This time last year, there wasn’t any fallout from the men’s lacrosse team’s loss at the end of the season. There was no lacrosse team last season.
Last week, the UT lacrosse team clinched the top seed in the southern portion of the Deep South Conference. Going into Thursday’s semifinal against Florida Southern, UT had an 11-4 record overall and a 7-1 record in their conference. It was an impressive mark for a first-year team.
“Clinching the DSC was an amazing feeling,” said freshman attacker Jon Franzese. “We showed the conference that we are here to stay. We aren’t a pushover first year program.” However, clinching a comfortable seed in the tournament was only a portion of the battle. Florida Southern defeated St. Leo University last Tuesday and had a quick turnaround to face UT at Art and Polly Pepin Stadium on Thursday. The winner would go on to the final and play against Catawba College in Salisbury, NC on Sunday, 4/15.
Clear skies and 80 degree weather made for a pleasant atmosphere for the hundreds of fans in support. Spartan fans were loud and fully expected the Spartans to pull out the victory. The contest was highly anticipated, as both teams were considerably matched, both in red, and both desperately needing a victory to stay alive in the tournament.
“It was a big turnout,” said senior spectator Grace Lanoue. “It was a good show of school support.”
However, Florida Southern came out hot and found themselves up 4-0 at the end of the first quarter, and the second quarter ended with UT’s defense stepping up. The teams entered the locker rooms at halftime 5-1 in favor of FSC.
UT came out in the 3rd quarter looking like a new team. Junior Kevin Castle and Kyle Hemrick scored in the third and cut the lead to two.
After another FSC goal, captain Greg Griffo and A.J. Desimone scored to come within one – 6-5. The Spartans came on the field in the fourth quarter, but uncharacteristically fizzled out quickly.
“We came out less excited in the 4th quarter,” freshman Macklin Carballal said. “Usually the fourth quarter is all ours. Not today.” The game ended with a few back and forth goals, but in the end, UT came up short and lost 11-7.
The Spartans were debilitated by poor circulation and errant passes throughout the game, but it was most evident in the 1st and 4th quarters.
Though the Spartans had the upper hand in face-offs thanks to Greg Khandazian’s consistent success off the draw, UT didn’t outdo FSC in any area. They were behind in shots on goal 22-13. They recovered 21 ground balls to FSC’s 29.
A slow start and a weak finish made for a disappointing loss and the end of the Spartans’ season. FSC would move on, and UT would be staying home.
“[The] game was very upsetting,” Franzese said afterwards. “We were very prepared, but just didn’t execute how we knew we could have. It was a rough way to end a great, hard-fought season. True, the season ended on a sour note, but the Spartans will be back next season playing on their new field. They look to take their success a little further next season. The Deep South Championship is a realistic goal – the only goal.
Greg Spracklin can be reached at gspracklin@spartans.ut.edu.