Tars Ready to Take on Mocs in NCAA Quarterfinals

No. 5 Seed Rollins (15-3)

vs

No. 1 Seed Florida Southern (16-3)

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Tars Ready to Take on Mocs in NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals

Fifth Seeded Rollins to Take on Top Seed Florida Southern, Saturday

WHEN: Saturday | May 14 | 5:00 p.m.

WHERE: Bryant Stadium | Lakeland, Fla.

NOTES: After earning a hard fought 9-8 victory over the No. 4 Seed West Chester Golden Rams in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday evening, the fifth-seeded Rollins Women's lacrosse team is ready to take on top seed Florida Southern on Saturday evening. The NCAA Tournament Quarterfinal Round is slated to get under way at 5 p.m. at Bryant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. Fans who are unable to attend the game will be able to follow all of the action with links to live coverage available on RollinsSports.com.

NCAA Statistics Ranking Summary for Rollins and Florida Southern

ROLLINS AT A GLANCE: The fifth-seeded and seventh-ranked Rollins women's lacrosse team advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals after earning a hard-fought victory in the first round of the 2016 NCAA Division II Women's Lacrosse Tournament. The Tars defeated fourth-seeded and No. 8 West Chester University by a final score of 9-8 on Friday evening at Bryant Stadium.

With the score tied at 8-8 and under a minute to play, Rollins ran a play which placed the ball in the stick of sophomore Megan Cury who grabbed the coveted game-winner with 31 seconds left in the game. The win moves Rollins to a record of 15-3, and advances them to the NCAA Division II Quarterfinal round, marking the second time in program history the Tars have advanced past their first game in the tournament.

Rollins first made their NCAA Tournament debut in 2012, where they earned a bye straight into the Semifinal round held in Louisville, Kentucky. The Tars squared up against West Chester, falling to the Golden Rams by a score of 19-10.

The Tars then earned their second appearance in NCAA postseason action the following season, and advanced into the next round for the first time in program history by defeating Lock Haven by a score of 11-10 before falling in double overtime to Limestone in the Semifinals, 11-10. Rollins stepped out of tournament action in 2014 before making their triumphant return in 2015, where they squared up against Lock Haven who bounced them out of tourney action in the First Round.

Friday evening's victory over West Chester marked the first time the Golden Rams have not advanced to the next round of the tournament in program history. The two-time National Champion has advanced past their first game in all 10 of their Tournament appearances, and has made it to the NCAA Tournament Championship Finals nine times.

Leading the way for Rollins on the season is Tyler Thomas, who has posted a team high 49 goals while adding four assists for a team best 53 points. Freshman Kallie German has scored 39 goals and added 12 assists for 51 points so far this season, while Kris Coppolino follows closely behind with 34 goals and eight assists for 42 points. Three Tars lead the team in assists as German, Grayson McPhee and Paige Brock have each dished out 12.

Rollins finds themselves moving on to the next round of the tournament thanks to a balanced attack. In all, nine different players have posted point totals in double-digit figures. Paige Brock has compiled 34 points with 22 goals and 12 assists, Megan Cury has 18 points with 16 goals and two assists, McPhee has 25 points with 12 goals and 12 assists, Claire Block has tallied 12 points with 12 goals, and Emily Eddowes has 17 points on the season with six goals and 11 assists.

The Tars are no slouches on defense, either, either, with a combined team total of 150 caused turnovers, 303 ground balls, and 198 draw controls. Malorie Olin leads the team in ground balls with 29, followed closely by German with 27. Coppolino is the key to the Tars' success off the draw, leading the team with 37, followed by Maddie Hendren with 21. Lindsay Van Beck holds the team high in caused turnovers with 24 so far this season, followed by German with 13, Brenna Heaney with 12, and Coppolino with 11.

In goal, Olin has a total of 1011 minutes between the pipes, starting in all 18 of the Tars' games this season. The sophomore has faced a total of 306 shots from opponents, earning 125 saves for an overall save percentage of .512. Olin has allowed just 119 goals this season, averaging 7.06 per game.

Dennis Short is in his ninth season at the helm of the Tars women's lacrosse program. He has posted a 53-17 record over the last four seasons, including a pair of trips to the NCAA National Semifinals. He is assisted by Tom Kienle, Mike Tobin, as well as former Tars standouts Chelsea Pinneke and Alley Rhinehart.

FLORIDA SOUTHERN AT A GLANCE: Florida Southern enters into Saturday's contest as the top seed in the South Region riding an overall record of 16-3. The Mocs, who earned a first round bye in this year's NCAA Tournament, are making their second appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Having won 11 a program best 11 straight games, and 16 of their last 17 contests, Florida Southern will look to advance to the next round of the tournament for the first time in program history. In their inaugural tournament appearance in 2015, the Mocs found themselves bounced out of tournament action after thanks to a 14-13 loss in double overtime to Lindenwood in the opening round.

Florida Southern is led by Kendall Kerge, who holds onto a team best 52 goals and has added two assists for 54 points on the season. Meghan O'Brien leads the team in assists with 36, as well as overall points with 62 as she has added on 26 goals. Close behind in overall points is Emily Santoli, whose 32 goals and 29 assists have combined for 61 points on the season. In all, nine different Mocs have registered point totals in the double-digits.

Leading the team in ground balls is Gabby Barowski with 49, followed closely by Santoli with 46. Santoli also holds onto a team high 56 draw contols, with Dani Bursinger following with 38. Defensively, Rachael Griffith leads the way with 34 caused turnovers.

Taylor Gillis and Paige Brodbeck have both seen time in goal throughout the season. Gillis has played in 15 contests, seeing a total of 748 minutes in cage where she has earned 75 saves and holds a .475 save percentage leading into Saturday's contest. The junior has allowed 83 goals, averaging 6.65 per game. Brodbeck has played a total of 394 minutes between the pipes, making 50 saves and owning a .481 save percentage. The sophomore has allowed 54 goals and averages 8.22 per game.

Kara Reber enters into her fifth season as the head coach of the women's lacrosse program at Florida Southern. Reber holds a record of 58-14 in her four seasons as head coach of the Moccasins. She led Florida Southern to a successful inaugural season in the Sunshine State Conference in 2014-15 season that saw the Moccasins post a 4-0 record in SSC regular season action. She is assisted by Lauren Bennett and Marissa Higgins.

SERIES: Rollins is 4-4 all-time against Florida Southern, and Saturday's Quarterfinal game marks the third time the Tars will face the Mocs this season. The last time out against their conference rival, the then-No. 6 Rollins women's lacrosse team was edged out by the then-third ranked Mocs by a final score of 12-11 in the Sunshine State Conference Tournament Championship game.

Rollins vs Florida Southern (4-4)

STAY IN TOUCH: For the latest news, updates, and information on the Rollins women's lacrosse team, fans can visit RollinsSports.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest #TARnation news by following Rollins Sports on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.