HARTSVILLE, S.C. – The nationally 20^th-ranked Limestone University men's lacrosse team had three different players finish with at least three goals on the day to help the program close out its inaugural regular season in the South Atlantic Conference with a 21-11 road win at Coker University on Saturday.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: No. 20 Limestone 21, Coker 11
Records: No. 20 Limestone (8-3, 7-3), Coker (4-7, 2-6)
Location: Coker Athletic Field
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
 

• Freshman attack Frank Smith (Bayville, N.Y.) registered four goals and two assists
• Junior attack Owen Consoletti (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) finished with four scores
• Freshman Chris Erneston IV (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) added three goals and an assist
• Junior Trent Kellner (Port Coquitlam, British Columbia) chipped in a pair of goals
• Sophomore Ethan Stannard (Caledon, Ontario) tallied a goal and two assists
• Junior midfielder Connor Grauer (Riverhead, N.Y.) also recorded a goal and two assists
• Senior Christopher Parrott (Havre de Grace, Md.) went 12-of-16 at the "X" with eight groundballs
• Senior Dakota Kirsch-Downs (Odenton, Md.) finished 9-of-12 at the faceoff with eight groundballs
• Graduate keeper William Baxter (Manchester, England) picked up 10 saves in over 40 minutes
• Coker outshot the Saints 42-40, but Limestone finished with a 36-24 edge in groundballs
• Limestone went a perfect 4-of-4 on extra-man opportunities

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
First Quarter
 
A pair of early turnovers from Limestone allowed the Cobras to take a 1-0 lead at the 12:25-mark of the first quarter, but the Saints responded with back-to-back scores over a 24-second span. Erneston and Kellner each split the cage during the spurt before Grauer pushed the margin to 3-1 with 10 minutes left.
 
Coker snapped the 3-0 run by the visitors with a goal on the other end, but the Blue and Gold doubled up the home team, 4-2, a few ticks later as Smith finished off a feed from Stannard. Kellner would then add his second goal of the period, but the Cobras would keep things close with a goal off a rebounded shot.
 
However, Limestone began to create some separation down the stretch in the opening period as Smith set up Consoletti for a goal before Stannard scored in transition to make it a 7-3 game at the end of one.
 
Second Quarter
 
As they have all year, the Saints capitalized on an extra-man opportunity a few ticks into the second as senior Gavin Kesselring (Atlanta, Ga.) planted a man-up goal off a dish from Stannard. Limestone would continue to pad the lead over the next five minutes, burying five goals to pull ahead, 12-3, with 10:04 left.
 
Freshman Davis Weakley (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) found the back of the net followed by a score from sophomore Jackson Braswell (Greenville, S.C.). Consoletti then tallied consecutive goals, including a man-up score, before Smith and Erneston added two more extra-man goals late in the period. Smith and Consoletti would hook up once more in the closing minutes to put the Saints up 15-3 at the intermission.
 
Third Quarter
 
Coker snapped Limestone's 10-0 run with a tally early in the second half, but the momentum was short-lived as Smith registered a hat trick off an assist from Grauer to make it 16-4. Senior Mike Carpenter (Queensbury, N.Y.) then chipped in his 10^th goal of the year before Smith scored his fourth of the day.
 
The Saints continued to pile it on midway through the third quarter as Erneston picked up his first career hat trick, expanding the margin to 19-4 with 7:51 remaining. In the final minutes of the period, Braswell fired his second goal of the afternoon as Limestone took a comfortable 20-5 advantage into the fourth.  
 
Fourth Quarter
 
Although the Saints had the game well in hand, the Cobras fought back with five unanswered goals in the final quarter to cut the lead in half, 20-10, with 4:31 remaining. Coker closed to within nine, but a score from junior Tom Szalkowski (Manorville, N.Y.) would seal the 21-11 road decision for the Blue and Gold.  
 
TURNING POINT
 
Coker kept the game close late in the first quarter, but the Saints would rattle off 10 straight goals over the next 15 minutes to open a commanding 15-3 lead at the break. Limestone would build up a 20-4 advantage in the late stages of the third before eventually sealing the 10-goal decision over the Cobras.
 
NOTABLES
 

• Saturday's meeting was only the third time Limestone and Coker have played
• It was the first time they played since 2013 when the Cobras were in Conference Carolinas
• Limestone improves to 21-for-38 (.553) in extra-man opportunities on the season
• Consoletti has scored four or more goals in five games this season
• Smith has combined for nine goals and two assists over the past two games
• Junior keeper Shawn Howell ( Mattituck, N.Y.) added six saves in over 12 minutes in cage
• Freshman Jason Madden (Walnut Creek, Calif.) dished out an assist for the Saints

 
UP NEXT
 
Limestone finishes the regular season against an old rival when it hosts 13^th-ranked Belmont Abbey College on Saturday, April 17 at Saints Field. Game time is set for 7 p.m.