via press release/website, by Christina Hardman

BOX SCORE

MELBOURNE, Fla. – Florida Tech men’s lacrosse team took care of business on Saturday afternoon, rolling past Concordia University Irvine by the score of 15-8, for their first win of 2024.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final:  Florida Tech 15, Concordia University Irvine 8
Records: Florida Tech (1-4, 0-0 SSC) | Concordia University Irvine (1-5, 0-2 RMAC)
Locations: Rick Stottler Field | Melbourne, Fla.

FIRST QUARTER:

• Florida Tech put the pressure on the Golden Eagles early in the first quarter, netting the first four scores.
• Griffin Martin assisted Joe Covesleski for goal number one before he scored one of his own off a feed from Zach Rozgonyi. Austin Engeler netted the third, unassisted, and Cam Johnson added the fourth from Coveleski.
• CUI recorded their first goal on an unassisted effort by Bryan Parr.
• Gavin Stecher posted back-to-back goals, assists from Gavin Wessel and Martin, to go up 6-1 with 3:37 left in the opening frame.
• After CUI scored their second goal of the game, Jakob Terpak found Joe Coveleski in front of the net for his second of the day.
• With seven ticks left in the frame, CUI’s Drew Buckley blasted one in, assisted by Matt Carresi.
• Tech took a 7-3 lead into the second period.

SECOND QUARTER:

• Tech outscored CUI 4-2 in the second frame.
• CUI got the second period started, scoring 43 seconds in.
• Coveleski completed the hat trick with 12:38 to go on a feed from Nate DePlancke.
• After CUI’s Carresi brought the Golden Eagles to within three, 8-5, attacks, Collin Stewart and Rozgonyi went back-to-back followed by a Ben Foster score with nine seconds remaining to push the advantage to 11-5 in favor of Tech.
• Stewart contributed to all three goals, scoring one and assisting the other two.

THIRD QUARTER:

• CUI stopped Tech’s scoring onslaught in the third, outscoring Tech 4-1.
• The Golden Eagles scored three straight, including a man-up, to cut the deficit 11-8, with 8:07 to go.
• The Panther defense held CUI from cutting into their lead further, led by goalie Jax Francisco who recorded seven saves in the third.
• Tech’s lone goal came with 4:09 on the clock from an unassisted effort by Gary Lozito.

FOURTH QUARTER:

• The Panthers shut out CUI in the final frame to secure a 15-8 win.
• Martin notched his second goal of the game with 10:16 to go.
• Two minutes later, Foster found Johnson for his second of the game.
• The final goal came with under five minutes to go as Jonah Borynec put one in to make the final score 15-8.

COACHES CORNER:
“We talked about having a solid start and executing certain elements of our game.” Said head coach Brad McArthur. “Although we regressed a bit in the 3rd quarter, we regrouped and had a solid 4th defensively to finish.”
NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Griffin Martin led the Panthers with five points on two goals and three assists.
• Joe Coveleski recorded a hat trick while adding one assist and two ground balls.
• Collin Stewart posted three points on one goal and two assists.
• Gavin Stecher and Cam Johnson recorded two goals a piece. Johnson also caused one turnover and collected two ground balls.
• Zach Rozgonyi and Ben Foster each added one goal and one assist a piece.
• Austin Engeler, Gary Lozito, and Jonah Borynec tallied a goal a piece.
• Ricky Fedorchak led the defense with four caused turnovers and four ground balls.
• Gavin Wessel collected four ground balls while adding one assist.
• Cooper Leonard and Jack Maranto both went .500 at the ‘X, going 7-14 and 6-12. Maranto also collected six ground balls.
• Jax Francisco recorded 15 saves and a .652 save percentage.

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:

• Florida Tech outshot CUI 43-31 with 26 on goal against CUI’s 23.
• The Panthers recorded fewer turnovers (19-13) and more ground balls (31-22).
• Florida Tech went  19-of-22 on clears, while CUI went 15-19.
• Both teams were 1-of-5 on man-up opportunities.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• This was the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
• Joe Coveleski’s hat trick was his third of the season.
• Griffin Martin’s five points are a career-high.
• Jax Francisco recorded his 200^th career save

UP NEXT: Florida Tech returns to Rick Stottler Field Saturday, March 9 to host Westminister. The contest is set to begin at 7 p.m.
For the latest news, updates and information on the Florida Tech men’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.