The Auburn University club lacrosse team entered last weekend with a perfect 7-0 record and a grudge to settle with the Georgia Bulldogs.
After losing to UGA last year, the Tigers were looking for some much- needed revenge Saturday and a number one seed in the Southeastern Lacrosse Conference tournament.
The game started out well for Auburn, as it jumped out to a 1-0 lead early in the first quarter on a JJ Arminio goal.
The Tigers controlled the pace of the first half by winning five out of nine faceoffs.
Auburn's fortunes changed, however, as UGA came back to take a 5-2 lead into the half.
The game looked grim for Auburn, as it couldn't seem to put any offense together in the second quarter.
"We had a little trouble putting the ball in the net during the first half" said attackman Mike Hoffman.
The second half started off with a bang.
The Tigers rallied behind goaltender Alex Crawford, whose second half performance was nothing short of spectacular, and put in four goals to reclaim the lead at 6-5.
From that point on the game was extremely close. One team would take the one goal lead just to see it tied minutes later.
With a little more than a minute left to play, the game was tied at seven and Auburn had the ball.
Auburn moved the ball around the perimeter to set up its offensive play. Arminio had the best look at the goal and took full advantage of it.
With the score at 8-7, UGA went into panic mode. The panic perhaps was too much, as they turned the ball over.
Auburn cleared the ball to the attack and Arminio put the final nail in the Bulldogs' coffin with his fourth goal of the game.
"I was very proud of the way our team responded in the second half," said Auburn head coach Steven Stock.
The lacrosse team also traveled to Birmingham Sunday to face the University of Alabama.
After the huge victory over Georgia, Auburn was exhausted and complacent while playing the Crimson Tide.
The Tigers won the game 10-6. Arminio recorded a hat trick and Sean Butkis added two more goals to lead the team.
"We didn't play our best game, but it always feels good to beat Bama," Crawford said.
Auburn remains undefeated and is looking forward to the SELC tournament in Alpharetta, Ga., April 24-25.
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