WILSON, N.C. (April 19) – For the first time in program history, the Trojans claimed the Conference Carolinas regular season title outright behind an undefeated record in league play after recording a 14-10 victory at Barton on Friday night.
With the win, the University of Mount Olive men's lacrosse program earned an impressive eighth-straight win to improve to 10-3 this season with a perfect 7-0 record in conference action. The Trojans will enter the Conference Carolinas Championship as the No. 1 seed, which will be hosted this year on the campus of Barton. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs drop to 6-9 overall behind a 4-3 mark in league play.
Fifth-year Chaz Goodman produced a seven-point performance with two goals and five assists. With an assist at the 7:29 mark of the fourth quarter, Goodman became the single-season record holder in assists with 35.
Senior Aidan Lalonde finished with four goals and one assist on Friday. Additionally, senior Samuel Skousen dished out three assists, while fellow senior Elijah Cobb and Chapman Parker each scored twice.
In the first quarter, the Bulldogs established an early 3-0 advantage before Lalonde and Parker scored back-to-back goals in under two minutes to cut into the deficit, 3-2. Barton scored in the final 1:23 of the quarter to hold a 4-2 edge following the opening 15 minutes of the game. Lalonde quickly netted his second goal of the game at the 9:47 mark of the second quarter, but the Bulldogs responded to regain their two-goal advantage, 5-3. The Trojans tied the contest at 5-5 after Goodman assisted goals by Chapman and Lalonde in the span of just 47 seconds. Each team scored one more time before the break, as the regular season finale was tied 6-6 at halftime.
Lalonde put Mount Olive ahead for the first time at the 14:30 mark of third, but Barton countered minutes later to knot the game at 7-7. Later in the quarter, Goodman and Lalonde found the back of the cage in under a minute to take a 9-7 edge. In the fourth, UMO scored three straight goals with Cobb, sophomore Benjamin Vanderkley, and graduate student Chance Urban each getting the score sheet, 12-7. Following a Bulldog goal, Cobb and senior Jack Lewis scored to give the Trojans a significant 14-8 advantage with under four minutes left. Barton tallied a pair of goals late, but Mount Olive registered the 14-10 road win.
Defensively, sophomore Kurtis Lensing earned the win after collecting 12 saves on 39 shots faced in 60 minutes of action. Additionally, redshirt junior Josh Mauer finished 19-of-26 on faceoffs while totaling 10 ground balls.
Mount Olive returns to action in the semifinals of the Conference Carolinas Championship on Friday, April 26, with a start time of 4 p.m. in Wilson, North Carolina.
