Cary, NC - In their third consecutive conference matchup, the Southern Virginia men's lacrosse team went to battle with the Pacers of WIlliam Peace. What was a very even matchup through the first half, the Knights stormed out of the locker room en route to a 15 goal second half performance, culminating in a 21-10 victory over the Pacers.
Heading into the day, William Peace was winless against Southern Virginia in two tries since the Knights joined the USA South for the 2022 season. Neither team was willing to spot their opponent any easy goals as each conference matchup is crucial at this juncture of the season. After a back and forth first few minutes, it was the Pacers who took early control of the game. Two goals in just six seconds gave them a 2-0 lead, but the Knights showed no panic. Five different Knight scorers helped the team rattle off six consecutive goals before taking a 6-3 lead into the second quarter.
William Peace fought back with four consecutive goals of their own to retake the lead, holding Southern Virginia scoreless in the second quarter. The Knights' goalkeeper Jace Lightfoot produced 7 saves in the quarter and kept things tight heading into the half time break with the score tied, 6-6.
Much of the game was a seesaw battle, each team snatching momentum from the other to produce several goal streaks. In the second half, a quick turnover by Southern Virginia would allow William Peace to retake the lead at 7-6, but it was short lived. Davis Grant and Peyton Merwin would lead the charge for the Knights by combining for an extra man advantage goal, Merwin would then pot his 3rd goal of the game which spurred the Knights to a 10-7 lead heading into the final quarter.
The Pacers scored first in the fourth quarter to make it interesting, but the Knights kept their foot on the gas to blow the game open for good. Southern Virginia's leading scorer, Clay Haacke, got rolling and scored 4 goals in the quarter while Michael Brown added to another solid defensive outing by scoring off of a turnover which he forced for his 5th goal of the year. Thanks to a feed from Tyson Mauri who had a career high of 8 assists, senior attacker Zak Sullivan put the finishing touches on a second half thrashing of the Pacers with his 4th goal of the contest and a 21-10 Southern Virginia lead. JT Cutrer and Porter Wells also chipped in offensively to give the Knights six multi-goal scorers on the day.
It was certainly a tale of two halves, proven by the team statistical categories for both sides. Shots ended up being 61-34 in favor of Southern Virginia as did ground balls with a count of 39-19, much of that damage being done in the fourth quarter. Wyatt Garrett, Michael Brown and their defensive mates did a lot of good holding off the Pacers attack in the second quarter when their own attack had trouble getting established. Garrett and Brown each picked up 5 ground balls by the end of play and Jayden Arnold once again cleaned up in faceoffs, winning 17 out of 21 attempted draws. Along with Bosten Schilleman, they combined to win 25 out of 33 faceoffs.
Southern Virginia looks to continue their winning ways by visiting Methodist University this Saturday, April 6th, at 1:00 PM in Fayetteville.
For the most up-to-date details and information on the team, follow @knight_mlax and visit knightathletics.com for live stats and streaming options.
