WINGATE, N.C.--The Trojans traveled to face the Bulldogs on Wednesday evening for the Men's Lacrosse South Atlantic Conference Semifinals. No. 4 Wingate, who won the regular season to earn the 1-seed and first-round bye in the tournament, hosted Anderson, currently No. 9 in the national poll and the 5-seed.
Despite hopes to avenge the one-goal loss Anderson suffered at the hands of Wingate during the regular season, AU fell short on the evening, 18-13, ending their SAC Championships run.
Radyn Badraun (Mission Viejo, Calif.) picked up the first two goals of the night to give AU a 2-0 lead, before the Bulldogs tallied four of their own to overtake the lead. Badraun scored a third, followed by goals from Matthew Rodgers (Carmel, Ind.), Cole Sparks (West Islip, N.Y.) and Ryan Bitterman (Alpharetta, Ga.) all within the opening quarter. The score favored the host team 7-6 after Q1.
The second quarter saw Wingate add three more goals and shutout the Trojans to take a 10-6 advantage into the break.
The Bulldogs opened Q3 with three more to go up 13-6, before the Black and Gold regained an offensive rhythm. Brodie Deutsch (Wilmington, N.C.) and Brayden Bushnoe (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) added their names to the scoresheet as the third quarter ended with a 4-4 scoreline. The game was 14-10 entering the final period.
Anderson took advantage of the Bulldogs drawing a non-releasable penalty in the fourth quarter for several man-up goals, but their efforts ultimately weren't enough to overcome the deficit. Wingate claimed an 18-13 victory to advance to the SAC Championship.
