Spartans Move Up Three Spots to No. 3 in Men’s Lacrosse Poll
TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa men's lacrosse team has moved up three spots to No. 3 in the USILA poll, which was release Monday. This is the highest ranking in program history, as the Spartans have been ranked No. 4 in the country on two different occasions earlier this season.
The Spartans will defend their new ranking Saturday, May 10, at 1 p.m. when they host No. 5 Mercyhurst in the NCAA Regional semi-finals at the Naimoli Family Athletic and Intramural Complex. It will be the first time in program history that two top-five teams will face each in Tampa.
The Spartans finished their regular season 15-2 and won the Sunshine State Conference regular season and tournament titles.
Tampa has averaged 14.53 goals per game. SSC Player of the Year Conor Whipple leads Tampa with 40 assists and 86 points. His season highlights include scoring a hat trick in each of the first six games of the season, recording a program-high 11 points in the Spartans 21-13 win over Florida Tech, and recording at least two points in all 17 games the Spartans played this season.
Also playing vital roles for the Spartans are Jake Rooney, Trevor Calleja, and Andrew Failla. Rooney leads Tampa with 60 goals, while Calleja has a .596 faceoff win percentage and has picked up 89 ground balls. Failla is 11-2 in the cage this season and has a .598 save percentage. The trio of Larry Gress, Marty Heyn, and Nate Tembi have helped hold opponents to 7.35 goals per game.
Adelphi moved up two spots to the top seed in the poll, followed by Limestone who is 16-1. LeMoyne dropped two spots and is tied with Tampa for the No. 3 ranking in the poll. Conference rival Florida Southern was ranked No. 12 in this week poll.
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