MOUNT OLIVE – Facing a nationally ranked opponent for the second time this season, the University of Mount Olive men’s lacrosse team lost by a 17-6 margin on Saturday at the Ray McDonald Sr. Sports Complex in non-conference action.
With the loss, the Trojans fall to 1-2 overall. Meanwhile, No. 12 Newberry College improved to 2-0 after being picked fourth in the South Atlantic Conference (SAC) preseason poll and naming one player a preseason All-American by USILA.
In the first quarter, Newberry opened the contest with five unanswered goals within the initial five minutes of the game, 5-0. After the Trojans forced a turnover, senior Chance Urban scored his fourth goal of the season at the 9:06 mark, to pull Mount Olive to within 5-1. After battling back and forth, the Wolves were able to put one past the keeper at the 3:21 mark, 6-1. Closing the first quarter, Newberry scored on a man-up opportunity, 7-1. In the second quarter, senior Chaz Goodman ripped a shot to bring the score 7-2 at the 14:04 mark. Newberry responded with three goals to extend the lead by eight, 10-2. Finishing the first half, senior Aidan Lalonde scored back-to-back goals on a behind-the-back, no-look shot with passes from senior Samuel Skousen and Goodman, 10-4.
Opening the second half, the Trojans defense held the Wolves to three goals on only eight shots on cage, 13-4. In the last frame of the game, Newberry’s offensive efforts worked in their favor as they scored four goals over a span of 10 minutes, 17-4. At the 5:16 mark, Lalonde scored his hat trick off a pass from Skousen, 17-5. Finishing the fourth quarter, senior Jack Lewis found Goodman to score the final goal of the game, but Newberry sealed the 17-6 victory.
Sophomore goalkeeper Kurtis Lensing tallied 12 saves in a full 60 minutes of play.
Newberry held a 46-26 shot advantage over the Trojans while also boasting a 29-12 advantage in shots on goal.
Lalonde led the team with three goals while teammate Goodman finished with two goals and an assist.
Faceoff specialist sophomore Nicolas Logue led the team with four groundballs while junior Alan Usher collected three.
UMO faces Roberts Wesleyan on Friday at 2 p.m. at the Ray McDonald Sr. Sports Complex.
