Cobras Grind out Win over Mars Hill on the Road on Saturday

MARS HILL, N.C. - Coker University men's lacrosse was able to grind out a South Atlantic Conference win over Mars Hill on the road on Saturday (Apr. 2) by a score of 13-11.

The Cobras trailed 5-1 after the first quarter, as Justin Beighey scored from Corey Gales for Coker in the period. After Mars Hill scored the first goal of the second, Beighey scored from Cal Gibson two and a half minutes into the period. The Lions would score back-to-back goals to stretch their lead, before Beighey completed the hat trick with an unassisted marker with just over four minutes to play in the frame. Gibson scored from Sean Moran with 1:23 to play in the quarter as Coker trailed 8-4 at the half.

The Cobras clamped down defensively in the third quarter, keeping the Lions off the scoreboard while scoring three goals to get back within one headed to the fourth. Moran scored from Zyaire Marshall just over five minutes into the period, before Will Habel scored from Moran less than a minute later. The final goal of the period for Coker came with under five minutes to play in the frame as Beighey scored a man-up goal off an assist from Marshall.

Mars Hill scored the first goal of the fourth quarter, before Coker went on a four-goal run to eventually take an 11-9 lead with nine minutes to play. Kristian Johnson scored from Marshall three and a half minutes into the period, before Gales scored unassisted less than a minute later. Habel scored from Moran again just over a minute later, before Beighey scored unassisted on the man advantage 48 seconds later. After a Mars Hill goal made it a one-goal game yet again, Marshall scored on the man advantage from Moran before Habel netted an insurance marker off a Gibson assist with under three minutes to play. Mars Hill would score their final goal with a minute to play, before the Cobras would hang on for the win.

Beighey led the Cobras with five goals in the game, while Habel also recorded a hat trick in the win. Five others each recorded one goal in the game. Moran dished out a team-high four assists, while Marshall tallied three and Gibson had two. Gales also helped on one Coker goal in the game. Nathan Allan scooped up a team-high 12 ground balls in the game, while 12 others collected ground balls in the game. Ryan Bass caused two turnovers in the game, while Moran also forced one turnover in the game. Ethan Hofert made 11 saves in the victory.

The Cobras return to action next Saturday (Apr. 9) at Tusculum in South Atlantic Conference action. Opening faceoff is set for 4:00 p.m. from Greeneville, Tenn., with video and live stats available at www.cokercobras.com.