SALISBURY, N.C. – The Catawba Indians (4-4, 1-1 SAC) closed on a 5-0 run and scored the game-winning goal with 1:55 left in regulation to hand Lincoln Memorial (4-3, 0-1 SAC) a 13-12 loss in the South Atlantic Conference men's lacrosse opener on Saturday afternoon at Shuford Stadium.
 
In a match that mirrored the Railsplitters' 9-7 loss to Florida Southern, when they were outscored 4-1 in the fourth quarter, Lincoln Memorial held a 12-8 lead early in the fourth quarter but couldn't make it stand up. The Indians held the Railsplitters scoreless for the final 11 minutes to erase a four-goal deficit and send LMU home with its second straight loss.
 
Adam Golia (Victoria, British Columbia) and Kyle Arcuri (Patchogue, N.Y.) combined for nine goals and two assists, but didn't receive much support, as the rest of the team produced just two goals. Golia finished with five goals and an assist on seven shots and six shots on goal, while Arcuri had four goals and an assist on six shots on goal. Robert Tucker (Wantagh, N.Y.) was the only other LMU player with multiple points, finishing with a goal and an assist on a team-leading eight shots.
 
Lincoln Memorial goalie Joe Medel (Virginia Beach, Va.) had an uncharacteristically rough outing, allowing 13 goals while finishing with a season-worst .316 save percentage. On the other side, Catawba senior goalie Ryan Applegate earned his third career win against Lincoln Memorial by saving 16 of the 28 shots he faced.
 
Joe Barber led the Indians with three goals and an assist, while Cole Fanzo put up three goals on six shots and four shots on goal. Dalton Cook and Liam Lynch scored two goals apiece, while Colin Beecham tacked on a goal and an assist.
 
Tucker put the Railsplitters on the board and tallied the first goal of the match with 10:27 left in the opening quarter, but Catawba scored twice in a 15-second span to grab a 2-1 lead with just over eight minutes left in the quarter.
 
Lincoln Memorial ripped off three unanswered goals to assume a 4-2 lead on Arcuri's second goal of the match with 14:50 remaining in the second quarter and maintained that lead until Catawba scored three straight goals over a four-minute stretch to jump ahead 5-4 on Cook's marker with 4:37 left.
 
However, the Railsplitters scored three more times in the final three minutes of the half to carry a 7-5 lead into the break. Dylan Neisler (Detroit, Mich.) tallied a man-up goal to spark that rally, while Golia scored twice in the final 58 seconds, including one with two seconds left on the clock.
 
Catawba pulled within one on a goal by Barber 56 seconds into the third quarter, but another 3-0 LMU run increased the visitor's lead to 10-6 on two goals from Arcuri and another from Golia. Fanzo pitched in two goals to close the gap to 10-8, but Janson Brown (Greer, S.C.) scored with 3:50 left in the third and Golia added a man-up goal at the 11:28 mark of the fourth to give the Railsplitters a commanding 12-8 lead.
 
However, that would be the last time the Railsplitters would score, while Catawba finished with a 5-0 flurry to stun Lincoln Memorial. Reid Lichtenberger tallied the eventual game-winner on his only shot on goal of the match with 1:55 left to clinch the Indians' come-from-behind victory. Liam Lynch also scored twice during that rally, including the game-tying marker with 5:34 left.
 
Applegate made four of his 16 saves in the final 11 minutes of regulation, including one on a shot by Arcuri with 41 seconds left to preserve the win.
 
The Railsplitters return to action on Saturday, March 18 when they host Wingate in South Atlantic Conference action at 1 p.m. at the LMU Lacrosse Complex.