NEWBERRY – On a celebratory Senior Day Saturday afternoon, the Newberry College men's lacrosse team defeated the visiting Lions of Mars Hill in convincing fashion, 16-3.
18 Wolves were honored today in the final home game of the 2024 regular season. Newberry (9-3, 4-3 SAC) had 11 players register a goal and 12 registered a point.
Leading all goal-scorers was
Scott Reed with four.
Zach Thompson had a five-point day with a pair of goals and three assists.
Curtis Bukta added two goals and an assist, and eight others scored once:
Shane Halliwell,
Owen Harrison,
Jonny MacLean,
Jimmy Osorio,
Mac Ryan,
Jack Travassos,
Baker Westmoreland and
Logan Yost.
Defensively,
Brian Lake caused two turnovers and grabbed two ground balls while nine others caused a turnover.
Ryan Erler picked up his ninth win in net after stopping four of six shots for a .667 save percentage, and
Jackson Von Eschen played 18 solid minutes and allowed just one goal on six shots (.833 save percentage).
The Wolves blanked Mars Hill (4-8, 1-5 SAC) in the first quarter, racing out to a 6-0 lead after 15 minutes. Reed opened the scoring 1:28 into the game after Bukta found him in front of the net and he later added his second midway through the quarter to make it 4-0 Newberry.
Bukta scored two minutes into the second quarter off a pass from Thompson to push the Wolves' margin to 7-0. The Lions got on the board with 8:50 to play in the opening half and Newberry eventually took a 9-2 advantage into the break after goals from Thompson and Travassos – the latter directly off a Mars Hill failed clear.
Newberry outscored the visitors 4-1 in the third quarter to continue its dominant afternoon for a 13-3 lead after 45 minutes of action. Thompson added his final assist of the afternoon on an Osorio man-up goal early in the fourth before the freshman Yost found the back of the net for the first time in his collegiate career with 2:45 left.
Adrian Channell and Reed worked together to close the scoring with 56 ticks on the clock as Reed scored a man-up goal.
Newberry nearly doubled the Lions in shots (54-28) which included a 32-12 advantage in shots on net. The Wolves grabbed 33 ground balls on the afternoon and converted 3 of 6 man-up opportunities.
The Wolves hit the road for a matchup with Lincoln Memorial a week from today (April 13). Faceoff in Harrogate, Tennessee, is scheduled for 4 p.m.
