Flagler erased a three-goal halftime deficit and outscored Montevallo 8-3 in the second half to claim a 14-12 victory in the Peach Belt Conference Men’s Lacrosse Championship on Sunday in Montevallo, Alabama. The Saints claim their first PBC Men's Lacrosse Tournament title, and will receive the PBC's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. 

Montevallo controlled much of the first half and built a 9-6 lead by halftime. The hosts scored five times in the first quarter and got early production from Samuel Martin, Aidan Collery, Lucas Mullen and Matthew Boas. John Morris tied the game 1-1 at 12:22 of the first quarter, and Michael Howkins later helped stretch the lead to 3-1. Martin scored at 10:07 of the second quarter to make it 6-3, and Montevallo carried the momentum for most of the half before Flagler closed the gap late. Trace McDonald scored with 32 seconds remaining in the second quarter, then Gordon Ogden III added another with 23 seconds left to cut the margin to 9-7 at the break.

That late push carried into the third quarter. Griffin Moore tied the game 9-9 with 12:50 left in the quarter, and McDonald followed 54 seconds later to give Flagler its first lead since the opening minutes at 10-9. Dempsey Gibbs added a goal off an assist from Will Linko at 3:24 of the third, and Montevallo was held scoreless for the entire quarter as Flagler took control.

McDonald, who was named Tournament MVP, finished with four goals and one assist for Flagler, while Moore added three goals and one assist. Gibbs scored twice, including the clincher, and Jack Pilla added a fourth-quarter goal that extended the lead to 13-10. Flagler finished with 41 shots, put 27 on goal and converted 23 of 27 clears. Jonah Smith and Wade Lamon combined for 10 saves in goal.

Montevallo made one last push in the fourth quarter. Collery scored at 11:34 to pull the Falcons within 12-10, and Boas made it a one-goal game at 13-12 with 1:50 remaining. Samuel Martin, who finished with three goals, was part of a balanced Montevallo attack that also included two goals each from Collery, Mullen and Boas. Alex Egorshin kept Montevallo within reach throughout the day with 13 saves.

Montevallo also held edges in several team categories, including ground balls, 41-28, faceoffs, 17-11, and clears, 27 of 30. But after falling behind early, Flagler delivered the decisive stretch in the second half. The final blow came with 23 seconds left, when Gibbs finished an assist from Moore to seal the 14-12 championship result.

PBC All-Tournament Team
Carter Henninger, UAH
Breton Crewe, Lander
Lucas Mullen, UM
Matthew Boas, UM
Alex Egorshin, UM
Mitchell Lynch, Flagler
Jonah Smith, Flagler
Jack Pilla, Flagler
Ty Scheckenbach, Flagler

PBC Tournament MVP
Trace McDonald, Flagler