Lexington, Ky. – The Transylvania men's lacrosse team opened conference play against the Illinois Wesleyan University Titans at Pat Deacon Stadium on Saturday. In a cold afternoon the Titans prevailed after a spirited battle where momentum swung back and forth dramatically.

Illinois Wesleyan won the opening draw and went right down the field to score in just 8 seconds. On the very next possession, Dalton Hubbs scored to even up the contest. Andrew Hamill snuck one into the corner to put the Pioneers up 2-1 at the 12:44 mark, but the Titans scored two in less than two minutes to go ahead. Will Warner tied the game on an unassisted strike, but Illinois Wesleyan went right back ahead one minute later.

Goals from Kayd Aquino and Hamill to close out the quarter gave the Pioneers a 5-4 lead, and just 45 seconds into the second, Quinn Fox tucked one in. The Titans fought back to tie the game at 6, but Bryce Lowe took a pass from Hamill and buried it, and Fox backed it up with another, putting Transy back up 8-6. Illinois Wesleyan answered again, but from there the Pioneers started to break the back and forth scoring cycle. 

A player-up tally from Warner, and another Hubbs goal put Transy up 10-7. Just six seconds later the Titans answered, but Hubbs sent a sizzling shot to the back of the net at the 2:42 mark, and Warner scored an insane behind the back goal after that, putting the Pioneers up 12-8 at the half.

Illinois Wesleyan opened the scoring of the second half, with two tallies in under a minute. From there the Titans and Pioneers pushed the tempo going back and forth, but both goalies were dialed in. Finally, Fox broke the deadlock on a slick feed from Hubbs and shortly after had an ankle-breaking wrap around goal to put Transy ahead 14-10. The senior then buried his fifth of the afternoon on a wicked bouncing shot, to give the Pioneers a 5-goal lead. The surge prompted a timeout from the Titans.

In the closing minutes of the quarter, Illinois Wesleyan kept Transy off the board and scored twice, making it 15-12, and continued to push in the final minute, but Connor Haney came up big in goal to protect the lead. At the end of the third, both teams had 25 shots apiece, Haney with 13 saves.

Going into the fourth of the intense and chippy game, the Pioneers roared back with another signature Hubbs snipe, just 21 seconds into the quarter. After several scoreless minutes, the Titans went on a quick run and suddenly the score was 16-15 in favor of Transylvania, with 9:06 left.  

As the fourth wore down, the Titans kept pushing to find the tying goal, but Transylvania clung to the lead with stop after stop. Finally, Aquino scored just 1:08 on the clock, giving Transy a two-goal lead. However, Illinois Wesleyan scored with 35 seconds left, and won the draw forcing Transy to get one more stop. Haney made a huge save on a bouncing shot with 8 seconds left, but the Titans kept possession and scored with just 3 seconds on the clock to force overtime.

In the bonus period Warner nearly won it for Transy with a long-distance shot, but the Titans goalie came up with a critical save. Illinois Wesleyan ended up finding the winning goal shortly after, taking the game 18-17.

The Pioneers are back in action against Centre College at Pat Deacon Stadium on Wednesday, March 30, with a 7:00 PM scheduled start.

For more information on Transylvania men's lacrosse, follow @Transy_Lax on Twitter