GATLINBURG, Tenn. -- A suffocating defensive performance was not enough as the Lincoln Memorial University men's lacrosse team dropped an 8-0 decision to the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (2-2, 2-0 SAC) in the South Atlantic Conference opener on Saturday afternoon at the Rocky Top Sports World in Gatlinburg, Tenn.
 
The Railsplitters (1-4, 0-1 SAC) hung right with the nation's eighth-highest scoring offense from start to finish, riding the back of a defensive unit that held Lenoir-Rhyne - previously ranked 15th in the USILA Coaches' Poll - nearly seven goals below its SAC-leading average (14.67). Unfortunately, the offense was never able to break through in support of its stingy defense.
 
It wasn't for lack of opportunity, though, as the Railsplitters registered 28 shot attempts and landed 13 on goal. By comparison, Lenoir-Rhyne posted 35 shot attempts with 17 shots on goal. The Railsplitters had seven man-up opportunities over the course of the game and came up empty on all seven tries.
 
The Bears struck four times over a seven-minute span in the opening period to build a commanding early lead. Mike Hanlon put the Bears on the board at the 6:46 mark, while Carson Sterling and Ned Kaish tallied man-up goals just over a minute apart. Ethan Tingler scored with 1:18 left in the period to make it a 4-0 game.
 
The Railsplitters only relinquished four goals the rest of the way. Hanlon tacked on his second goal of the afternoon with 10 seconds left in the first half, while Kaish scored twice early in the third period.
 
Lincoln Memorial completely shut out the Bears over the final 24 and a half minutes and limited Lenoir-Rhyne to a season-low eight goals in the contest. The Bears tallied 16 goals on Limestone, the No. 1 ranked team in the country, and accounted for 12 goals against 15th-ranked Florida Tech.
 
Dylan Neisler (Detroit, Mich.) paced the Railsplitters with seven shots, which matched L-R's Kaish for the game-high mark. Ronny Paulino (Copiague, N.Y.) accounted for six shots. Kyle Fleck (Toledo, Ohio) led the way with six ground balls, while Justin Stewart (Copiague, N.Y.) chipped in with four.
 
Josh Hernandez (Middletown, N.Y.) went 4-for-12 on face-offs and scooped up three ground balls.
 
L-R picked up 40 of the 66 total ground balls available. The Railsplitters went 10-for-18 on clearances, while the Bears went 17-for-25 in that department.
 
Joe Medel (Virginia Beach, Va.) spent 59:15 of the 60 minutes in net for the Railsplitters, making nine saves and allowing all eight goals over that span.
 
The Railsplitters make the long trek to Hartsville, S.C. on Saturday, March 7 for a South Atlantic Conference match against the Coker Cobras. That match gets underway at 3 p.m.