LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Saturday afternoon's Bellarmine lacrosse game at Owsley B. Frazier stadium was not for the faint of heart.
 
Things were going well for the Knights as they held a 7-3 lead with under six minutes remaining in the first half. Their opponent, defending MAAC champion Marist, however, opted to make things interesting with a 7-1 run that lasted into the fourth quarter to give them a late two-goal lead. Undeterred, Bellarmine rallied right back with three straight goals over the final eight minutes for an 11-10 win.
 
"This was a gut check game for us and I'm not surprised that it came down to a defensive stand for us to pull out the win," said Bellarmine head coach Andy Whitley. "Marist will again compete for the MAAC championship so this game had a championship feel to it and I was extremely proud of our players and coaches. To come from behind in the fourth quarter is a credit to guys in our locker room."
 
Justin Wescoat, Benny O'Rourk and John Alie netted those three straight goals in the fourth quarter to help Bellarmine (3-3) back to .500. O'Rourk's score was the equalizer and extended his goal-scoring streak to 30 straight games.
 
The Red Foxes only got one shot off between their 10^th goal with 9:56 left and the final 80 seconds after Bellarmine had had their lead for four-and-a-half minutes. They unleashed four shots in the final 80 seconds, the last of which from Sean Mullan was saved by Bellarmine goalie JC Higginbotham with one second left to seal the win.
 
In addition to the thrilling final save, it was also another record-breaking day for Higginbotham.
 
With his save of Jake Deacy's shot with 1:47 left in the third, Higginbotham passed Knights legend Dillon Ward (576 saves) as the program's all-time saves leader. Higginbotham finished the afternoon with 19 saves, giving him 581 in his career. The 19 saves were the third-highest total of his career. Higginbotham earlier this year overtook Ward for the most goalie wins in program history.
 
"JC Higginbotham was terrific in goal and was the anchor to another very solid defensive effort," said Whitley. "Any time you pass Dillon Ward in the record books it is a pretty significant achievement. I couldn't be happier for him and it's awesome that he can be mentioned in the same breath as Dillon."
 
"His commitment and work ethic are unquestioned and it's awesome to see it validated by such a significant accomplishment," Whitley added.
 
Higginbotham was just one contributor on the Knights' defense, who has now held their opponents to 10-or-fewer goals for five straight games (3-2). Whitley credits Christopher Reynolds' performance against the Red Foxes' leading scorer as another key factor.
 
"Christopher Reynolds did a really nice job on Marist's Josh Balcarcel keeping him in check," said Whitley. "The ability to win that matchup went a long way to helping us win the game."
 
Early in the game, it was Christian Della Rocco making his presence felt at Frazier Stadium for the first time this season. He scored four goals and added an assist, all in the first half. He missed the first four games of the season with an injury, but returned and scored a goal earlier this week at Hampton.
 
"It was nice to have Christian Della Rocco back," said Whitley. "He is just such a talented player and works so well with Kyle [Playsted] and Benny and is able to make shots when we needed them. He also made an impact in the ride causing three turnovers. His ability to make savvy plays is definitely something we've been missing."
 
Alie was the only other multi-goal scorer for the Knights with two. He continues to lead the team and now has 16 on the season.
 
Denton Macdonald, Pat Anderson and Grant Guthrie also scored for Bellarmine. Anderson's and Guthrie's goals were their firsts of the season.
 
Kyle Playsted was held scoreless for the first time since the Knights' 16-12 loss to Mercer last March 29, ending a stretch of 13 straight games with a goal.
 
Marist (3-2) was led by midfielder Collin Patrick's five points on three goals and two assists.
 
"We'll definitely enjoy the win but we'll need to turn the page on Monday as we have an excellent squad in Marquette coming to town next week," Whitley concluded.
 
The Knights and Golden Eagles will face off in Frazier Stadium next Saturday at noon. Tickets will be available for $6 at the gate and ESPN+ will carry the live coverage.
 
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