HARTSVILLE, S.C. – The Emory & Henry University Men's Lacrosse Team (1-3, 0-1 SAC) opened up South Atlantic Conference play on the road at Coker University (4-1, 1-0 SAC) Friday afternoon. The Cobras defeated the Wasps by an 18-8 final score.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Coker 18, Emory & Henry 8
LOCATION – Hartsville, South Carolina
VENUE – Coker Athletic Field
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (1-3, 1-0 SAC); Coker (4-1, 1-0 SAC)
How It Happened
- Coker was in control throughout the opening quarter of play, putting up five unanswered goals. The Cobras scored the first tally of the second quarter, but Emory & Henry finally broke through at the 11:10 mark. Freshman defender Brayden Hall (Salem, Va.) took a pass from sophomore defender Isaiah Ward (Fredericksburg, Va.) and beat the goalie to cut the deficit to 6-1. Coker pushed its lead back to 7-1, but E&H had an answer as junior attack Jacob Mills (Culpeper, Va.) dished to freshman attack Gavin Starling (McKinney, Texas). Starling slotted a shot home to make it 7-2. The home team would record the following two goals to run it back out to 9-2. Mills registered an unassisted goal at the 4:34 mark and Starling followed with 2:15 left in the half to bring the Wasps back within five at 9-4. One final goal by Coker made the margin 10-4 at the halftime break.
- CU was first on the scoreboard in the second half, but Starling struck again on an assist from sophomore midfielder David Mewes (Greenville, S.C.) with 9:46 on the clock to reduce the deficit to 11-5. Coker would register the final three goals of the third and the first two of the fourth to see their advantage balloon to double digits at 16-5. Freshman Dany Nguyen (Forest, Va.) put his name on the scoresheet at the 11:49 mark of the fourth on an assist from Starling to make it 16-6. Coker scored twice more in the following two and a half minutes to give them a double-digit lead once again at 18-6. The Wasps took advantage of the man-up advantage with a goal by sophomore midfielder Gabe Carter (Kingsport, Tenn.) on another helper from Starling with 2:55 left and Nguyen put one last shot by the goalie at the 1:19 mark to send the game to its final score at 18-8.
Emory & Henry Individual Leaders
- Starling paced the Wasps with a hat trick of three goals, two assists and two ground balls. Nguyen finished with a pair of goals and a ground ball while Mills recorded one goal and an assist.
- Hall had one goal, four ground balls and a caused turnover. Sophomore faceoff Jaxon Blackshear (Hedgesville, W.Va.) won 12 faceoffs, picking up a team-high eight ground balls.
- Sophomore goalie Mason Buttery (Carmel, Ind.) made seven saves in goal while freshman goalie AJ Cakir (McKinney, Texas) had six stops in relief.
Coker Individual Leaders
- Kaleb Hiltz had four goals, one assist, two ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers to lead the Cobras. Jacob Cicco, Zyaire Marshall and Cooper Wirt all finished with a hat trick for Coker.
- Jack Schellenberger registered three saves to earn the win in net while Carter Wiltse had a pair of saves in relief.
Up Next
- Emory & Henry is back in action on Saturday, February 28 when the Wasps travel to Sparks, Maryland to take on St. Thomas Aquinas College in a neutral site matchup at the USA Lacrosse Complex.
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