College Men’s Lacrosse Final – Guilford 9, Piedmont 4

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Connor Sweeney scored four goals and Zach Berkowitz added two as the Guilford College’s men’s lacrosse team topped The Piedmont College Lions, 9-4, in their season opener. The victory marked the first for Quakers’ rookie head coach Mark Crisco.

Guilford (1-0) quickly opened scoring in the first quarter. Goals by Sweeney, Joe Eggleston, Berkowitz, and Bryce Craig resulted in a 4-0 Guilford run to begin the game. Piedmont (1-1) got on the board with a Brady Jenks goal, but the home team responded with a man-up goal from Sweeney as the period expired for a 5-1 lead.

The teams traded second-period goals as the Quakers opened a comfortable 6-2 halftime advantage. Sweeney tallied a goal off an assist from his brother, Brennan, for the first strike of the second half. Berkowitz later scored off a Bryce Craig assist as Guilford increased its lead to six.

Connor Sweeney netted a man-down goal off a Cam Roberts assist for the first goal of the final quarter. The Lions closed the game’s scoring with Jenks’ second strike of the contest, along with a man-up score from Daniel Marshall.

Five different Quakers scored a goal in the victory. The Quakers outshot the Lions, 43-15, and held a 34-19 advantage in ground balls.

Guilford caused 17 of Piedmont’s 36 turnovers. Alex Ramey scooped two ground balls and caused four turnovers off the bench. Brennan Sweeney, Jake Dugal, and Tony Batchler caused two turnovers each. Connor Leamey picked up 10 ground balls in the game and won nine-of-12 face-offs.

Quakers’ goalie Jack Rogers earned his first win of the season with five saves on eight shots. Piedmont goalkeeper Zach Czulada (1-1) had 15 saves on 24 shots.

Crisco’s Quakers host crosstown-rival Greensboro College Wednesday (2/20) at 7:00 p.m.