MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Lincoln Memorial University men's lacrosse team commences its third season on Saturday morning when they tangle with the Florida Tech Panthers at 11 a.m. in Melbourne, Fla. The Railsplitters went 6-6 last season, while Saturday will also serve as the season opener for the Panthers, who went 6-7 in 2016.
Schedule/Gameday Links:
Saturday, February 11 at Florida Tech (11am) –
Live Stats /
Video
Notes on the Railsplitters:
-Lincoln Memorial went 6-6 last season to make a two-win improvement from the inaugural 2015 campaign. However, the Railsplitters were sitting at 6-3 overall and 2-3 in South Atlantic Conference play after beating Brevard on April 3. LMU was right in the thick of the SAC race before losing its last three matches to miss out on the league tournament. It was a disappointing end for an otherwise successful season that saw the Railsplitters win their first road match (at North Greenville) and first SAC match (at Tusculum).
-The Railsplitters return their top-four point scorers off of last season's team in
Adam Golia (Victoria, British Columbia),
Kyle Arcuri (Patchogue, N.Y.),
Billy Kopsky (Smithtown, N.Y.) and
Dylan Neisler (Detroit, Mich.). Golia led LMU in goals (33) and points (41) in 2016, while Arcuri posted 18 goals and 16 assists as a freshman. Kopsky tallied 17 goals and 12 assists, while Neisler ranked second on the team in goals with 21 as a sophomore.
-Midfielders
Josh Hernandez (Middletown, N.Y.),
Kyle Fleck (Toledo, Ohio) and
Kairos Bodley (Orlando, Fla.) return after that trio played in all three matches last season. Hernandez was the Railsplitters' face-off specialist, while Fleck paced LMU with a team-12 caused turnovers. Bodley tallied a pair of goals and an assist during his sophomore season.
-The LMU defense is also loaded with returners, headlined by two-time All-SAC defender
Ryan Benck (Hauppaugue, N.Y.) and two-year starting goalkeeper
Joe Medel (Virginia Beach, Va.). The Railsplitters led the SAC in goals against last season.
-The Railsplitters added 14 new players in the offseason. Among that group, head coach
Ryan Kuhn, who is entering his third season at the helm of the LMU men's lacrosse program, expects
Hunter Clark (Marietta, Ga.),
Will Britt (Memphis, Tenn.),
Robert Tucker (Wantagh, N.Y.),
Richie Russo (Wantagh, N.Y.) and
Khanan Bodley (Orlando, Fla.), the brother of Kairos, to make the most immediate impact.
-Lincoln Memorial defeated Emmanuel 12-4 in its 2016 season opener. Golia powered that victory with six goals, while Kopsky had two goals and two assists. That moved LMU to 1-1 all-time in season openers, as the Railsplitters lost to the Lions 10-7 in the program's inaugural match in 2015.
-A comprehensive preview of the 2017 campaign is
available here.
Notes on the Panthers:
-Florida Tech went 6-7 overall and 1-4 in Sunshine State Conference play to finish in last place in the six-team league. The Panthers, who ended the season with three consecutive losses, were a solid 4-3 at home, but finished just 1-4 in road matches.
-The Panthers return four players that tallied at least 18 points last season in Cody Martin, Tyler Covey, Austen Zugelter and Charlie Morrisette. Martin led the team in points with 18 goals and eight assists, while Covey racked up 24 points on 11 goals and a team-best 13 assists. Zugelter tied the team-high mark with 18 goals and Morrisette tallied seven goals and 11 assists.
-Florida Tech will be breaking in a new goalie this season with the departure of both Christian Koch (11 starts, 11.6 goals against average, .453 save percentage) and Justin Ruiz (2 starts, 9.5 goals against average, .345 save percentage). Senior Matt Young, junior Daniel Flock and freshmen Raymond Francois and Kyle Forbes are competing for the vacant starting spot.
-The Panthers were picked fifth in the SSC preseason poll.
-Florida Tech should benefit from the return of senior Nick Wynne, who missed all of last season with a shoulder injury. He was an All-SSC first team attacker in 2015, racking up 19 goals, 19 assists and 35 groundballs. The Panthers also added a pair of ACC transfers in midfielder Nate Menninger (Virginia) and attacker Carson Clough (UNC).
-Ryan McAleavey is in his sixth season as the Florida Tech mentor. He led the Panthers to a school-record 12 wins in 2015.
Series History:
-Saturday will serve as the first meeting between Lincoln Memorial and Florida Tech. In fact, it stands as the Railsplitters' first-ever match against a Sunshine State Conference opponent. The Railsplitters will play another one later this season when they host Florida Southern on March 8.
