via school press releases

#1 FSC defeats #4 FIT 20-7

FSC: Moccasins Advance to Fifth-Straight SSC Title Game

LAKELAND, FL – Florida Southern College women’s lacrosse rallied back to earn its fifth-straight trip to the Sunshine State Conference title game. The Mocs (16-2, 5-1 SSC) used a 14-goal first half to defeat Florida Tech (7-9, 2-4 SSC) in the first round of the conference tournament. Three different Mocs finished with four points each in the victory.

Aubriana Benedetto led the Florida Southern offense with four goals on the night. Catherine DeKorte and Riley Bannatyne each recorded three goals, while Marina Jozokos and Grace Glinecki added on a pair of goals each. Six additional Mocs found the back of the net in the victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Florida Tech jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead to open the game but Florida Southern was having none of that as they would score the games next seven goals to take a 7-1 lead through the first ten minutes of the game. Maliah Benedetto tied the game up at the 27:35 mark of the first half to tie the game at 1-1. Brenna Smith put the Mocs up 2-1 to take a lead they would never come close to giving up. After Jozokos assisted on an A. Benedetto goal she put one past the Panthers goalie to make it a 4-1 FSC advantage. Bannatyne scored her first of three free position goals on the night at the 21:14 mark of the first half. Following A. Benedetto’s second goal, Bannatyne put her second free position goal in the back of the net as she extended the Mocs lead to 7-1. Off a feed from Alexis Townsend, Sam Schiano ended the Mocs 7-0 run to bring the Panthers within five. The Mocs would go on a 4-0 run as Glinecki put two past Chloe Zador before Ashley Norberg and DeKorte brought the Mocs within one of a running clock. In reverse of the Panthers second goal, Townsend scored off a pass from Schiano to keep the Mocs under the ten-goal advantage. DeKorte put an unassisted goal in the back of the net just prior to A. Benedetto putting the Mocs up by ten on a free position attempt. Bannatyne would close out the first half scoring with her third free position goal of the game at the 2:38 mark of the first half. Florida Southern took a 14-3 lead into the halftime break.
• Just as the first half began, the Panthers scored the first goal of the half as Mollie Kaplan put her second of four past the Mocs goalie. A. Benedetto added on a 15th FSC goal before Kaplan put her third goal in the back of the net. After nearly a five-minute scoring drought in the game, the Mocs’ Jozokos took a feed from Bannatyne to make it 16-5. Gracie Maganzini added one to make it 17-5 in favor of the home team. Kaplan would take a feed from Leah Dunn for the Panthers third goal of the half. Julia Couch put her only goal of the game in the back of the net as she took a pass from Sarah Grady to give the Mocs an 18-6 lead. At the 6:23 mark of the second half, Brittney Embree scored the seventh and final goal for Florida Tech. DeKorte and Lizzy Lynch put two more past Zador as the Mocs earned their 11th all-time victory over the Panthers.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Florida Southern improved to 11-0 all-time against Florida Tech. The Mocs are now 4-0 in SSC tournament action against the Panthers.
• Florida Southern won 21 of 29 draw controls.
• Florida Southern and Florida Tech both picked up 13 ground balls each. The two teams each had 15 clear attempts as the Mocs were successful 11 times to FIT’s 10.
• The Mocs fired off 34 shots to 17 by the Panthers. Florida Southern caused 11 turnovers as FIT turned the ball over 18 times.
• Sam Keesey recorded her 100th draw control of the season with her sixth draw control of the game. She finished the game with nine total for 103 on the season. The senior is only the fourth SSC student-athlete to hit triple digits this season. She also joins teammate Dani Bursinger as the only Moccasins to hit the 100 mark in a single season. Businger recorded her 100th earlier this season for the third consecutive season. Keesey finished the 2018 season with 98.

UP NEXT

• With the victory, the Mocs will advance to the SSC title game for the fifth consecutive season. Tampa defeated Rollins in Winter Park 14-10 and will meet the Mocs for a 1 p.m. showdown on Sunday.

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FIT: Panthers’ Season Ends in SSC Semifinal Loss to Mocs

LAKELAND, Fla. – Florida Tech struggled to keep pace with high-powered, top-seeded Florida Southern in their SSC Semifinal matchup Thursday evening, and the Panthers fell to the Moccasins, 20-7.

Mollie Kaplan recorded four goals, four draw controls and two caused turnovers to lead the Crimson & Gray. Sam Schiano and Alexis Townsend each added a goal and an assist. Schiano also notched four ground balls, three draws and three caused turnovers.

Brittney Embree tallied a goal and Leah Dunn dished out an assist and picked up two caused turnovers. Kailee O’Brien and Jenna Katrina each collected up two ground balls.

The Panthers got on the board first off a free position goal by Kaplan just 1:12 into the game. FSC quickly responded with seven unanswered goals in a span of 7:34.

A great ride by Dunn and Townsend on the FSC goalie got Tech back the ball following a turnover on the offensive end. The effort to a score by Schiano, which made it a 7-2 game with 18:18 left in the first half.

A 4-0 run by the Mocs pushed their lead to 11-2 with 11:05 to go before halftime. Schiano then found Townsend for a fast break goal with just over 10 minutes remaining in the first half.

However, the Mocs closed the half with three straight goals and went into the break with a 14-3 advantage.

Kaplan scores the first three goals of the second half for the Panthers, her final coming off an assist from Dunn to make the score 17-6.

Embree put in the final goal for Tech this season, as she blew by the defense and fired a shot into net with 6:23 to go. The Mocs added two more goals before the final buzzer and advanced to another SSC Championship game.

The loss concludes the season for the Florida Tech women’s lacrosse team. The program will now say good bye to five amazing seniors, Leah Dunn, Brittney Embree, Jenna Katrina, Cristina Marani and Sam Schiano.

The Panthers will now set their sights on the 2020 season.

For the latest news, updates and information on the Florida Tech women’s lacrosse team, visit FloridaTechSports.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Panthers news by following Florida Tech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

*****

#3 Tampa defeats #2 Rollins 14-10

Tampa: Women’s Lacrosse Advances to SSC Championship Game for the First Time in Program History

WINTER PARK, Fla. –The No. 6 University of Tampa women’s lacrosse team UPSET the No. 3 Rollins College Tars 14-10 in the Sunshine State Conference semifinals. The University of Tampa will advance to the Sunshine State Conference Championship for the first time in program history where they will face conference rival, Florida Southern. This is also the first time in program history that the Spartans have defeated a top-5 ranked opponent.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

Final: No. 6 Tampa Spartans 14, No. 3 Rollins College Tars 10
Records: Tampa (13-3), Rollins (14-2)
Location: Barker Family Stadium at Cahall-Sandspur Field | Winter Park, Fla.
All-time Series: The Tars lead the all-time series over the Spartans 7-2.
Follow Us: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

1st Half

• The first goal of the game was scored by Tampa’s Rachel Crawford.
• Five minutes into the contest, UT then scored again this time from senior captain, Allie Popelar off the assist by Kristyn Staley.
• Rollins then earned their first goal of the game with 21:33 on the board.
• Tampa answered with a goal from Kayla Kosubinsky.
• The Tars then netted a goal narrowing Tampa’s lead to one.
• Senior captain, Caroline Forester then netted her first goal of the contest off the assist by Crawford.
• With 14:30 on the clock, the Tars netted their third goal.
• Forester then scored again for Tampa off a free position shot.
• The Rollins Tars answered with a goal of their own. Tampa still held the lead 5-4.
• Junior captain, Claire Swanson then netted her first goal of the contest of the assist by Forester.
• The Tars then scored their fifth goal, man-up.
• With 2:49 left in the half, Crawford scored Tampa’s last goal half off a free position attempt.
• Heading into halftime, the Spartans led the Tars 7-5.

2nd Half

• The first goal of the second half was scored by Rollins.
• However, three minutes later,Swanson netted her second goal of the contest giving Tampa the 8-6 lead.
• The Tars refused to quit with another goal with 21:55 left on the clock.
• Carly Vaccaro then stated a goal for UT, off the pass by Crawford.
• Rollins kept Tampa’s lead to one scoring once again.
• Caroline Forester then scored again for the Spartans, this time off the assist by Vaccaro.
• Vaccaroherself then netted a goal with 10:41 remaining in the contest.
• A minute later Swanson scored giving Tampa the 12-8 lead.
• Refusing to quit, Forester scored again for UT, netting a goal off the assist by Crawford.
• Finally, the Tars netted back-to-back goals with 2:18 remaining.  Tampa remained on top 13-10.
• With :29 seconds left in the contest, Carly Vaccaro scored one last time for the Spartans.
• The No. 6 University of Tampa Spartans defeated the No. 3 Rollins College Tars by a final score of 14-10.

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Caroline Forester and Rachel Crawford tore it up for the Spartans on offense. Forester had four goals and one assist in addition to her two ground balls, while Crawford netted two goals with a team-high of three assists.
• Carly Vaccaro also had three goals and one assist in the contest. Vaccaro sealed the Spartans trip to the Championship, with her third goal coming in the last thirty seconds of the contest.
• Claire Swanson stated a team-high of five draw control wins. Additionally, she stated three goals, four ground balls and three caused turnovers.
• Defensively, Alexa Scudillo and had two caused turnovers for UT in addition to leading the team in ground balls with seven.
• Also on defense, senior captain Abby Coccagna had two caused turnovers and three ground balls.
• Bridget Sutter played AMAZING at goalie for the Spartans. The IWLCA National Defensive Player of the Week faced 34 shots and logged 24 saves.    

UP NEXT: 

The Spartans will compete in the Sunshine State Conference Championship, hosted by No. 1 seed, Florida Southern, on Sunday, April 28^th. The game will take place at the Barnett Athletic Complex with the time TBA.

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Rollins: Third-Ranked Tars’ SSC Tournament Run Cut Short by No. 6 Tampa

WINTER PARK, Fla.  (April 25, 2019) – Matching up against the University of Tampa Spartans for the third time this season, the third-ranked Rollins women’s lacrosse team was unable to overcome the sixth-ranked Spartans at Cahall-Sandspur Field on Thursday night in the Sunshine State Conference Tournament Semifinals.  The Tars, who entered the SSC Tournament as the No. 2 seed, found themselves thwarted by the third-seeded Spartan goalie Bridget Sutter, whose 24 saves on the evening sealed the deal on the UT victory as they toppled Rollins by a score of 14-10.

The loss ends the Tars’ SSC Tournament run, and marks just their second of the season as they drop to an overall record of 14-2.  The Spartans, who advance to the conference tournament championship for the first time in program history, advance to an overall record of 13-3.

Hannah Ashton led the way for the Tars with four goals and two assists, while Kallie German notched one goal and four assists.  Paige Brock netted two points on the night with a goal and an assist, while Nikki Stumpf, Lily Rizk, Rachel Valocchi, and Hannah Coakley scored one goal apiece.  Caroline Gasonguay handed out an assist of her own to close out the Tars’ scoring efforts.  Valocchi led the team in ground balls with three, while Ashton, Hannah Coakley, Lindsay Van Beck, and Haley Brock earned two apiece.  Paige Brock, Hannah Forbes, Rachel Valocchi, and Haley Brock each earned one caused turnover on the night, while Rizk, Maggie Dougherty, and Van Beck each won a team high four draw controls.  In goal, Gabby Tanner played a full game, facing 28 shots from the Spartans where she earned 14 saves while yielding 14 goals.

The Spartans locked in the win thanks in large part to 24 saves from Sutter, including 16 in the first half.  Caroline Forester notched a team high four goals and added an assist for five points, which was matched by Rachel Crawford with two goals and a team best three assists.  Carly Vaccaro netted a hat trick and added one assist for four points, followed by Claire Swanson with a hat trick of her own.  Both Kayla Kosubinsky and Allie Popelar scored one goal each, while Kristyn Staley added two assists of her own.  Alexa Scudillo led the game with seven ground balls, while Swanson earned a game high five draw controls and three caused turnovers.

How it Happened:

Tampa jumped out to a two goals lead in the first five minutes and never looked back.  Rollins pulled to within one on seven separate occasions, including trailing the Spartans by a score of 9-8 with 18:02 to play, but Tampa then netted four straight to pull ahead by five, 13-8, with 8:46 to go which cemented the win. The Tars outscored their opponent 2-1 in the final seven  minutes, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the late deficit.

Notes:

• Thursday’s game marked the third time the two teams have met this season, with all three contests being played at Cahall-Sandspur Field. The Tars and Spartans previously met twice in the regular season, first when they opened their 2019 slate against each other on February 5, followed by a conference contest on on April 10.
• The loss marks just the second time the Spartans have defeated the Tars.  The first UT victory over Rollins was on February 10, 2018, when Rollins was defeated by a final score of 10-6.
• Thursday’s game marked the first time the two teams have met in the Sunshine State Conference Tournament.
• The loss marked the first one for the first for the Tars when playing on their home turf this season, and snaps a 12 game home win streak.  When playing at home in 2019, the Tars are now 6-1. The last time the Tars were defeated on their home turf was on February 20, 2018, when they fell to then No. 1 Adelphi by a score of 15-11.
• Rollins entered into the game ranked No. 3 on the IWLCA DII Coaches Poll, and No. 4 on the NIKE/US Lacrosse DII Top 20
• Tampa ranked sixth on the IWLCA DII Poll, and checked in at No. 9 on the US Lacrosse Top 20 this week.
• Rollins owns a share of the 2019 SSC Regular Season Championship, sharing the title with both Tampa and Florida Southern.  It marks the first time the Tars have finished in the top spot in regular season conference standings in program history.

NEXT:

Rollins now awaits the next regional standings and news on an NCAA Tournament bid.  For the latest news on this year’s NCAA tournament schedule, stay tuned to RollinsSports.com.