via Keiser press release/website

BOX SCORE

No. 1 Keiser Seahawks 15, No. 2 Indiana Tech Warriors 8
Ashton Brosnaham Athletic Park (Pensacola, Fla.)
Keiser (17-1) | Indiana Tech (17-4)

Keiser lacrosse engraved its name in history this afternoon in the championship round of the NAIA Invitational Tournament. Led by freshman AJ Badik’s career-high eight goals, the No. 1-ranked Keiser Seahawks defeated the Indiana Tech Warriors 15-8.

The Seahawks capped off an impressive 17-1 season (school record) with the program’s first Red Banner, defeating the No. 2 team in the nation. Badik’s eight goals were the most scored by a Seahawk in the NAIA Men’s Lacrosse Invitational and were tied for the second-most in KU history (Craig Marentette – Tennessee Wesleyan – 3/11/17; Dylan Sharpe – Webber Int’l – 4/10/21). The first-year Seahawk was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

In a game which Keiser led wire-to-wire, a total of four Seahawks tallied goals. Led by Badik, Keiser also saw Jack Gillen (4), Vincent Cerasuolo (2), and Ashton Harris (1) find the back of the net. Cole Stassi set the school record for assists, recording seven versus the Warriors. Goalkeeper Christian Tomei earned the win, making 14 saves – the 14^th time this season Tomei has registered 10-or-more saves.

Badik, Gillen, Marshall, Tomei, and Provines were all named to the All-Tournament team.

Saturday’s appearance in the NAIA Championship Game was the second for the Seahawks, improving to 1-1 all-time. The win also improved KU to 6-5 all-time in the NAIA Men’s Lacrosse Invitational.

Keiser 3, Indiana Tech 1

• Keiser struck first with an AJ Badik goal assisted by Cole Stassi with 13:01 on the clock. 
• The Warriors answered back with a goal five minutes later. 
• Badik and Stassi hooked up again in response to give Keiser a lead it would hold for the rest of the game. 
• The final goal of the quarter came when Vincent Cerasuolo scored with a Jack Gillen assist. 

Keiser 5, Indiana Tech 2

• The second quarter kicked off with another Badik goal on a man-up opportunity. Stassi assisted on the play. 
• TECH answered back with a goal at the 12:58 mark
• The rest of the quarter was a defensive slugfest, until Badik scored his fourth goal of the day with 10 seconds left in the half. 

Keiser 10, Indiana Tech 3

•  KU kicked off the second half with Badik’s fifth goal of the day, and a Braeden Niemy assist with 11:26 on the board. 
• Cerasuolo scored his second goal of the day 40 seconds later with a Gillen assist. 
• After three scoreless minutes, Jack Gillen found the net thanks to a goalie assist from Christian Tomei. 
• Three minutes after that, Badik scored his sixth goal of the day, with help from a Stassi assist. 
• The Warriors broke the KU scoring rally with a goal at the 3:37 mark. 
• The final goal of the quarter came when Jack Gillen hit the net with a Michael Shephard assist. 

Keiser 15, Indiana Tech 8

• Ashton Harris scored the first goal of the final quarter with a Stassi assist. 
• One minute later at the 12:31 mark, AJ Badik put his seventh goal in the cage unassisted. 
• Gillen and Shephard linked up again 75 seconds later to give Keiser a 10 goal lead. 
• Starting 9:41 mark, TECH began to claw back in the game with a goal.
• In a two minute span starting with 6:09 on the board, the Warriors began a furious rally, and scored four straight goals to cut the KU lead down to five. 
• AJ Badik put Keiser back on the scoreboard with his eighth goal of the day with 2:35 left. 
• The last goal of the day was scored when Jack Gillen scored his fourth goal with 50 seconds left in the game, helped by Stassi’s career high seventh goal.

• Keiser outshot the Warriors, 48-32. 
• Cam Provines dominated the faceoff, winning 19-of-25.
• Cole Stassi put up seven assists (school record).
• Jack Gillen recorded his ninth hat trick of the season. 
• AJ Badik scored eight goals, which is tied for the second most in a game in program history.
• The Keiser defense forced 14 Warrior turnovers. 

No. 1 Keiser
Goals: Badik (8)
Points: Badik (8)
Assists: Stassi (7)
Faceoffs: Provines (19-25)
Ground Balls: Provines (12)
Caused Turnovers: Epstein/Tomei (3)
Saves: Tomei (14)

No. 2 Indiana Tech
Goals: Bodley / Coleman (2)
Points: Coleman (3)
Assists: Four Players (1)
Faceoffs: Kelm (3-9)
Ground Balls: Anderson (6)
Caused Turnovers: Seaman (2)
Saves: Twobulls (11)

For the most up-to-date information about the program, follow Keiser Men’s Lacrosse on Twitter and Instagram.

General athletic news can be found at KUSeahawks on Facebook, kuseahawks on Instagram, and kuseahawks on Twitter.