Florida Tech plays No. 9 Mount Olive on Monday, March 2 at 7 p.m. This will be the Panthers’ second consecutive game against a Top 15 opponent. The team won their last game against No. 15 Lenoir-Rhyne 13-12. (Photo by Amanda Stratford Photography)
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Florida Tech men’s lacrosse (2-0) is getting ready for a key regional matchup against the University of Mount Olive Trojans (3-0) on Monday, March 2.
Game time is 7 p.m. at Palm Bay High School’s Pirate Stadium.
The Panthers are going to hit the field for the first time since Feb. 26 when the team knocked off then No. 15 Lenoir-Rhyne 13-12.
Jason Terry
Jason Terry recorded five goals and one assist in the game.
The victory over Lenoir-Rhyne was the program’s first-ever win against a ranked opponent.
Mount Olive is ranked No. 9 in the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine Division II Top 15 and No. 11 in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Top 15.
The Panthers are receiving votes in the USLIA Top 15 poll and were previously ranked No. 15 in the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine Top 15 Poll.
Ryan McAleavey
“Right now, this is the biggest game of the season for us,” said head coach Ryan McAleavey.
“Going against the No. 9 team in the country is a huge matchup for our team. Anytime you go against Mount Olive, it’s going to be a tough game. We played them the past couple years, and each time they’ve handled us pretty easily. It would be nice to get some pay back.”
This will be the third-ever game between the two programs. The Trojans won the two previous matchups, beating the Panthers 19-11 in 2013 and 16-5 in 2014.
Florida Tech hopes to jump out to the same early lead it did in the first two games this season.
In the Tusculum game, the Panthers held a 9-1 lead in the second quarter but allowed the Pioneers to come back for an eventual FIT 13-11 win.
Against Lenoir-Rhyne, Florida Tech jumped out to a 10-3 lead in the third quarter before letting the Bears come back to tie the game at 12-12.
With 32 seconds left, Terry scored the game winner from 12 yards out to seal the victory for the Panthers.
“I think the most important thing we’ve been working on is teaching our guys how to win,” says McAleavey.
“We’ve been working on how to finish the game. Once we get a big lead we can’t turn on the cruise control and just coast. We need to keep our foot on the pedal and keep playing our game.”
Live video, audio and stats for the game against Mount Olive will be available at FloridaTechSports.com/live
