MARS HILL, N.C. – The Railsplitters (7-5, 3-3 SAC) closed on a 7-1 run and held Mars Hill scoreless for the final 21 minutes to defeat the Lions (3-6, 1-5 SAC) 11-4 in South Atlantic Conference men's lacrosse action on Sunday afternoon at Meares Stadium. The win moved Lincoln Memorial to 3-3 in SAC play and one game out of a tie for fifth place.
 
Junior Adam Golia led all players in the match with five points on four goals and one assist, breaking the program's single-season record for points and goals with that effort. The Victoria, British Columbia product, who was announced as a Male Athlete of the Year nominee for the second-annual Lincoln Awards earlier this week, is now ranked second in the SAC in goals with 34 and fourth in points with 43.
 
In addition to Golia, Kyle Arcuri and Robert Tucker finished with two goals and an assist apiece for the Railsplitters, while Billy Kopsky chipped in two goals, as Lincoln Memorial defeated Mars Hill for the first time in program history.
 
Senior Joe Medel was rock solid in goal for the Railsplitters, stopping nine of the 13 shots on goal he faced to post a 69.2 save percentage and nab his seventh win of the season. Medel's counterpart, Colton Smith, allowed 11 goals and made seven saves over 60 minutes of action.
 
Jake Trafon had a hand in three of Mars Hill's four goals, scoring two while assisting on another. Connor Fernandes and Nathan Stewart contributed the other two goals, as the Lions were outshot 33-27 in the contest. The Railsplitters mustered an 18-13 edge in shots on goal.
 
The Railsplitters led wire-to-wire, as goals from Kopsky and Golia staked the visitors to a 2-0 lead less than three minutes into the match. Stewart put the Lions on the board with 2:20 left in the first quarter, but another goal from Golia and Tucker's first goal of the match with 12:54 left in the second increased the LMU lead to 4-1. Mars Hill ended the half with a pair of goals from Trafon to close the deficit to 4-3 at the break.
 
However, the Railsplitters absolutely dominated the second half, outscoring the Lions 7-1 while holding the home team without a goal for the final 21 minutes. Mars Hill scored its only second-half goal on Fernandes' marker with six minutes remaining in the third, which cut the deficit to 6-4.
 
Lincoln Memorial scored four times in the final 3:46 of the third quarter to carry a 10-4 lead into the fourth, and Tucker punched the only fourth-quarter goal for either team in with 28 seconds left in regulation to cap the Railsplitters' 11-4 victory.
 
The Railsplitters won 10 of the match's 18 face-offs and scooped up 36 groundballs compared to only 25 for the Lions. Lincoln Memorial was also a nearly-perfect 20-for-22 on clears, while Mars Hill finished 17-for-20 in that department.
 
The Railsplitters outshot the Lions 12-6 in the third quarter, when they outscored the Lions 6-1 to build that insurmountable lead.
 
Lincoln Memorial closes out the home schedule on Saturday, April 15 when the league-leading Lenoir-Rhyne Bears come to town for a 1 p.m. SAC showdown.