via press release – photo via Rollins web site   SAVANNAH, Ga.  (February 18, 2017) – The 20^th-ranked Rollins men’s lacrosse team gave the 14^th-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne University Bears a run for their money, but were unable to topple their first nationally ranked opponent of the season, falling by a final score of 14-12 on Saturday evening at Optimist Field in Savannah, Ga.  The loss marks the first of the season for the Tars, dropping them to an overall record of 2-1 on the young season, while Lenoir-Rhyne wins their first of their 2017 campaign and advances to 1-1. Leading the way on the evening was senior Jack Vonarb, with a team high three goals and four points as he added an assist to his stat line.  Justin Diamond and Carson Buell netted two goals apiece, while Greg Taicher, Eric NeCamp, and Connor Ashton matched them in points with a goal and assist apiece.  Dalton LeMaster and Dylan Bassham rounded out the Tars’ scoring efforts on the day with one goal each. Joe Buduo led the game in points, notching a hat trick and two assists for a five-point outing, followed by Mike Hanlon with two goals and two assists.  Will Remsen and Eric Dickinson tallied three goals each, while Ryan Bell and Ben Corrigan notched one goal and one assist apiece.  Quinn Kuhn scored one goal of his own, while Anthony Fraga led the team in assists with three.  Also earning assists on the day were Hunter Surface and Brian Nelsen. In goal for the Tars, Jake Hogan saw a full 60 minutes of action between the pipes.  Hogan faced 35 shots from the Bears, earning 10 saves, including five in the third quarter.  Ryan Crompton earned the start in goal for the Bears, but was relieved after 13 minutes of play by Damon Cummins, who closed out the contest.  Crompton made one save while allowing five goals, while Cummins earned 19 saves while allowing seven goals on the night. STAT STANDOUTS Rollins

##	Player	Goals	Assists	Shots	GB	TO	CT	Faceoffs	Penalties
00	Trey LaPorta	0	0	0	2	1	0	12-20	–
5	Jack Vonarb	3	1	10	4	3	1	0-0	–
10	Greg Taicher	1	1	12	3	0	2	0-1	–
8	Carson Buell	2	0	8	1	2	0	0-0	–
18	Eric NeCamp	1	1	2	2	0	0	0-0	–
26	Roy Hansen	0	0	0	1	2	2	0-0	–

Lenoir-Rhyne

##	Player	Goals	Assists	Shots	GB	TO	CT	Faceoffs	Penalties
28	Will Remsen	3	0	5	0	0	0	0-0	–
31	Mike Hanlon	2	2	7	2	4	0	0-0	1-0:30
42	Eric Dickinson	3	0	6	1	1	0	0-0	2-1:30
4	Joe Buduo	3	2	4	3	1	0	0-0	–
15	Collin Lett	0	0	0	4	0	1	4-7	1-1:00
20	Shane Gottberg	0	0	0	4	0	0	10-21	–
5	Anthony Fraga	0	3	1	0	1	0	0-0	–

HIGHLIGHTS AND QUARTER-BY-QUARTER ANALYSIS First Quarter l Lenoir-Rhyne opened up the game jumping out to a three goal lead with 9:51 to play in the period, but the Tars closed out the quarter with five unanswered goals to hold a 5-3 lead after the initial 15 minutes. Second Quarter l The Bears opened up the second quarter much like the first with three unanswered goals, pulling ahead to a 6-5 lead with 10:53 to play before the half.  Diamond broke the run with an unassisted man-up goal at the 8:10 mark, evening the score at 6-6, but two straight from the Bears saw them pull out to a two goal advantage with 4:45 left in the quarter.  LeMaster pulled the Tars back to within one with 3:17 on the clock thanks to an assist by NeCamp, setting the score at 8-7 at the break. Third Quarter l The third stanza saw the Bears outscore the Tars, 3-2, to enter into the final period with an 11-9 lead. Fourth Quarter l Lenoir-Rhyne netted three straight to extend their lead to five, 14-9, with 11:32 on the clock, but the Tars were not about to back down.  Rollins rattled off three straight to pull to within two, 14-12, with 2:10 to play.  Despite the Tars’ best efforts with six shots throughout the final minutes of action, Rollins was unable to place a shot in the back of the net. GAME NOTES

• The Tars matched up with their first nationally-ranked opponent of the season.
• Rollins has now opened up their last four seasons with a record of 2-1, winning their first two before falling in their third contest of the season.
• The showdown with Lenoir-Rhyne marked the fourth time in program history the Tars have matched up against the Bears. Lenoir-Rhyne leads the all-time series 4-0.
• It was a physical contest with Lenoir-Rhyne picking up 11 penalties for a total of 9:30 minutes, and Rollins getting called for six penalties for six total minutes.
• Head Coach Chris Lewis is in his second season as Head Coach of the men’s lacrosse team coming of the most successful season in the Program’s history. In his first official season as head coach, Lewis compiled a record of 10-6.

NEXT UP FOR THE TARS Rollins returns to action on Sunday, February 26, when they travel to Indianapolis, Ind. to take on the UIndy Greyhounds.  Game time is set for 11 a.m. (EST).  Links to live coverage will be available on RollinsSports.com. For the latest news, updates, and information on the Rollins men’s lacrosse team, fans can visit RollinsSports.com.  Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest #TARnation news by following Rollins Sports on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.