Florida Tech Panther Men’s Sports Roundup
By Florida Tech // March 9, 2014
Panthers Take Late Lead Behind Strong Second Half but Fall in Overtime, 12-11
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Despite nine penalties, Florida Tech (1-3) held Wheeling Jesuit University (3-0) to three man-up goals and the Panthers scored four unanswered goals between the third and fourth periods to take an 11-10 lead with 4:42 remaining in regulation.
However, a goal with 32 seconds left tied the game at 11 and in overtime, the Cardinals were able to strike first, escaping FIT’s home opener at Hustler Stadium with a 12-11 victory.
Seven first-half penalties allowed the Cardinals to take an 8-4 lead after two periods. Andrew Conley and CJ Nichols scored two goals apiece in the first half. Jordan Hayes recorded eight saves in the first 30 minutes of action.
A heartbreaking loss for the Panthers for the third straight game, FIT trailed by as much as five goals in the third quarter.
FIT followed with three goals by Nichols, Nick Wynne and Brian Bacarella to make it a 9-7 contest with 6:52 remaining in the period.
A goal by the Cardinals gave WJU a three-point cushion, and goals by Austen Zugelter (two), Wynne and Nichols allowed Florida Tech to erase its deficit and take a one-goal lead with just under five minutes left to play.
“The hardest part about losing three consecutive games by three goals is that we rallied back to tie the game or take a lead,” said third year head coach Ryan McAleavey.
“It’s just a heartbreaker. We started off slow with most of our penalties coming in the first half and whenever you spot a great team like Wheeling Jesuit six man-up opportunities, they will capitalize. Fortunately, Jordan Hayes and our man-down unit came up big and limited its man-up goals. We gave them too many opportunities.”
Nichols led FIT with four goals and added an assist, Wynne, Conley and Zugelter each scored two goals, and Nick Brown and Mike Marshner registered two assists. In his second start of the season, Hayes recorded 14 saves but fell to 0-2 while Cardinals goalie Joe Amsler improved to 3-0 after stopping four shots.
The Panthers return to action in two days, hosting Catawba College on Monday, March 10 at 7 p.m.
Top Two Varsity Eight Boats Victorious in Season Opener
Florida Tech earned wins in the first and second varsity eight events of the Keuper Cup Saturday morning at Canal 54.
“It was a good day,” head coach Jim Granger said. “We picked up wins in the 1V and 2V. The 3V led early, but fell behind in the race. All three crews have a lot of room for improvement. We look forward to our next race.”
The first varsity eight won by 6.2 seconds at a time of 5:54.4. The next closest finisher, Grand Valley State, came in 6.2 seconds after the Panthers. Jacksonville placed third at 6:17.3.
Leading the crew to the win were coxswain Jessica Mellinger, stroke Carson Green, Ernestas Zarskis, Kevin Coyle, Mindaugas Beliauskas, Martynas Mickus, John Martin,Andrew Konecny and bow Joe Horn.
The second varsity nipped Jacksonville at the finish line by 1.5 seconds to start the day. Its official time was 6:05.8 compared to Jacksonville’s 6:07.3. Grand Valley State finished third at 6:18.0.
Racing for the Panthers in the second varsity eight were coxswain Katherine Hausrath, stroke Clay Mathieu, Henry Walch, Strahinja Markovic, Mickus, Paul Kepinski, Marko Milovanovic, Dayomi Charlie Paul and bow Batuhan Cakici.
“It was a good day. We picked up wins in the 1V and 2V. The 3V led early, but fell behind in the race. All three crews have a lot of room for improvement. We look forward to our next race.” — Jim Granger
Grand Valley State won the third varsity eight race at 6:19.4. Finishing second was Jacksonville at 6:22.6 and FIT’s time was 6:30.8. Competing in the event for the Crimson and Gray were coxswain Aaron Evans, Paul at stroke, Eric Schiferl, Nate Hodge, Andor Dezsi, Brayden Thompson, Alex Eierle, Coen de Jong and bow Oriel Bailey.
The Panthers will return to Canal 54 on Saturday, March 15 to take on Wentworth Institute of Technology, which is in its first year as a varsity rowing program.
