Third-seeded Mount Olive and No. 4 seed Barton advanced to the semifinals of the 2023 Conference Carolinas Men’s Lacrosse Championship with quarterfinal victories on Monday.
In the first quarterfinal in Mount Olive, North Carolina at the Ray McDonald Sr. Sports Complex, the third-ranked Trojans defeated sixth-seeded Emmanuel, 22-4, to secure a spot in Thursday’s semifinals. The Lions (2-13) got off to a quick start as they scored the first goal of the game at the 11 minute mark. John Allen fed Devon Roberts for the tally. The Trojans (7-7) answered as Aidan LaLonde tied the game just over two minutes later and assisted on another. UMO closed the opening quarter with a 3-1 lead. After Emmauel opened the second stanza with a tally, the home team scored 16 straight goals for a 19-2 lead with 3:22 left. The Lions added two more goals in the late going, but it wasn’t enough to upset the Trojans. Mount Olive put 41 of their 69 shots on goal while Emmanuel had 15 shots on net and 27 total. Benjamin Vanderkley paced the Trojans offense with five goals and one assist while Mike Marto added a goal and won 15-of-18 faceoffs.
In Wilson, North Carolina at Electric Company Field at Truist Stadium, it was fourth-seeded Barton who advanced via a 19-10 win over fifth-seeded Chowan. The contest was close at the half with Barton holding a slim 10-8 margin, but the Bulldogs used a 9-2 second half to pull away. Chowan tallied the first two goals and led 3-1 five minutes into the game, but Barton scored four of the next five to take a 5-4 lead. Erik Dozzi then put the Hawks ahead with two goals in the final 3:36 of the quarter for a 6-5 advantage. Five consecutive goals for the Bulldogs made it a 10-6 game before a pair of late man-up goals for Chowan made it a two goal game at the half. The home team scored the first five goals of the second half and had a 6-1 third quarter to put the game out of reach. Mason Chaney led all players with nine points for Barton on six goals and three assists while Eric George paced Chowan with five points on four goals and an assist. Barton finished with 39-of-59 shots on goal while Chowan put 19-of-21 shots on frame.
Barton will move on to face top-seed Belmont Abbey in the semifinals on Thursday, April 27 at 4 p.m. at Ray McDonald Sr. Sports Complex in Mount Olive, North Carolina. Mount Olive, the tournament host, will face second-seed North Greenville in the second semifinal at 7 p.m. Both games are a rematch of the 2022 championship semifinals. The championship final will be held at Mount Olive on Saturday, April 29 at 1 p.m.
