The Belmont Abbey men's lacrosse team rallied erased an 8-2 deficit by scoring three unanswered goals, but Wingate was able to withstand the rally and earn a 12-9 win this afternoon at Irwin Belk Stadium. The host Bulldogs bolted to a 7-1 advantage after one quarter and withstood a furious Crusader rally. Wingate is 2-4 overall, while Belmont Abbey falls to 1-2 overall.

Wingate started hot, as the Deep South Conference member Bulldogs took a 5-0 lead on David Lee's second goal at the 4:16 mark of the opening frame. Wingate sophomore midfield Bryan Bayliss assisted Lee on the play.

Belmont Abbey junior midfielder Nick Boylan put the visiting Crusaders on the board with 3:15 to go in the first quarter, converting an assist from freshman midfielder Dan Morrissey Boylan had the Bulldogs' number Saturday, tallying a team-high four goals.

The Bulldogs responded, finishing the first stanza with goals by redshirt sophomore midfielder Travis Barrett and Lee. Mutton assisted on Barrett's man-up goal, while freshman midfielder Andy Olson provided the helper on Lee's third goal of the quarter.

The Crusaders started their rally in the second quarter, scoring three unanswered goals to cut an 8-2 deficit to an 8-5 margin on a goal by senior midfielder Miles Elliott at the 4:05 mark. Wingate freshman midfielder Derek Watts closed out the second quarter scoring with 71 seconds left, giving the Bulldogs a 9-5 lead at intermission.

Wingate nudged its lead to 11-6 in the third quarter, but Belmont Abbey made its move, scoring the first three goals of the wild-and-wonderful fourth quarter. Boylan completed the 3-0 mini-run with back-to-back scores to pull the visitors within 11-9. Morrissey gave the assist on Boylan's second fourth-quarter tally with 6:19 to play in the contest.

Lee closed out the scoring with an unassisted score at the 4:48 mark.

Belmont Abbey pelted the Wingate goal with 58 shots, posting a 19-2 advantage in the fourth quarter. By contrast, the host Bulldogs had 28 shots. The Crusaders could convert only one of six extra-man opportunities. Belmont Abbey had four EMO chances in the final frame. Wingate was four-of-11 on EMO plays. The Bulldogs made 35 turnovers, compared to 19 for the Crusaders.