The Georgia men’s and women’s lacrosse teams were in action in Athens on Saturday, and each set of Bulldogs hosted its Central Florida counterparts for the season’s final home game at the Club Sports Complex. The Red and Black split the male/female doubleheader, falling in the morning contest before exacting revenge in the afternoon.
The day got underway at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, when the eighth-ranked Red and Black ladies came up short in a back-and-forth battle with the 15th-ranked Knights. Georgia took the early 1-0 lead on a goal by freshman attacker Jenna Dreyer, and Dreyer notched her second score of the morning after UCF tied the game. The visitors snarled the score again, then went out in front, 3-2, before sophomore attacker Murphy Ferguson found the back of the net with 17 seconds left in the half to forge a 3-3 deadlock at intermission.
The Athenians won the draw to start the second half, and Ferguson’s second score staked Georgia to a 4-3 advantage. The Knights forced another tie, then freshman midfielder Katie Ezell made it 5-4 for the Red and Black. Once more Central Florida knotted the score before Ferguson’s third goal of the day moved the Bulldogs out in front by a 6-5 margin. UCF scored with ten minutes remaining to tie the game again, but Ferguson’s fourth successful shot put Georgia up, 7-6. Unfortunately, the Knights scored twice in the final six minutes to give the visitors an 8-7 victory.
At 12:30 p.m. Eastern, the No. 23 Georgia gentlemen took on the Knight guys. While the Red and Black ladies relied on underclasswomen in the morning match, the Bulldog men were led by fourth-year collegians in their Senior Day showdown with Central Florida, as two seniors, goalie Conor Busby and midfielder (and team captain) Moore Hamilton, led the way in a 15-8 victory for the Athenians.
Saturday’s triumph was the tenth of the season for the Georgia men’s lacrosse team, which leads the SELC Southwest and has a Wednesday evening date with SELC Northeast frontrunner Clemson by the shores of Lake Hartwell before wrapping up the regular season against division rival Georgia Tech at Milton High School on April 14, two weeks prior to the start of the SELC Championships.
Go ‘Dawgs!