CARY, N.C. – The Guilford College men's lacrosse team (0-3, 0-0 ODAC) erased most of an early deficit but came up just short in a 9-8 loss to William Peace University (3-0, 0-0 USA South) on Saturday evening at WakeMed Park.
 
WPU got on the attack early and often, firing 58 shots against the Quakers 31 including double the shots on frame, 32-16. The opposing teams split the faceoffs with 10 apiece but WPU was successful on all-11 clears while GC went 16-of-22.
 
Darius Safavi-Abbassi (Culver City, Calif.) single-handedly kept GC in the game with his performance in goal, making 23 saves against nine goals allowed for an astronomical .719 save rate, but unfortunately, he fell two stops short in the loss, falling to 0-3. Carson McGee made eight saves and allowed eight goals to claim the win and improve to 2-0.
 
Jason Campbell (Fairfax, Va.) led the GC offense with three goals in the game while Camo Campbell (Flowery Branch, Ga.) and Kenneth Crowley (Charlotte, N.C.) netted a pair apiece. Will Parham (Raleigh, N.C.) rounded out Quaker scorers while Brendon Bradford (King, N.C.) dished an assist.
 
William English scored thrice for the hosts while assisting on four others. Connor Barnes and Caleb Garey adding two goals each for William Peace.
 
The Pacers controlled the tempo in the first half, capitalizing on key possessions to build a lead heading into the break. Guilford's defense tightened as the game progressed, limiting quality looks and giving the offense a chance to chip away at the margin. Goalkeeping wise Darius Safafi-Abassi held his own, making save-after-save to buy time for the GC offense. After trailing by multiple goals, the Quakers found their rhythm in the second half with more efficient possessions and timely finishes around the crease.
 
Campbell led the offensive push with a multi-goal performance in the fourth, after Campbell and Crowley each lit sparks for the late surge. The Quakers stormed back getting within single tallies of the Pacers in the final quarter and had opportunities to tie in the closing minutes, but William Peace answered just enough to preserve the one-goal advantage.
 
Despite the loss, Guilford's build off their showing into Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) play at homes against Virginia Wesleyan University on March 3^rd  at 7:00 PM.
 
#GoQuakes