KENOSHA — The Carthage College men's lacrosse team erupted for nine unanswered goals spanning the late first quarter through the third to pull away from Dubuque, securing an 11-8 victory in a back-and-forth contest. After falling behind 3-0 early, Carthage seized control with balanced scoring and timely finishes to build a lead it never relinquished.

• Final Score: Carthage 11 - Dubuque 8
• Location: Kenosha, Wisconsin - Art Keller Field
• Records: Carthage 3-1, Dubuque 0-2

• Dubuque struck first with three goals in the opening quarter. 
• Carthage responded late in the period as Rye Taylor scored twice in a span of thirty-six seconds, trimming the deficit to 3-2 heading into the second.
• The Spartans briefly regained a two-goal edge early in the second quarter, but the Firebirds answered again. 
• Jake Westland scored unassisted to make it 4-3, and Collin McClure tied the game with an unassisted man-up goal midway through the period.
• Carthage took full control in the third quarter, opening with six straight goals.
• Rocco Paddack gave the Firebirds their first lead, and McClure, Kyle Carollo, and Alex Bailey followed with a flurry that pushed the advantage to 9-5. 
• Dubuque found the net twice late in the third, but the Firebirds continued to answer every challenge.
• McClure and Westland scored early in the fourth to extend the margin to 11-6. Dubuque added two late goals, but the Firebirds' sustained scoring run proved decisive as they closed out the 11-8 win.

• McClure led Carthage with three goals, while Kyle Carollo, Rye Taylor, and Jake Westland each added two. 
• Alex Bailey finished with three points, recording a goal and two assists.
• Keyan Schugel had six groundballs, while Jake Williamson made nine saves. 

"It's always tough to go back-to-back days in the game of lacrosse, so we knew it was gonna be a challenge. I am really proud of the guys because we were down 3 to and found a way to get back control of things and take care of the game in the second half. Keyan had his best game as a face-off player of his career, and that was a huge difference. We are still trying to find our identity on offense, but today was a matter of putting the ball away more. Great effort on ground balls and in our riding game. A lot of room for improvement, and hopefully we can pull a couple more guys into help us in this weeks slate of games."

• Carthage travels to Edgewood on Wednesday, February 25, at 5 p.m.