Courtesy of Newberry College Athletics
NEWBERRY — The nationally 18th ranked Newberry College men’s lacrosse team and Head Coach Nick Cotter have released the team’s 14-game slate for the 2023 season as they look to continue climbing in the South Atlantic Conference rankings at the end of the year.
Prior to the regular season getting underway, the Wolves will have one neutral-site scrimmage against Embry-Riddle in Savannah, Ga. as a tune-up to prepare them for their first match of the year. The match will take place at Setzler Field on February 8 as they welcome in the Mountain Lions of Young Harris for a non-conference match-up. The Wolves hold a 1-0 advantage all-time against them, with a 15-3 win last year.
Newberry hits the road for a pair of matchups the next two weekend as they travel to Belmont, N.C. to take on Conference Carolinas power Belmont Abbey on February 11 before heading south to the Sunshine State to take on the Fighting Knights of Lynn University on February 18. This will be the first time the Wolves have played the Crusaders, who finished atop their league last year with a 10-5 overall record. Newberry holds a 1-0 record all-time against Lynn, however, turning in a tight 10-9 win over them just last season.
The Newberry faithful then welcome the Wolves back for three-game homestretch with Mount Olive (Feb. 23), Rollins (Feb. 26) and Lincoln Memorial (Mar. 3) all making the trip to the Palmetto State. The Wolves picked up a nail-biting win over Mount Olive last season on a goalie goal that secured their 13-12 win. The Wolves have never met Rollins on the field for a match-up, though the Tars were able to finish with a 12-3 mark last year. Though both young teams, the Wolves and Railsplitters have met four times with Newberry holding the 3-1 advantage overall, including a 16-6 win last year.
The Wolves go back and forth with road and home games over their next six contests with road matches featuring trips to take on Wingate (Mar. 11), Limestone (Mar. 18) and Mars Hill (Apr. 1) while they will welcome in the likes of Lenoir-Rhyne (Mar. 15), Anderson (Mar. 29) and Catawba (Apr. 8) to Setzler Field to round out the home slate. Wingate and Limestone were both just ranked in the top-10 of the USA Lacrosse Magazine preseason poll while Lenior-Rhyne was also ranked in the same poll.
Similar to Lincoln Memorial, the Wolves are 3-1 against the Lions of Mars Hill while their record against Catawba is a flipped script with the Indians controlling the 3-1 advantage, though the Wolves were able to pick up the 17-8 win last year. Newberry holds a perfect 2-0 record against the Trojans of Anderson, including a tight 14-13 win last season.
Newberry brings their regular season to a close with trips to Coker (Apr. 12) and Tusculum (Apr. 15) to end the season. The Wolves have three wins against each team all-time with the Cobras able to pick up one win against the Wolves in their history while the Pioneers were able to pick up a pair. However, the Wolves were able to take home wins against both squads in the 2022 campaign.
The South Atlantic Conference tournament will take place between April 25-30, with the quarterfinals taking place on campus sites before the semifinal and finals are played at the Sportsplex at Matthews in Matthews, N.C.
Newberry will look to start the season off strong at home when they host Young Harris on February 8 with a 7 p.m. face-off.