WINTER PARK, Fla. - On Wednesday night, Florida Tech (0-1, SSC 0-1) opened up the 2017-18 season with a rocky start, as No. 17 Rollins (2-0, SSC 1-0) combined to total 54 percent from the field to rout the Panthers 93-65 at Warden arena.

The Crimson and Gray struggled making shots around the rim, as they netted just 24-of-71 shots and committed 15 turnovers. However, FIT held a 5-3 edge on the Tars in blocks, combined with a 19-7 advantage in second chance points.

Leading in scoring for the Panthers, Gracie Doane ran the offense with 13 points, as the junior knocked down 3-of-8 3-pointers. DeLise Williams and Gudlaug Juliusdottir added 11 and 10 points respectively, with Juliusdottir notching 2-of-3 3-pointers and Williams recording four steals.

Sophomore Tanease Richardson was one bucket shy of double-digit scoring, as the Savannah native ended the night outing with nine points. Sophomore Aniquah Swan followed up with seven points to go 3-for-8 shooting.

In the first period, Rollins took a five-point run to overlap Florida Tech 10-5, and made its next six shots to bring the score 20-9. With two seconds left, a layup netted by Rollins's Jaylyn Harrison closed the frame for the Tars 23-12.

Entering the second period with an 11-point gap, the Panthers hit the first shot of the quarter on a layup by Williams to close the Tars stretch 23-13. However, a deep 3-pointer by Rollins put FIT at distance once again, 28-14. With nearly two minutes left two play, Doane drained three back-to-back 3-pointers and made it a 50-30 game at the break.

Unable to make up any ground, Florida Tech trailed by as many as 20 in the third quarter, before Amanda Allen knocked down a 3-pointer that gave the Crimson and Gray some momentum to cut Rollins lead to 24. With 29 seconds left to go, Swan drained a shot in the paint to shorten the Panthers deficit 74-48 to end the period.  

Going into the fourth trailing by 26, Juliusdottir led the Panthers rally with a 3-pointer in the first minute of action. However, Rollins notched three consecutive shots and increased its stretch 80-55. From there, the Tars never looked back and closed the match 93-65.

Next up, Florida Tech will travel to Orangeburg, S.C. to square up against the Claflin Panthers on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 1:30 p.m. ET.

For live coverage of the event, please access FloridaTechSports.com!