SAINT LEO, Fla. – The Florida Tech men's lacrosse team was dealt a heartbreaking loss to Saint Leo in Saturday's SSC bout at University Turf Stadium.

In another thrilling matchup between the Panthers and Lions, Tech clawed its way back from five goals down to take the lead late in the game against the 2018 national runner-up. However, the Lions tied it up with just over a minute to go and then struck 1:27 into overtime to hand Florida Tech a 16-15 defeat.

"That was a great lacrosse game today and you have to give credit to Saint Leo's players and coaches for a hard-fought, well-deserved win," exclaimed head coach Mark Penn. "It was anyone's game and they made one more play than us.
 
"I'm really proud of the team for how they played today. We grew as a family today. We played much more disciplined and executed our game plan better then we have in recent games. With so many guys out with injuries, a lot of freshmen and inexperienced players were forced into action and they responded. Even the mistakes were made with purpose and effort and that's what we were looking for."

Reid Chaconas led the Panthers with four goals and an assist. Logan Sweeney and Justin Williams recorded two goals and one assist apiece. Braden Dunn notched two goals and Luke Palmisano posted a goal and two assists.

Daniel Flock stood on his head all game long and ended with 18 saves. This is his ninth double-digit save game of the season. Flock also picked up four ground balls and two caused turnovers in the contest.

Robert Filipow recorded two ground balls and two caused turnovers while Jake Pierson registered a goal, three ground balls, and one caused turnover. Kyle Sergio led Tech with five ground balls.

Brett Pohlmeyer got the Panthers on the board first just 2:06 into the game off an assist from Brad Schillinger.  Saint Leo answered quickly with a pair of goals by Charlie Kurtenbach and CJ Sowell to grab a 2-1 lead 80 seconds after Pohlymeyer found the back of the net.

After over eight minutes of scoreless lacrosse, Palmisano beat his defender and tallied his lone goal of the game to tie it up at 2-2 with 3:08 to go in the first. Philip Buque put SLU back ahead with his first score of the game.

Following an unnecessary roughness foul on the Lions, Williams found Chaconas for a man-up goal to tie the game again at 3-3 with 49 seconds to go in the first quarter. Schillinger scored 22 seconds later to hand Tech a 4-3 lead.

Unassisted goals by Williams and Chaconas, nine seconds apart, increased the Panthers' advantage to 6-3 at the 13:49 mark of the second quarter. SLU responded with a five-goal run and jumped ahead, 8-6 with less than 2 minutes to go.

Dunn was able to score with 20 seconds left in the half off an assist from Chaconas to cut Tech's deficit to one at the halftime break. 

The Lions scored the first four goals of the second half to build their lead to 12-7 with 4:49 remaining in the third. Sweeney ended the Panthers drought with an unassisted goal with 1:57 left. He then fed Chaconas for his third goal of the game, to make the score 12-9.

Pierson trimmed it to a two-goal deficit with 19 seconds left. Williams then scored early in the fourth quarter to cut it down to a one-goal game, 12-11.  

After Buque pushed Saint Leo's lead back to two, the Panthers answered with a 4-1 run including a score by Matt Gutmann to put Tech ahead, 15-14 with 2:03 remaining. It was Tech's first lead since the 6:44 mark of the second quarter.

Tyler Eames then tied the game up, again, at 15-15 with his unassisted tally with 1:29 to go to force overtime.

The Lions won the opening face-off of overtime and quickly took advantage. SLU moved the ball to Buque who unloaded the game-winning goal just 23 seconds into the extra period and send Tech to its third SSC loss of the season.

A big reason for the Lions winning on Saturday was their success on face-offs in the game. Jordan Williams controlled the face-off x in the game for Saint Leo, winning 22-of-35 attempts. Ryan Land went 8-of-17 against Williams before leaving with an injury. Ethan Tosheff entered the game in relief and won 5-of-18 face-offs. 

Saint Leo also finished the game with more shots (54-36) and ground balls (47-33). The 36 shots are the second lowest of the season for the Panthers, and quite impressive as they scored 15 goals on so few shots. 

"We took less shots than normal today but we took better shots then we typically take. Our offense was much more patient and controlled. We have things to build on, but obviously, time is running out on the season."

"I asked the guys to focus on being the best player that they can be. To get the most out of their God-given gifts. To stop focusing on being the best player or gunning for stats, but to gain competitive focus and push themselves to just fulfill their role."

With the loss, the Panthers move to 3-3 on the season with just one game to go in the regular season. Tech is currently in a three-way tie for fourth place with Rollins and Florida Southern. The top 4 teams in the league at the end of the regular season advance to the SSC Tournament. 
 
"We need to win next week to get into the postseason, so we have no time to lament this loss. Back to work Monday and we do not want our season to end there."

Florida Tech is back in action next Saturday, Apr. 20, as the Panthers host SSC rival Florida Southern in their regular season finale and Senior Day Game. The matchup with the Mocs is set to begin at 2 p.m. at Panther Field in the Olin Sports Complex.

For the latest news, updates and information on the Florida Tech men's lacrosse team, visit FloridaTechSports.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Panthers news by following Florida Tech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.