Athens, TN – The third-ranked UC men's lacrosse team had nine different players net at least one goal, while Nick DiFranco and Bryan Morgan combined for ten caused turnovers to lead the Patriots to a 13-5 win over Tennessee Wesleyan Tuesday afternoon.  With the win the Patriots improve to 8-3 overall and 4-0 in AAC play, while the Bulldogs move to 3-6 overall and 1-3 in conference play.

The Patriots came out strong as Will Settle saved an Ian Gonzalez shot and on the ensuing possession Justin Darley put a well-placed shot into the cage for a goal to give UC a 1-0 lead.  Dylan Crouch and Dalton Smith added back-to-back goals to extend UC's lead to 3-0 with 5:24 remaining.  Jake Mitchell scooped the ground ball on the ensuing faceoff and on Cumberlands possession Preston Brooks found Davis Brown in front of the cage for his first collegiate goal. UC extended their lead to 6-0 after the opening period with goals from Caleb Elerick and Whitten McCune.

The defensive intensity picked up in the second quarter as UC forced seven turnovers, while Settle made four of his seven saves in the period.  The Bulldogs got on the board four minutes into the period to cut the lead to 6-1.  The score remained that way until the 32 second mark when Henry Quaye made a juke move and fired a shot just under the crossbar to extend UC's lead to 7-1 at halftime. 

Cumberlands' strong play continued in the second half as DiFranco force a Bulldogs turnover and on the next possession Crouch connected with Darley for a goal to extend the lead to 8-1.  Less than a minute later, Crouch connected with Jake Mitchell for a goal.  Anthony Gray, Crouch and Quaye each added a goal to give the Patriots a 12-2 lead after three quarters. 

Tennessee Wesleyan outscored the Patriots 3-1 in fourth quarter for the 13-5 final. 

Crouch led the way for Cumberlands with a pair of goals and three assists, while Darley chipped in four points.  Kody Swann went 12-19 on faceoffs with six ground balls, while Mitchell and Devon McMillin scooped six ground balls apiece.

The Patriots return to the field Saturday, March 30, when the host AAC rival Montreat in their home finale and looking to clinch their first AAC regular season championship.  The game is slated for 3 p.m. with live video available here.

For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter - @UC_Patriots, Instagram - @UCPatriots, SnapChat - @UC_Patriots, YouTube – Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.