LACROSSE: Florida Tech, Rollins Square Off In Sunshine State Conference Semis Friday Afternoon

3 p.m. ET in Lakeland, Florida

BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – Florida Tech, the No. 3 seed in this weekend’s Sunshine State Conference Tournament, will get another chance to knock off No. 2 seed Rollins when the teams meet in the conference semifinals on Friday at 3 p.m. ET in Lakeland, Florida.

The Panthers clinched their position in the tourney by posting a record of 2-2 in conference play, with victories over fourth-seeded Tampa and Saint Leo.

RC finished 3-1 in the SSC this season, with its only defeat being a 15-6 loss to Florida Southern.

Rollins got the better of FIT in the first matchup of the season on Apr. 13 at Florida Tech Panther Stadium. The Panthers trailed by as many as six goals in the second half, yet fought back with four goals in the final 7:51 of the game to bring the score to 14-10 before the final whistle.

Newly-named SSC Player of the Year Allie Modica paced FIT with three goals and an assist in the first meeting against RC, while Sara Grenier and Caroline Dunleavy each tallied two goals and one assist. Sam Schiano pestered the Tars for a game-high five caused turnovers to go along with three ground balls.

Stephanie Stuart made 11 saves in goal, including six on free position attempts alone.

The SSC’s Freshman of the Year, Kallie German, led RC with four points on two goals and two assists, while Tyler Thomas recorded a hat trick. Kaitlin Prince collected a game-high six ground balls to go along with two caused turnovers. Malorie Olin made nine saves in the win.

Friday’s game will feature 16 All-SSC selections, with FIT and Rollins boasting eight honorees apiece.

Florida Tech’s Modica, Grenier, Schiano, Stuart and Arielle Gunderson raked in All-SSC First Team honors while Dunleavy, Mary Gormley and Haley Heggblod were named to the conference’s second team.

For Rollins, Thomas, Kristina Coppolino, German, Lindsay Van Beck, Maddie Hendren and Olin made the All-SSC First Team and Grayson McPhee and Brock took home second team honors.

The contest will also be a matchup of the past two SSC Players of the Year (2015: Tyler Thomas; 2016: Allie Modica) and Coaches of the Year (2015: Dennis Short; 2016: Corinne Desrosiers).

Ticket prices will be for all day admittance and will be for cash only at the gate. The prices for the tournament will be as follows: $10 for adults, $5 for youth, and $3 for senior citizens.

Students from SSC institutions are free with proper school ID.

The top four teams in the SSC standings were granted seeds based on their in-conference record. Participating in the tournament this year will be Florida Southern, Rollins, Florida Tech and Tampa. The tournament will span three days from April 29 to May 1, with the schedule of games being played in the following format.

Friday, April 29th – Semifinals
No. 1 Florida Southern vs. No. 4 Tampa – 12:00 p.m.
No. 2 Rollins vs. No. 3 Florida Tech – 3:00 p.m.

Sunday, May 1st – Championship
TBD vs. TBD – 12:00 PM

For more information on the tournament, CLICK HERE

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