MELBOURNE, Fla. - Six Panthers recorded hat tricks as No. 5 Florida Tech overpowered No. 8 Rollins College, 21-12, on Saturday in a Top-10, Sunshine State Conference showdown at Panther Stadium. With the contest tied at halftime, the Panthers (12-1, 2-1 SSC) outscored the Tars (12-3, 2-2 SSC), 16-7, in the second half on the way to their second league win of the season.
With the result, the Crimson and Gray improve to 7-1 against ranked opponents this season, including a 2-1 mark against teams positioned in the Top-10.
Rollins had won 11 straight games, including a victory over No. 1 Florida Southern on Wednesday, but on Saturday that impressive streak came to an end against the high-scoring Panther offense.
Florida Tech was led offensively by three players who tallied five points in the game.
Lauren Tybor recorded four goals and an assist, while
Caroline Dunleavy and
Sam Schiano had three goals and two assists apiece. Also contributing to the victory,
Sara Grenier,
Mollie Kaplan and
Alexis Townsend each produced three goals and an assist.
Tybor tied a single-game program record with 12 draw controls against the Tars and Schiano finished with five ground balls and four draw controls.
Haley Heggblod matched a career-high with six ground balls to go along with two caused turnovers.
Brittney Embree led FIT with three caused turnovers.
Stephanie Stuart played great between the pipes, ending the contest with 13 saves.
A pair of free position goals by Schiano and
Mary Gormley gave the Panthers a quick 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the game.
A man-up tally by Hannah Ashton, who led Rollins with four goals and an assist, made it 2-1. Dunleavy's first score of the game, off an assist from Grenier, gave FIT a 3-1 edge with 19:47 left in the first half. Grenier and Tybor then netted unassisted goals to push the Panthers' lead to 5-1 with 16:58 to go.
Rollins would take over the rest of the first half and score four straight goals to make it a 5-5 game at halftime.
Florida Tech opened the second half with a 4-0 spurt to take a 9-5 advantage just 4:13 into the frame. RC answered with three straight tallies, two by Ashton, to cut the margin to 9-8.
The Panthers regained its momentum and ensued on a 6-1 run, capped by an unassisted effort by Dunleavy, to increase their lead to 15-9 with 14:21 remaining.
After Rollins trimmed its deficit to 16-11, Townsend spun her way through the Tars' defense and gave FIT a 17-11 lead with 10:54 left on the clock. Over the final 9:10 of the contest, the Panthers outscored the Tars, 4-1, to earn their third consecutive victory in the series with Rollins.
Florida Tech continues its conference schedule on Wednesday, Apr. 11, as the Panthers travel down to West Palm Beach, Florida to take on SSC newcomer Palm Beach Atlantic. Start time for the game is set for 7 p.m. at the PBA Soccer/Lacrosse Field. Fans can access links to live coverage of the matchup at FloridaTechSports.com.
