This Week in Athletics: April 1

April 1, 2026

Greetings #TARnation! It's April! One month left of class, can you even believe it? Over here in athletics, this is the home stretch as our spring sports look to finish strong to earn bids for the conference and NCAA postseason. Let's get you caught up on the latest:

- Women's golf played well at the Lynn Invitational on Monday and Tuesday, earning a third-place finish. But the highlight came in Tuesday's final round when freshman Youyang Li moved from 20th to a tie for first by shooting a career-best 67 (-5) that included six birdies. Because she shot the lowest score in the final round, she was awarded the gold medal for the event, her first career collegiate win. Congrats!  

- Sailing took first place at the SAISA Women's Top 9, hosted by the University of Miami. They navigated ten races on Saturday, with Shay Bridge and Soleil Aurignac rocking seven Top 5 results in the A Division, including wins in races six, eight, and ten. Julia Scott and Jane McKenzie also saw success in B Division, capturing three wins and eight total Top 5 finishes. 

- Softball hit the road to Boca Raton and earned a conference sweep of Lynn University with wins of 9-0, 4-2, and 7-3. Rachel Matthiesen collected six hits and five RBI in three games, while Reese Twiggs tallied 11.1 innings while allowing only four hits and one unearned run on her way to two wins. 

- Women's tennis collected two wins, including a huge 4-3 road win at Saint Leo followed by a 4-1 thumping of #11 North Georgia at home. In Wednesday's match versus the Lions, the score was knotted at 3-3 before Amina Abduloeva won her second set in a tiebreaker, 6-2, 7-6 (4) to secure the dub. Meanwhile, Alyssa Novoa claimed two victories from position one, and as of this afternoon's latest ITA rankings, has moved up to #4 in the individual rankings. 

- Baseball captured the conference series against Lynn, winning two of three. Friday's game featured a gem from starter Noah Greenseid, who tossed eight innings of shutout ball while allowing just two singles and striking out six en route to the SSC Pitcher of the Week award. The third game of the series saw Rollins come back from down 2-0, and Stephen Deans tag out a Lynn runner trying to steal home on the final play of the game. 

- Rowing made their way to Benderosn Park in Sarasota to participate in the Sarasota 2K. On the men's side, no gold was captured, but they did earn a pair of silvers and three bronze finishes. On the women's side, the Tars took home six medals as they help build momentum towards the end of the season. Sophie Bolan and Kinsley Sparks captured a first-place finish in women's pair, while the Women's JV 4 and Second Varsity 4 each added a gold as well. 

- Men's tennis split their matches with a road loss at #4 Saint Leo, and a nice home win against #12 North Georgia. In the Saint Leo effort, Lawson Prather earned a nice win from the one-hole, taking down #12 Dylan Andrianaly. Against North Georgia, Fabian Gusic, Nico de Giacomo, Mo Anterist, and Pete Tran all scored individual wins. 

- Men's lacrosse suffered a heartbreaker on the road at #17 Saint Leo, letting a three-goal lead in the fourth quarter slip away as the Lions won 12-11. Logan McHugh and Zachary Blinkoff each recorded a hat trick in the loss. 

- Women's lacrosse also dropped their game against #11 Saint Leo in Winter Park. Chloe Pierini did everything she could to help the Tars, scoring four times and adding an assist in the loss. Audrey Grace Mumford added a hat trick as well. 

- Men's golf competed at the Battle at the Lakes, hosted by Barry University at Miami Lakes Country Club. The team took a 12th place finish, but saw Jules Haessig (playing as an individual) finish in fourth out of 99 golfers with an impressive 210 (-6). Clarence Chapman III had the highlight of the tournament with a hole-in-one during his first round of play. 

- The annual Rollins Sports Hall of Fame ceremony was a smashing success. The crowd at the Alfond Inn welcomed Jim Poling (men's tennis), Lee Stroever (men's golf), and Erica Pagliarulo (women's lacrosse) to the exclusive club. The special guest of the evening was Jim Lyden (HOF '81), who helped celebrate the 70th anniversary of men's soccer at Rollins; Jim was one of the initial members of the team back in 1956.



-Women's tennis hits the road for Daytona Beach for their twentieth all-time meeting with Embry-Riddle. Your Tars own a 10-9 lead all-time in the series, but today's matchup with the nation's third ranked Eagles could be the biggest one yet! Head Coach Tasi Purcell Batista leads the ladies into battle beginning at 3:30pm. In the first ever road trip to Embry-Riddle, Coach Tasi led the Tars to victory, sweeping her singles and doubles matches from the number one position in 2008. Here's to a similar result today!
 
-Men's tennis will follow shortly behind the women, making the hour commute north tomorrow for a bout with the sixth-ranked Embry-Riddle men. Both teams stand with only two losses on the season, and with the conference tournament looming, tomorrow's match presents a real opportunity to make a statement for Coach Friedman's squad. Doubles play begins at 3:30pm from the Crotty Tennis Complex. Vámos Tars!
 
-Men's lacrosse jumpstarts a doubleheader day over at the 'Spur. The men welcome conference foe #13 Florida Tech to town before a highly anticipated matchup with #3 Tampa on Saturday. This afternoon's home affair gets going at 4pm, while the road spar with the Spartans will happen in primetime. Both of this week's opponents sit atop the SSC standings, but the Tars haven't had their say in the matter. 
 
-Women's lacrosse caps the night of epic lacrosse. Their 7:30 showdown with #6 Tampa is as good as it gets. There is only one more opportunity to catch the ladies at home after tonight, and they are appointment viewing! Come out and support after watching the men take care of business! Then, on Saturday, Coach Kienle's ballclub hits the road for another top twenty conference matchup. This time, it's the #19 Florida Tech Panthers awaiting for a 7pm duel. Here. We. Go!
 
-Softball will be the ones to get the party started in Melbourne. They make the drive for a three-game set beginning Thursday. First pitch from the circle takes place at 6pm. To wrap things up, Friday will be played in doubleheader fashion. The first of two will begin at 2pm, while the series finale will get underway around 4pm. Halfway through conference play and ladies are right in the thick of things. Riding off a series sweep of Lynn, it's full steam ahead for the Tars!
 
-Baseball gets Florida Tech at home. The two will similarly move up the standard weekend series to be played only on Thursday and Friday this week. Tomorrow's 2pm first pitch gets things started for the thirteenth-ranked Tars. Then, Friday's double dip commences at noon. What's better than a day at the ballpark to jumpstart your Easter weekend? The boys are buzzing from the upper echelon of the conference standings. Come out and join the fun!
 
-Women's rowing has an action-packed weekend out in Lake County, Florida for the Division II invite. The two-day event gets going Saturday morning. With less than two months until Championship play up in Gainesville, GA, the women are preparing the ship for a title quest! Good luck ladies!
 
-Finally, sailing will have their hand at some fun on the water with the SAISA Open Team Race Championship in Charleston! The Tars first rotation of round one gets underway with Jacksonville University. The loaded field also includes the hosts, College of Charleston, along with USF, Miami, Clemson, and Eckerd, all of whom the Tars will square off against in the opening round of action. Based on the results, flights will be determined for the second day of play. Anchors Away, Tars! 

Links to live streams for most events can be found on the schedule section at the top of the homepage of RollinsSports.com. For home events, bookmark the Rollins page on the SSC Digital Network for year-round coverage. Also, be sure to follow us on our Instagram page, @rollinssports

-Tommy Tar
#TARnation