GAFFNEY, S.C. – Using a 10-goal outburst in the second quarter Wednesday night, the nationally fourth-ranked Limestone University men's lacrosse team scored early and often for a season-high 25 goals en route to a 25-8 decision over visiting Mars Hill University in South Atlantic Conference play at Saints Field.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: No. 4 Limestone 25, Mars Hill 8
Records: No. 4 Limestone (9-1, 4-1), Mars Hill (4-7, 0-6)
Location: Saints Field
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
 

• Freshman Mike McGarry (Wilmington, Del.) led the offense with three goals and two assists
• Senior Dorian Faster (New Freedom, Pa.) dished out three assists to go with a score
• Freshman Austin Lamoureux (Ottawa, Ontario) finished with a hat trick and three groundballs
• Sophomore Chris Erneston IV (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) tallied two goals and an assist
• Junior Tom Szalkowski (Manorville, N.Y.) also chipped in a pair of scores and a helper
• Senior Gavin Kesselring (Atlanta, Ga.) buried two goals for the Blue and Gold
• Senior Owen Consoletti (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) also registered two scores for Limestone
• Senior Connor Hoch (York, Pa.) was one of seven Saints to record multiple scores with two
• Senior Michael Logan (Los Angeles, Calif.) went 10-of-15 at the "X" with a goal and an assist
• Sophomore Tim Ladner (Sandwich, Mass.) added 12 faceoff wins and eight groundballs
• Graduate defender Kendall Collins (Hurley, N.Y.) had four caused turnovers and a groundball
• Graduate keeper William Baxter (Manchester, England) logged five saves in 30 minutes of action
• Limestone finished with a sizable advantage in shots attempted, 63-30, and groundballs, 67-31
• The Saints were 2-for-2 on extra-man opportunities while holding the Lions to an 0-of-7 clip

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
First Quarter
 
Limestone got on the board quickly with an unassisted goal by Faster – his 14^th of the year – before Lamoureux finished off a feed from Szalkowski to make it a 2-0 game a moment later. On the ensuing faceoff, Logan snatched the win and took it himself for a tally with just five ticks melting off the clock.
 
The Lions scored two of the next three goals, bookending the second marker of the period by Lamoureux, but Szalkowski answered to ignite a 9-0 run. Sophomore Carter Brand (Ottawa, Ontario) would then close the scoring in the first with a man-up goal, assisted by Faster, to give Limestone a 6-2 edge through one.
 
Second Quarter
 
The Blue and Gold opened the flood gates in the second as three scores from McGarry fueled a 10-goal outburst in the quarter. He started the surge, finishing off an assist from Faster, less than a minute into the frame before adding a man-up goal with 6:04 remaining in the half to hand the Saints a 13-2 cushion.
 
In between his tallies, four different Limestone players split the cage as Erneston found the back of the net at the 12:01-mark before Consoletti followed with a score off an assist from Faster. Lamoureux then completed his hat trick just over 30 seconds later before Szalkowski buried his second goal of the night.
 
Mars Hill temporarily halted the momentum with 4:32 left in the quarter, but McGarry would answer on the other end with his third goal of the second period. Freshman Kyle Keesee (Manorville, N.Y.) then tallied his first career goal before Hoch fired his first score of the year past the MHU netminder, making it 16-3.  
 
Third Quarter
 
The visitors delivered the opening salvo in the second half, but the Saints would quickly put things well out of reach with six unanswered goals. Kesselring got the run started before junior Ethan Stannard (Caledon, Ontario) used some fancy stickwork, taking a rebound and scoring over his right shoulder. Hoch and Consoletti followed up with consecutive goals while McGarry assisted twice during the run.
 
Leading 20-4 early in the third, Logan won another faceoff and headed straight to the cage, but instead of firing off the shot, he found freshman Nate Senez (Efland, N.C.) on the wing for the goal. Erneston then added his second goal of the game late in the quarter as the Saints carried a 22-5 margin into the fourth.
 
Fourth Quarter
 
Limestone continued to widen the gap with two goals over the first five minutes of the fourth as junior Chris Haycock (Snoqualmie Pass, Wash.) and sophomore Michael Starbuck (Dallas, Pa.) both notched their first goals of the 2022 campaign. Freshman Will Rivera (Round Rock, Texas) then got in on the scoring with his first career goal, helping the Blue and Gold wrap up a dominant 25-8 win over the Lions.
 
TURNING POINT
 
Limestone took control with three scores over a 61-second span, and then used a 9-0 overall run that spanned the first and second quarters to pull away. The Saints put up a season-high 10 goals in one period, outpacing the Lions 10-1 in the second, for a 16-3 lead at the half and a 22-5 edge through three.
 
NOTABLES
 

• Limestone has combined for 47 goals over the past two games, outscoring its opponents 47-15
• The Blue and Gold registered its third 20-goal game of the season
• The Saints placed 16 different players in the scoring column Wednesday night
• Limestone improves to 17-0 all-time against the Mars Hill dating back to the 1999 season
• The Saints went 25-of-36 in the faceoff circle and registered double-digit shots in all four quarters

 
UP NEXT
 
Limestone will make its first trip to Newberry, S.C. this weekend to face 19^th-ranked Newberry College on Saturday, April 2, at 1 p.m. The Wolves shocked the Saints a year ago with a 13-7 decision.