NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Bridgewater College men's lacrosse team opened their 2026 campaign with a thrilling 11-10 victory over Illinois Tech Friday afternoon. 

The Basics: 

Score: Bridgewater 11, Illinois Tech 10 

Records: Bridgewater (1-0), Illinois Tech (0-1) 

How it Happened 

• Bridgewater was slow to get their offense going in the first quarter. Ian Cook made his first save in the opening minute of the contest. Illinois Tech's Montgomery scored the first goal of the contest twenty seconds later. 

• Alex Garbarino took the first shot attempt of the game for the Eagles with 10:25 remaining in the first quarter. The shot was saved by the Scarlett Hawks' goalkeeper. 

• Montogomery scored his second goal of the game with 9:18 remaining in the quarter.  

• With 7:48 remaining in the quarter, Connor Warren found a cutting Ryan Linn to put the Eagles on the board. 

• The Hawks scored two unassisted goals over the remainder of the opening period to put distance between themselves and the Eagles. Illinois Tech scored twice more to begin the second half to put Bridgewater in a 6-1 hole. 

• Following the sixth goal of the afternoon for the Scarlett Hawks, Killian Krapfl sparked an 8-0 Bridgewater run. After winning the faceoff and collecting the ground ball, Krapfl rushed towards the goal and found the back of the net. 

• After eight minutes of scoreless lacrosse, freshman Tristan Lee notched the first goal of his collegiate career to spark an Eagles surge. Garbarino scored with 2:12 remaining in the half, assisted by Luke Wendler. Wendler scored the last goal of the half with 1:15 remaining from a Ryan Linn assist. 

• Both teams did not score for the first three and a half minutes of the second half. Tyler Pinto broke the scoring drought, ripping two goals over the next four minutes. The first was assisted by Wendler, and the second was assisted by Riley Stewart.  

• Jake Wagner scored with 6:29 remaining in the third quarter, assisted by Garbarino. After a nearly five-minute scoreless period, Wendler scored his second goal of the contest to give the Eagles a 9-6 advantage. 

• The Scarlett Hawks found their way past Ian Cook in the final minute of the third quarter to put a halt to the scorching Bridgewater offense. Illinois Tech scored three more to switch the momentum of the game. 

• Bridgewater, down one with six minutes remaining, mustered two more goals before the end of the contest to snatch the win. Isaac Beals, assisted by Garbarino, scored his first goal of the afternoon with 5:40 remaining to tie. With 3:46 remaining in the contest, the Eagles were granted a man-up opportunity after Illinois Tech received a green card. Wendler found an open Tristan Lee for the game winning goal. 

• The Scarlett Hawks came close to scoring in the closing minutes, but Cook was able to stop both opportunities. 

Game Notes 

• Luke Wendler, Tyler Pinto, and Tristan Lee recorded two goals apiece. 

• Wendler was the top scorer for the Eagles. Wendler recorded five points from two goals and a team-high three assists.  

• Tristan Lee and Connor Warren scored the first goals of their collegiate careers. 

• Despite the polarizing scoring differentials in the first half, both teams were nearly even in the shots column. Bridgewater had a 21-19 advantage in the shots category in the first half.  

• Colin Chizmar recorded a career-high three caused turnovers. 

• Killian Krapfl had the most reps in the faceoff circle for Bridgewater. Out of 17 reps, Krapfl won eight.

What's Next? 

Bridgewater faces off against Piedmont tomorrow, Feb. 14 for their second and final match in the Music City Classic.