WINTER PARK, Florida (April 24, 2024) – The No. 9 and second-seeded Rollins men's lacrosse team ran out to a big lead early and never looked back on Wednesday night, defeating third-seeded Florida Tech, 18-6, in the semifinals of the SSC Tournament. The Tars, who are now 12-3, advance to Saturday's SSC Tournament final at No. 3 and top-seeded Tampa at noon. The Panthers close out the season with a 6-9 record.
Jack Johnstone led all players with five goals and six points, making him the new program leader in career points with 155.
Grant Hansen had four goals and five points, which gives him a career total of 153 points, moving him into second place in career points at Rollins. Both Johnstone and Hansen surpassed Greg Taicher (2016-19) on Wednesday night, who finished his career with 149 points.
Mikey Berkman tallied four points on two goals and two assists while also grabbing three ground balls, and
Justin White chipped in with two goals and an assist.
Shahe Katchadurian (11-3) made 11 saves on 16 shots in 52:57 of action in goal to earn the win.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
First Quarter
- Sean Caracciolo opened the scoring less than a minute into the game, and within the span of the opening 4:22 the Tars had jumped out to a 4-0 lead on the strength of two Johnstone goals and a Hansen marker.
- Florida Tech got on the board just over a minute later, but the Blue and Gold responded with four more goals in the first, including the third of the game for Johnstone and second of the night for Hansen, putting the home team up 8-1 after 15 minutes of play.
Second Quarter
- White and Sam Mattson scored the first two goals of the second quarter to push the lead to 10-1.
- The two teams then traded goals, each scoring three times throughout the rest of the period, with Rollins holding a comfortable 13-4 edge at the half.
Third Quarter
- Johnstone put home his fourth and fifth goals of the game to account for all the scoring in the third quarter as the Tars increased the margin to 15-4.
Fourth Quarter
- Logan Myers, Avery Kamuf, and Hansen all found the back of the net in the fourth as the Blue and Gold cruised to an 18-6 win.
UP NEXT:
The Tars will head to Tampa on Saturday, April 27, to take on the third-ranked and top-seeded Spartans in the SSC Championship. Game time is set for noon.
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