McLean County Times

The Illinois Wesleyan University men's lacrosse team faced a narrow defeat against Sewanee: The University of the South Tigers, with a final score of 13-12. The match took place on Saturday, February 24, in Louisville, Kentucky. This result places the Titans at 0-2 for the season while Sewanee advances to 4-0.

Junior Sam Weinberg from Highwood, Illinois led his team with four goals. Seniors Ike Eastburn and Gage Black contributed two and three goals respectively. Black and sophomore Noah Dretzka both provided three assists each for their team. Sophomore Michael Rocco and senior Ethan Hart each collected five ground balls during the game. Junior goalkeeper Colin Tervo made 15 saves with a .536 save percentage.

The Titans started strong with seniors Jayden Erie and Eastburn scoring the first two goals, followed by another goal from Black within the first period's initial ten minutes. However, Sewanee managed to equalize at 3-3 before concluding the first period leading 7-5.

In the second period, playing a man up helped Weinberg lead a five-goal streak for Illinois Wesleyan with his hat trick along with contributions from Eastburn and Black, putting them ahead at 10-7.

During the third period, both teams exchanged goals keeping IWU slightly ahead at 11-10 thanks to freshman Timothy McHugh’s goal assisted by sophomore Andrew Ortega. However, Sewanee regained momentum in the final period securing their victory at 13-12.

Illinois Wesleyan will play their next game against Benedictine University inside Tucci Stadium on Wednesday, February 24th at 7 p.m.