No. 5 University of Mount Olive fell to No. 1 Limestone College 20-6 Saturday afternoon in Gaffney, S.C. in Conference Carolinas men's lacrosse. Mount Olive secures the No. 2 seed in the 2016 Conference Carolinas Men's Lacrosse Tournament.
Mount Olive (12-3 Overall, 5-1 Conference Carolinas) got on the board to start the game as Eddie Hendrickson scored an unassisted goal with 13:11 on the clock in the first quarter. Limestone (17-0, 6-0) answered back with 9:35 to play as Mike Messenger tied the game off a pass from Jordan Saunderson.
The Saints went on a three goal run to take a 3-1 lead with 7:06 remaining in the opening quarter. Brett Kingston brought Mount Olive to within a goal with 12 seconds left in the first quarter, as the junior took a pass from Jordan Tindall and put the shot away.
Tyler Feniello won the opening faceoff to begin the second quarter and picked up the groundball. Fenillo found Ryan Morris who picked up the clear for Mount Olive and charged down the field. Morris beat the keeper and tied the game at three.
Mount Olive and Limestone each exchanged a goal and the game was tied at four. The Saints following a Ben Higgins goal, went on another three goal run, and jumped ahead 7-4. Stephen Bowlan stopped the run as he scored with 4:08 left before halftime.
Limestone's offense could not be contained as the Saints started what would be an 11-0 run that started with 1:26 left in the second quarter. The run lasted through the third quarter and was finally stopped with 8:16 left in the fourth quarter. Thatcher Clark scored unassisted, but, Mount Olive did not have enough time for a comeback as the Trojans fell.
Mount Olive was led by Ryan Morris' two goals. He also added a groundball and a caused turnover. Ross Bowman (12-3) and Will Urban both shared time in goal for Mount Olive. Both keepers registered five saves in the contest.
Mount Olive has secured the No.2 seed in the Conference Carolinas Men's Lacrosse Tournament. Mount Olive will play the No. 3 seed Belmont Abbey College Friday April 29th at 7 p.m. in Gaffney S.C. as Limestone is the host for the final four. The Conference Carolinas tournament website can be found here.