By J.T. Mitchell
Staff Writer
This past weekend, Sewanee men’s lacrosse went 2-0 in the team’s first home games of the 2018 season. The Tigers beat Guilford College 10-6 in Saturday’s home opener before barely ousting Southwestern University 9-8 in an overtime thriller on Sunday.
Sewanee was handling Guilford with ease, carrying a comfortable 9-3 lead into the fourth quarter before the Quakers’ highly-touted freshman George Faller impressively put together a hat trick within a span of 77 seconds to cut the Tigers’ lead to 9-6.
The Tigers’ defense stepped up big to bring a halt to the Quakers’ attempt at a comeback, squeezing out a 10-6 victory. Offensively, the Tigers were led by attackman Hayden Hunt (C’19) and midfielder Thomas Lynde (C’19), who combined for six goals.
After a quick turnaround, Sewanee was back in action on Sunday afternoon at the historic Hardee-McGee field where they faced Southwestern. The team came out flat, allowing the Pirates to jump out to an early 2-0 lead.
Midfielder Mitchell Ryan (C’21) and Hunt immediately answered for the Tigers with back-to-back goals to tie the game at 2-2. The score would stay close for the remainder of the day, with a total of six ties throughout the game.
It looked as if the defending conference champions were going to squeeze out an 8-6 win before Southwestern hit two late fourth-quarter goals to send the contest into overtime. Jimmy Parker (C’18) would be the hero of the day, hitting the game-winning goal with 1:10 remaining.
Three players ended with two goals apiece to lead the Tigers on offense: Hunt, Lynde, and attackman Daniel Burnum (C’21).
“It was hard, mentally and physically, for the team to have two games in a row without a day break,” midfielder Ryan Stubits (C’19) said. “But everyone gave it their all, and we came out on top.”
It was indeed a long, tough weekend for Stubits and the rest of the Tigers, but there will be plenty of time for rest before the team’s next game at #18 Roanoke on February 24. Sitting at a 2-1 overall record, a top-25 win could move the team back into the national rankings.