HARROGATE, Tenn. – The fifth-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (11-1, 7-0 SAC) scored five goals in the final seven minutes of the third quarter and surrendered just one fourth-quarter goal in a 12-7 win over the Railsplitters (7-6, 3-4 SAC) on Saturday afternoon in the LMU Lacrosse Complex finale. The loss snapped Lincoln Memorial's two-game winning streak and kept the Railsplitters in sixth place in the South Atlantic Conference standings, while Lenoir-Rhyne extended its winning streak to 11 games.

Despite the loss, Lincoln Memorial clinched the program's first-ever bid to the South Atlantic Conference Championship by virtue of Coker's 22-9 loss to Queens on Saturday. At worst, the Railsplitters will be the No. 6 seed for the SAC tournament, which begins on April 25. 
 
After being honored alongside classmate Chris Smith as part of the Senior Day festivities, goalie Joe Medel produced the most impressive performance of his career with a program-record 23 saves, which are the most by a SAC player this season. Medel was under siege from start to finish as the Bears outshot the Railsplitters in every quarter and finished with a 48-33 advantage for the match. L-R also had 35 shots on goal compared to only 19 for Lincoln Memorial.
 
Kyle Arcuri had a big day offensively, scoring five goals on eight shots to lead the Railsplitters, but he didn't receive much support. Billy Kopsky and Adam Golia chipped in a goal apiece on 10 combined shots, while Golia also contributed two assists. Jared Courchene and Bryan Halona had an assist apiece.
 
Lenoir-Rhyne was led by Ben Corrigan's four goals and one assist, while Eric Dickinson also scored four times on eight shots and six shots on goal. Mike Hanlon chipped in a goal and two assists, while Shane Gottberg had a goal and an assist. L-R goalie Ryan Crompton stopped 12 of the 19 shots on goal he faced to nab his 10th win of the season.
 
Gottberg also powered a strong effort for the Bears at the face-off x, where he finished 20-for-22 in the contest to help Lenoir-Rhyne dominate possession. Hanlon and Dickinson combined for 14 groundball recoveries, as the Bears accounted for a 40-26 edge in that department.
 
The Railsplitters went step-for-step with the Bears in the early going. Kopsky put Lincoln Memorial on the board first with a goal less than three minutes into the match, and the Railsplitters later grabbed a 2-1 lead on Golia's goal with 3:08 left in the opening quarter.
 
Dickinson scored the first of his four goals to tie the match with 1:55 left in the first quarter, but Arcuri answered and put the Railsplitters back in front just 16 seconds later.
 
Lenoir-Rhyne scored twice after that to take its first lead of the match at 4-3, but Arcuri scored again with 5:59 left in the second quarter to tie it up once more.
 
That score held until the Bears tallied a pair of goals seven seconds apart in the final minute of the half to carry a 6-4 lead into the break. 
 
The game wouldn't be tied again after that, but the Railsplitters pulled to within one on two different occasions early in the second half. Arcuri scored at the 11:23 mark of the third to make it a 6-5 game, and later closed the gap to 7-6 with a man-up goal with 7:28 left in that quarter.
 
However, the Bears put the game away by closing the third quarter on a 5-0 run. Dickinson and Corrigan scored twice over that span, and Will Remsen scored with a second left in the quarter to send Lenoir-Rhyne into the fourth with a commanding 12-6 lead.
 
Medel made eight of his 23 saves in the fourth quarter to keep Lenoir-Rhyne off the scoreboard, but the Railsplitters mustered just one goal and five shots over that same span. 
 
The Railsplitters close out the regular season with a trip to Hartsville, South Carolina to face the Coker Cobras at 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 22.