Matthews, N.C.----The second-seeded and 12th-ranked Newberry Wolves prevailed 15-11 over top-seeded and fifth-ranked Wingate University in the championship game of the South Atlantic Conference men's lacrosse tournament. The Wolves improve to 13-4 overall, while the Bulldogs fall to 13-3 on the season.
KEY STATS
- Wingate out-shot Newberry 47-25
- The 'Dogs held a 27-19 edge in shots on goal
- The Bulldogs won 16 of the 29 face-offs
- The Wolves had a 44-27 advantage in ground balls
- Newberry was 16-for-21 on clears; Wingate went 10-for-12
- NC had 23 turnovers compared to Wingate's 17
KEY BULLDOGS
-
Jack Murray had two goals and two assists
-
Joey Moran contributed three goals and an assist
-
Sean Clark added two goals and an assist
-
Kyle Spence and
Sam Goss each contributed a goal and an assist
-
Vinny Butrico and
Brandon Nerone each scored a goal
-
Jaxon Grant handed out an assist
-
Necco Cottage won 12-of-23 face-offs with seven ground balls
-
Dylan Rupprecht went three-for-five on face-offs
-
Reno Vorderlandwehr had two caused turnovers and two ground balls
- Spence added two CTs and three ground balls
-
Quad Williams registered four saves on the day
FIRST PERIOD
- Newberry scored the first four goals, taking a 4-0 lead on a Liam Vollans goal at the 8:28 mark
- Moran scored a minute later off Grant's assist
- Goss scored off a Spence assist at the 5:54 mark to make it 4-2
SECOND PERIOD
- Matthew Burt pushed the NC lead back to three with a goal three minutes into the second
- Nerone scored off Clark's assist to cut it back to two
- Murray scored at the 7:28 mark off a Moran assist to make it 5-4
- The Wolves scored the final two of the half, taking a 7-4 lead on an Ian Jackson goal with 1:29 left
THIRD PERIOD
- Scott Williams scored twice as the Wolves opened the half on a 3-0 run to go on top 10-4
- Spence scored at the 6:04 mark to start Wingate's second-half scoring
- Butrico scored 47 seconds later to cut the lead to four
- Burt's goal at the 3:41 mark gave Newberry an 11-6 lead
- Clark scored off Goss's assist with a minute left to cut the lead back to four
FOURTH PERIOD
- Clark scored off a Murray assist at the 12:45 mark to pull the 'Dogs within three
- Burt answered two minutes later to make it 12-8
- Moran scored 38 seconds later to cut the lead back to three
- The Wolves scored the next two, going on top 14-9 on a Jackson goal with eight minutes left
- Murray answered with a goal to cut the lead back to four
- Moran scored in the final minute off a Murray assist to make the final margin 15-11
UP NEXT
- Wingate has earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament
- The Bulldogs are the two seed in the NCAA South Region, earning hosting duties
- The 'Dogs will face the winner of the Barton vs. Anderson contest Sunday, May 10 at 1 p.m.
- If Wingate wins, the Bulldogs would host the winner of the Lenoir-Rhyne vs. Florida tech game
