MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – The 13th-ranked University of Mount Olive men's lacrosse team defeated the Bulldogs of Barton College 17-9 in Conference Carolinas action Wednesday afternoon at the Ray McDonald Sr. Sports Complex in Mount Olive, N.C. The annual meeting of rivals saw the first meeting of the two lacrosse programs with Barton being in their inaugural season.
GAME INFORMATION
Score: No. 13 Mount Olive 17 - Barton 9
Records: Mount Olive (10-2, 4-1 CC), Barton (5-9, 3-2 CC)
Location: Ray McDonald Sr. Sports Complex | Mount Olive, N.C
How It Happened
Play-by-Play
FIRST QUARTER
- Mount Olive had a rough go of it in the opening quarter as the Trojans came out flat and the Bulldogs took advantage of it scoring three goals to take a 3-0 lead into the second.
- The Trojans recorded five shots on goal but did not find the back of the net.
SECOND QUARTER
- UMO kicked it into overdrive by scoring the first five goals of the quarter as Thatcher Clark opened the run with a man-up goal 35 seconds in and was followed by goals from Brody Sullivan (13:56, 11:44) and Nathan Bradley (13:19).
- Barton stopped the run with two goals at the 10-minute mark and regained the lead 5-4.
- The see-saw second quarter saw the Trojans once again take control of the lead as Connor Watson and Bradley scored for UMO and pushed Mount Olive ahead 6-5 with 5:50 remaining.
- BC tied the game for a second time in the frame with 4:23 left but Watson put UMO back in front with 3:34 as Tyler Keele found his teammate and Mount Olive took a 7-6 lead into the break.
THIRD QUARTER
- Mount Olive went into the third with a mindset to expand their lead and they did just that with Cameron Bope (14:51), Austin Whitlow (13:55) and Watson (12:16 UP) pushing UMO's advantage to four, 10-6.
- Barton was able to stop the run that carried over from the second with a score at the 9:02 mark and trailed by three.
- Watson and Bradley continued to secure the Trojans lead with goals at the 6:23 mark and 4:43.
FOURTH QUARTER
- The Bulldogs scored first in the fourth on a Trojan penalty and did once more on a second UMO penalty but Mount Olive snuck past five more goals and held off any chance of a comeback to take the 17-9 final.
KEY STATS
- Connor Watson led the Trojans with six points on four goals and two assists. The four goals was a season-high for the sophomore and the second time he has collected six points.
- Nathan Bradley was the leading goal-scorer for UMO with five, also a season-high for the freshman.
- Brody Sullivan also added a pair of goals in the match.
- Andrew Avarello (W: 10-2) played all 60 minutes between the pipes made 12 saves and on 21 shots faced.
- UMO's 17 goals scored is the second-highest for the season, just two behind their season best.
UP NEXT
Mount Olive will return to action April 13 when the Trojans will travel to Franklin Springs, Ga. to take on Emmanuel College. Face-off is set for 2 p.m.