- Riley scored with six minutes remaining off a Grieco assist to push the lead to three
- Pierpont's goal with 4:16 left off another Grieco assist gave Wingate a four-goal cushion

UP NEXT

- Wingate is back in action Sunday in the SAC championship game at 1 p.m.
- The Bulldogs will face #6 Lenoir-Rhyne in Hickory with the SAC title on the line
- Wingate has won each of the last three SAC Tournament championships
- The 'Dogs and Bears met in the 2018 SAC title game, with Wingate prevailing 12-9
- Wingate and LR met earlier this month, with the Bulldogs winning 16-15 in Hickory