WINGATE, N.C. -- The Railsplitters (7-4-3, 4-3-3 SAC) officially close out the regular season schedule Saturday afternoon, traveling to Wingate, N.C. for a South Atlantic Conference clash against the Bulldogs (10-3-1, 7-2-1 SAC). First kick between Lincoln Memorial and Wingate is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
 
The Bulldogs were ranked 18th nationally in the previous week's NSCAA Coaches Poll, but Anderson ended Wingate's streak of nine consecutive matches without a loss in an emphatic 3-0 romp last Saturday. Still yet, the Bulldogs are assured at worst the No.2 seed for next week's South Atlantic Conference Championship, while a win and a Mars Hill loss would propel Wingate to the regular season title. The Bulldogs dropped out of the NSCAA national poll, but they were the only SAC squad represented in the top eight of the initial NCAA Division II Southeast Region rankings, chiming in at No.5.
 
The Railsplitters are aiming for their first win over Wingate since the 2011 campaign, as the Bulldogs logged a 3-2 victory in 2012 and a 1-0 shutout win in 2013. Lincoln Memorial has only two triumphs in the eight head-to-head encounters with Wingate since the two programs first met in 2007.
 
The potent Bulldog offensive attack has accounted for 28 goals this season, ranking second in the South Atlantic Conference in that category despite accumulating the fourth-fewest shot attempts with 179 total. Every one of the Bulldogs' 28 goals has come via an assist, while Wingate has been issued 37 yellow cards as a team (tied with Newberry for the most in the SAC). Along with its 2.0 goals for average, Wingate is relinquishing only 0.97 goals per match. The Bulldogs have posted six clean slates this season.
 
Sophomore forward Charlie Machell leads Wingate and the entire South Atlantic Conference with 10 goals and 23 points, and he has compiled those numbers with 40 shots and 20 shots on frame. Junior Shaun Gadsby has added five goals and three assists, while Mateo Correa has pitched in four assists. Sophomore Aksel Juul has chipped in with a pair of goals and an assist on 23 shot attempts.
 
The Bulldogs feature senior goalkeeper Stephen Banick in net, as he has posted a miniscule 0.94 goals against average in 13 starts this season. Banick has allowed only 13 goals while racking up 38 saves in nearly 1,250 minutes.
 
The Railsplitters are returning to the pitch for the first time since Tuesday's nonconference tussle at Trevecca Nazarene was washed out in the 33rd minute. Lincoln Memorial is looking to bounce back from a disappointing 1-0 loss to Catawba in Salisbury, N.C. last Saturday, the program's first defeat at the hands of the Indians since the 2006 season.
 
Juniors Leonardo da Silva (Itajuba, Brazil) and Pedro Villa (New Braunfels, Texas) have accounted for 10 of the Railsplitters' 21 goals this season, but Villa hasn't scored since October 9 while da Silva's last goal was recorded on October 4. A separate source has been responsible for the last seven LMU goals as nine different players have put the ball past the goal line at least once during the 2013 campaign.
 
The Railsplitters enter Saturday's regular season finale sitting in sixth in the South Atlantic Conference standings.
 
First kick between Lincoln Memorial and Wingate is slated for 3:30 p.m. in Wingate, N.C. Live stats and a video broadcast will be available for that contest.

Live Stats
Video