Mars Hill opens season with 14-10 win over Bobcats
The Mars Hill men's lacrosse team (1-0) won their 2021 season-opening match versus Lees-McRae (0-3) in non-conference play Wednesday night inside Meares Stadium.
MARS HILL, N.C. - The Mars Hill men's lacrosse team (1-0) won their 2021 season-opening match versus Lees-McRae (0-3) in non-conference play Wednesday night inside Meares Stadium.
The Lions struck twice in the first quarter, both from the stick of last season's South Atlantic Conference leading goal scorer, Zac Carrigan. With under 20 seconds remaining in the frame, Ryan Beauchamp scored to cut the Lions' lead down to one.
Lees-McRae scored the first two goals of the second, taking the 3-2 lead with 5:09 remaining in the half. Brandon Beland, in his first game with the Lions and following two assists on the Carrigan tallies, netted his first goal of the season to tie the game with 3:39 left to play in the first half.
Coming out of the break tied at three, Tyler Flannelly scored his second of the night to give the Bobcats their second lead, but under five minutes later, Beland tallied his second to tie the game once more.
Jackson Courson's first of the season tied the game at five and less than one minute later, Joey Baumgardt's first career marker gave the Lions the 6-5 lead with 4:52 left in the third. Beauchamp's second of the night tied it at six, but Carrigan's hat-trick marker with 1:10 left in the frame provided the Lions the 7-6 advantage after 45 minutes of play.
Tied at nine, the Lions went on a 3-0 run and closed out the game on a 5-1 run to secure the win. The duo of Beland (3g) and Carrigan (2g) netted the final five goals with Courson picking up two assists and Baumgardt with one assist.
Beland put up eight points (5g, 3a) in his debut with the Lions while Carrigan netted six goals. Courson ended the night with one goal and two assists. Mike Moore led the Bobcats with five points (2g, 3a) followed by Beauchamp's four (3g, 1a).
Steven Smith, making his collegiate debut, was stellar, making 15 saves on the night for his first career win. Antonio Cruz suffered the loss, giving up 14 goals on 21 shots.
The Lions open SAC play on Saturday, February 13 when they host Limestone. Faceoff is set for 1 p.m. inside Meares Stadium.
