LAKELAND – After a 7-8 campaign in 2013, in which they fell to Saint Leo in the Deep South Conference Tournament quarterfinals, Florida Southern will look to win the first Sunshine State Conference men’s lacrosse title in conference history with a tough regular season schedule that includes three teams ranked in the Inside Lacrosse Division II Preseason Top 10 poll. “We have challenged the young men this year with our schedule, adding three 2013 NCAA tournament teams and some programs that our on the rise in our region,” said head coach Marty Ward, who is entering his fourth season at the helm of the Mocs. “This will be the hardest schedule in program history, but we are ready to compete and are excited for the challenge.” The Moccasins will play a 14-game regular season schedule with 10 home games at Bryant Stadium. Of those 10 home games, six will be played in the first half of the season from Feb. 16 through Mar. 13. FSC will begin the season with a pair of scrimmages against the University of Central Florida in Orlando on Saturday, Feb. 1, before travelling up-state to play Jacksonville University the very next day. The Knights, a club team playing in the Southeastern Lacrosse Conference of the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association, finished last season 9-4. Jacksonville, playing in the Atlantic Sun Conference in 2014, went 8-5 and 5-1 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in 2013, losing to Siena in the semi-finals of the conference tournament. The Moccasins officially open the 2014 season with a trip to Misenheimer, N.C. on Saturday, Feb. 8, to take on Pfeiffer University. The Falcons finished last season 13-4 and 5-1 in the Conference Carolinas, falling in the conference championship to Limestone. The Mocs were defeated by the Falcons last season, 7-8, at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville. Florida Southern opens the home portion of their schedule by welcoming New York Institute of Technology to Lakeland on Sunday, Feb. 16. The fifth-ranked Bears, who lost in the First Round of last year’s NCAA Division II National Tournament, finished second in the East Coast Conference with a 12-3 overall record and 6-1 conference record. This will be the first meeting between the two teams in the history of both programs. FSC will next host Limestone College on Friday, Feb. 21, as the second consecutive ranked opponent to visit Bryant Stadium. The ninth-ranked Saints reached the Semi-Finals of the 2013 NCAA Division II postseason, losing to eventual national runner-up Mercyhurst, after a 16-2 regular season record and perfect 6-0 mark in the Conference Carolinas. The Mocs last played Limestone in 2012, a 14-4 victory for the Saints in Gaffney, S.C. With the dissolution of the Deep South Conference following the 2013 season, and with Lynn University beginning competition in men’s lacrosse in 2014, the Sunshine State Conference voted in 2012 to add men’s lacrosse as the 17th sponsored sport in the conference. “It is exciting to begin SSC play this spring as a sponsored sport because of the reputation the conference brings with academic and athletic excellence,” Ward said. Florida Southern will compete in their first Sunshine State Conference game when they host Rollins College on Saturday, Mar. 1. The Tars, along with Florida Southern, Tampa, Saint Leo and Florida Tech were members of the former Deep South Conference. Rollins finished sixth in the DSC with a 2-5 record to go along with a 3-14 regular season mark, matching their highest win total in the program’s short history. The Mocs suffered their first defeat by the Tars in five meetings in 2013, losing 10-7 in Winter Park. After hosting Rollins, the Mocs will face two teams they have never competed against in the program’s history. On Wednesday, Mar. 5, Florida Southern will host No. 10 Lake Erie College, and three days later will host Shorter University. The Storm, runner-up of the East Coast Athletic Conference II tournament and participants in the NCAA Division II National Tournament, finished with a 12-5 record in 2013. Meanwhile, Shorter finished the season with a 7-7 record as an Independent school. The Moccasins will conclude their six-game home stretch by welcoming Belmont Abbey College to Bryant Stadium on Thursday, Mar. 13. The Crusaders finished last season fourth in the Conference Carolinas with an 11-6 mark and 3-3 conference record. The Mocs are looking to avenge last season’s 7-6 loss to the Crusaders in Belmont, N.C. The Mocs will hit the road for the first time in over a month when they travel to Tampa on Saturday, Mar. 15, to play the rival Spartans. The Spartans, coached by former Florida Southern head coach Rory Whipple, were one win away from claiming their first conference title in program history when they fell in the Deep South Conference Tournament Finals to Catawba College. The Mocs are 1-2 all-time against Tampa, with their last win coming in the 2012 Deep South Conference Tournament Semi-Finals. Florida Southern returns to Bryant Field when they host UMass-Boston on Tuesday, Mar. 18. The Beacons, playing in the Little East Conference of NCAA Division III, finished 6-12 in 2013. The Mocs will travel north to Hilton Head, S.C. for a Sunday, Mar. 23 neutral-site showdown with the Lions of Mars Hill College. Mars Hill competed as an Independent in 2013 before playing in the South Atlantic Conference this season, going 11-3 after previously being a member of the DSC. The teams last played in 2012, with the Lions claiming an 8-7 victory over the Mocs. Florida Southern will play their final non-conference game of the season on Friday, Mar. 28, when they host Colorado Mesa University. The Mavericks, members of the Western Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association, finished the 2013 season second in the conference with a 7-6 record and 4-2 mark against WILA teams. FSC travels to Boca Raton for an SSC contest with Lynn University on Wednesday, Apr. 2, for their final road game of the regular season. This will be the Fighting Knights’ first season of competitive play in Division II after officially announcing they were adding the sport in 2012. The Moccasins will wrap up their regular season with two consecutive home conference games on Saturday, Apr. 5, against Saint Leo and against Florida Tech on Saturday, Apr. 12, as they celebrate Senior Day. The Mocs split last season’s series with the Lions, winning 13-5 in Saint Leo before falling 10-6 in the Deep South Conference Tournament Quarterfinals. The Mocs are 6-2 all-time against the Lions, including holding a 5-1 record since 2011. Meanwhile, FSC is 2-0 against the Panthers, with their last win coming in the form of a 15-10 victory in Melbourne in 2013. The semifinals of the Sunshine State Conference Tournament begin on Saturday, Apr. 19, on the campus of the higher-seeded team. The Championship game will then take place the following Saturday, also on the campus of the higher seeded team. Although this year’s schedule is shaping to be the most difficult in the program’s short history, Ward believes it will prepare his team to contend in a very competitive conference. “The tough out of conference games will get us ready to battle for the first SSC championship this spring. We’re really looking forward to 2014.”