GREENSBORO, N.C.  AJ Mejia's goal in the final minute of the third quarter pulled visiting Methodist to within a goal of host Guilford College, but the Quakers reeled off the initial three goals of the final quarter then finished off a 12-9 non-conference men's lacrosse win over the Monarchs Thursday evening.

Mejia and Cade Crews each notched three goals apiece for Methodist, but Guilford's Connor Sweeney earned high-scoring honors with five goals and an assist during the home team's win.

Liam Von Hoene tied the Methodist school record -- which he set in the season opener on February 9 -- for saves, coming up with 22 during a contest in which the Quakers lit up the air with 70 total shots and 34 on frame.

THE ESSENTIALS
Final score: Guilford def. Methodist, 12-9
Records: Methodist 1-2, Guilford 3-0
Location: Appenzeller Field at Armfield Athletic Center; Greensboro, N.C.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Methodist trailed the Quakers by three goals, 7-4, coming out of the halftime break, but outscored the home team (4-2) in the third quarter with a pair of goals from Mejia, and one each from Connor Glenn and Crews.
• Mejia's unassisted markers to start the third period and again with 32 seconds remaining in the quarter appeared to shift the momentum heading into the final frame.
• Though Sweeney paced the Guilford attack, it was successive goals by Derek Zacatenco and two by Zach Berkowitz in a five-minute span of the fourth that erased the Monarchs' momentum.
• Crews, off a feed from Bryce Kephart, scored a man-up goal with just under four minutes left in the game, trimming the deficit to three but that would be the final goal for either team.
• Sweeney opened the scoring late in the game's fourth minute, but two minutes later Crews registered his first goal of the season to square the game -- but only for the final time.
• The Quakers scored back-to-back goals twice during the contest to provide a cushion, and survived Methodist's second-half challenges with that three-goal burst in the fourth.
• Mejia's third-quarter opener followed by Glenn's fifth score of the year was the only instance in which the Monarchs were able to notch unanswered tallies.
• Turnovers played a role, a negative one, for Methodist, which surrendered possession 33 times in the loss.

LAX FAX

• While Guilford buzzed Von Hoene's goal frame, the Methodist senior kept Methodist within striking distance all game with his 22 stops. His counterpart, Jack Rogers finished with just nine saves against 17 shots on goal.
• Kephart and Mark Chatt dished out pairs of assists in the contest. Matt Pemberton and Parke Kissner picked up one assist each.
• Chatt led the Monarchs doing the dirty work at turf level, finishing with a team-best five ground balls. Mejia's four GBs were only surpassed by Chatt's numbers.

UP NEXT

• Another road trip awaits Methodist in its next contest as it travels to Randolph College for a non-conference battle Saturday at 1 p.m.
• The Quakers entertain Ohio Northern University Sunday afternoon.