GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Gettysburg outscored Muhlenberg 4-0 in the fourth quarter and the fourth-ranked Bullets pulled away for an 18-11 victory in Centennial Conference (CC) men's lacrosse action Saturday afternoon at a sunny, windy Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.
 
The win marked victory No. 399 at Gettysburg for Bullet head coach Hank Janczyk, who has racked up 444 overall wins – a mark that ranks second in NCAA men's lacrosse history.
 
Junior Tommy Heller (Livingston, N.J./Livingston) scored a season-high five goals to lead Gettysburg (10-1, 3-0 CC), which posted its top offensive output of the year for the second game in a row.
 
The Bullets opened the game on a 10-2 run, but the Mules rallied with a 6-1 run to make it a three-goal game at the half. Muhlenberg still trailed by only three heading into the fourth quarter prior to Gettysburg's decisive run.
 
Sophomore Brian Kolen (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan) added four goals and an assist for the Orange and Blue while junior Andrew Garstka (Springfield, Va./Paul VI Catholic) added a career-high three goals and one helper. Senior FOGO Geoff Fulgione (North Andover, Mass./Brooks School) contributed a career-high three assists while finishing 12-for-20 on face-offs.
 
Senior Tim Brady (Charlotte, N.C./Providence) made 12 saves for Gettysburg while earning his 50th career victory. Senior Cullen Minion (Garden City, N.Y./Garden City) and sophomore Mitch Wykoff (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Ludlowe) aided the defense with six ground balls each.
 
Ethan Grossman paced the Mules (8-2, 0-2 CC) with three goals and four assists.
 
The Bullets held slim advantages in shots (35-33) and ground balls (32-31).
 
Gettysburg never trailed after Heller scored the game's opening goal 1:11 into the contest. Grossman tied it less than two minutes later, but the Bullets would catch fire and score six unanswered goals before the end the quarter. Heller and Kolen struck twice during the stretch.
 
Grossman stemmed the rally for the Mules, striking with 16 ticks showing to make it a 7-2 game at the end of the opening period.
 
Gettysburg answered with three quick goals early in the second quarter to assume its eight-goal advantage. Garstka converted a minute and a half into the stanza before the Bullets scored on back-to-back face-offs on identical plays. Fulgione scooped a ground ball, raced it upfield, and dished a pass to Kolen, who rifled home a goal from the left wing on both shots to make it 10-2.
 
Muhlenberg climbed right back into it, however, reeling off a 6-1 run to end the half and the scoreboard read 11-8 at the intermission.
 
The two sides traded goals three times in the third quarter, with the Bullets striking first on each occasion. Freshman Jack Fletcher (Charlotte, N.C./Providence Day School) scored both a man-up and a man-down goal in the period before junior Jack Harvey (New Providence, N.J./New Providence) scored with 6:54 left to make it 14-10. Muhlenberg answered 52 seconds later to pull to within three heading into the final period.
 
Junior Mike Risser (Chester Springs, Pa./Downingtown East) and Garstka kicked off Gettysburg's game-ending spurt, striking with one goal each over the opening two minutes to make it 16-11. Heller sealed the deal for the Bullets, scoring twice in the final 4:37.
 
The Bullets return to action next Saturday, when they travel to Swarthmore for another Centennial Conference tilt starting at 3 p.m.