via FIT press release

BOX SCORE

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Florida Tech 13, #16 Lander 9
Records: Florida Tech (5-0), Lander (6-3)
Location: Panther Stadium | Melbourne, Fla.

FIRST QUARTER:

• Bearcats took an early 1-0 lead just 51 seconds into the contest.
• Senior Caroline MacLeod tied the game off an assist from fellow senior Madison Savje and then dished out an assist to Millie Hurt to give Tech a 2-1 lead with 8:14 left in the quarter.
• MacLeod’s second goal of the game gave the Panthers back the lead, 3-2, with 6:49 to go.
• Less than a minute later, Kayla Minton netted her first of the game off an assist from Rachel Johnson to put the Panthers up 4-2.
• Lander tied the game with a 2-0 run to make the score 4-4 with 4:24 left in the first.
• Carly Niro’s goal, off an assist from Savje with 3:21 to go in the frame, gave Tech a 5-4 advantage heading into the second quarter.

SECOND QUARTER:

• Minton scored early in the second to increase the Panthers’ lead to 6-4.
• Bearcats again answered with a 2-0 run to even the score at 6-6 with 10:54 to go before halftime.
• Senior Kailee O’Brien scored on a free position try to hand Tech a 7-6 advantage with 6:28 left but Lander tallied the equalizer 41 seconds later to knot the game up at 7-7.
• MacLeod completed her first-half hat trick on a free position goal to give the Panthers an 8-7 lead with 4:47 to go.
• Bearcats evened the game at 8-8 with 3:08 remaining and the teams would go into halftime with the score tied.

THIRD QUARTER: 

• Panthers outscored Lander 4-0 in the third quarter to grow their lead to 12-8. 
• Johnson scored on Tech’s first possession of the second half with 13:48 left in the quarter.
• Minton scored a pair of goals in the frame, including a woman-up tally with 12:52 remaining.
• Jennifer Boyle accounted for the Panthers other goal at the 6:49 mark of the quarter and Tech took a four-goal advantage into the fourth.

FOURTH QUARTER:

• Minton’s fifth goal of the game came on a woman-down situation off an assist from Niro with 5:33 to go.
• Lander added one more goal with 29 seconds left in the contest to bring the final margin to 13-9 as the Panthers improved to 5-0 on the season.  
   

NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Kayla Minton scored a season-high 5 goals in the game.
• Caroline MacLeod recorded 4 points on 3 goals and 1 assist to go along with 4 draw controls, 3 ground balls and 2 caused turnovers.
• Rachel Johnson tallied 1 goal and 1 assist in addition to 2 ground balls, 2 caused turnovers and 1 draw control. 
• Carly Niro finished with 1 goal, 1 assist, 2 ground balls and 1 caused turnover.
• Jennifer Boyle added 1 goal, 3 ground balls, 3 draw controls and 1 caused turnover.
• Millie Hurt recorded 1 goal, 3 draw controls, 1 ground ball and 1 caused turnover.
• Kailee O’Brien finished with 1 goal, 3 ground balls and 1 caused turnover. 
• Madison Savje dished out 2 assists.
• Elizabeth Christ collected 6 draw controls. 
• Maggie Reed ended with 2 ground balls and 2 caused turnovers.
• Ashley Walter recorded 3 ground balls and 1 caused turnover.
• Cailey Canessa improved to 5-0 on the season in the Panthers’ net while making a career-high 8 saves. 

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:

• Panthers finished with an edge in shots (22-19), shots on goal (20-17) and draw controls (15-11).
• Bearcats had an advantage in ground balls (25-23) and caused turnovers (16-14).
• Tech was successful on 16-20 clear attempts compared to 15-18 for Lander.
• Panthers converted 2-4 free position shots while the Bearcats were 1-3.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• This is the third time in program history that Florida Tech has started the season 5-0 (2018, 2020). 
• This is the Panthers’ first win over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 5 Regis, 14-13, on March 3, 2020 at Panther Stadium.

UP NEXT: Florida Tech is back in action on Monday, March 21 hosting Montevallo at Panther Stadium. The game is set to begin at 7 p.m.

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.

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SportsLowdown.com

Panthers Take Down No.16 Lander to Remain Undefeated

Excerpt:

The Florida Tech women’s lacrosse team took down 16th-ranked Lander 13-9 on Saturday at Florida Tech Panther Stadium. The win was the first over a ranked team in about two years and is now 5-0 for the first time since 2018.

The Panthers celebrated Senior Day before the game.

Cailey Canessa got the start for Florida Tech and made eight saves. Bearcats starter Brenah Sarell made seven saves.

Kayla Minton continues her great start to the season, scoring five goals, and now has 18 for the season. She is tied with Caroline MacLeod, who had a hat trick on Saturday bringing her season total to 18.

Read the rest HERE