via FIT press release, photo by Harry Abramson
BOX SCORE
Dan Flock breaks own school-record with 23 saves in 12-10 win over Lenoir-Rhyne in Savannah
SAVANNAH, Ga. – Senior goalie Dan Flock made a program single-game record 23 saves, and eight different Panthers found the back of the net, as Florida Tech held off a talented Lenoir-Rhyne squad for a 12-10 neutral-site victory at Daffin Park.
“This was a hard fought, team win against a very good, well-coached team,” said head coach
Mark Penn. “I felt like we executed our game plan and were able to match Lenoir Rhyne’s intensity.”
Flock was under fire all night as the Bears sent 48 shots his way but the three-year starter stood on his head all game, making six saves in three of the four quarters.
“The biggest difference today was the play of our goalie,” added Penn. “He shut the door tonight and really let them know early that it was going to be hard to score. Our defensemen are all playing at an All American level, and
Addison Abramson was, once again, a game-changing player all over the field.”
Three quick goals by the Panthers, one each from
Justin Williams,
Bryce Johnson and
Reid Chaconas, gave them the early 3-1 lead with 11:59 to go in the first quarter.
However, the Bears ensued on a 4-0 run and grabbed a 5-3 edge with 4:09 left in the opening period.
Sam Sidari buried the first goal of his career off an assist from Williams to make it a one-goal game at the end of the first.
Early in the second half,
Addison Abramson took advantage of LR’s 10-man ride and launched a shot from inside his own restraining box into the Bears’ open net from nearly 80 yards away.
Just over a minute later,
Logan Sweeney got into the mix with his first score of the game off an assist from
Brett Pohlmeyer. Abramson then notched his second goal of the game off the ensuing face-off to give Tech a 7-5 lead with 10:09 left in the first half.
LR got back on the board on a man-up goal by Edward Tate at the 8:22 mark, following a holding call on
Jake Bredeck. The Bears tallied two more goals to corral an 8-7 advantage with 3:25 to go in the third.
Brad Schillinger’s man-up score with 2:42 left in the period tied the game at 8-8. Later in the frame, Chaconas sent a howitzer to the back of the net for another man-up goal that gave Tech a 9-8 lead.
Williams forced a turnover by LR goalie Noah Johnson, collected the loose ball and scored to hand the Panthers a two-goal edge with 13:51 left. However, the Bears scored two goals over an 11-second span to tie the game at 10-10 with 6:59 remaining.
With the score now tied, the Panthers needed someone to step up and Pohlmeyer came through in the clutch. The senior first scored off an assist from
Tommy Bowser to give Tech a one-goal lead. Then 31 seconds later, Pohlmeyer found Sweeney for the man-up tally to push the advantage to 12-10 with 4:33 to go.
Flock made several more saves in the waning moment to shut the door on the Bears and give the Panthers their third win of the season. For Flock, the win is the 18th of his Florida Tech career, tying him atop the program record-book with Eric Biller for most wins by a goalie.
Sweeney and Williams paced Tech with two goals and an assist apiece. Abramson and Chaconas each scored two goals while Pohlmeyer recorded a goal and three assists. Three other Panthers tallied one goal in the game.
“It was great to get so many offensive players involved. We have some young guys stepping up and our ball movement is improving. Now we need to build on that progress.”
Abramson picked up a game-high nine ground balls and one caused turnover. The senior long-stick midfielder now has 100 caused turnovers for his Florida Tech career, the most by any player in program history.
Williams added six ground balls and three caused turnovers while
Thomas Gribben,
Nick Fornadel and
Kyle Sergio finished with two caused turnovers each.
Ryan Land won 14-of-25 face-offs in the win to go along with five ground balls.
The Panthers concluded the game with an advantage in shots (54-48) and ground balls (40-35), while also converting 19-of-22 clear attempts.
Following a 17-day layoff, Florida Tech returns to action on Tuesday, Mar. 19, hosting Nichols College at 3 p.m. at Panther Field.
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