Spartans Defense Shines In SSC Victory

SAINT LEO, Fla. – The No. 1 ranked University of Tampa Spartans men's lacrosse team improved to a perfect 5-0 on the year with a close win over the Rollins College Tars.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

Final: Tampa 10, Rollins 7

Records: Tampa (5-0, 4-0 SSC), Rollins (1-2, 1-2 SSC)

Location: Barker Family Stadium | Winter Park, Fla.

All-Time Series: Tampa's win moves them to a perfect 12-0 record against the Tars.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

FIRST QUARTER

The top-ranked Spartans were humming early and often, scoring five goals in the opening quarter to take a commanding 5-0 lead. Jake Mosher McGraw, Tampa's third-leading goal scorer, buried the game's opening goal (unassisted) to make the score 1-0 Tampa with 12:08.

Tampa's next four goals were:

11:14 – Bryan Wright, assisted by Daniel Fitzpatrick.

06:55 – Ben French, assisted by Jack Wood.

03:44 – Wood, unassisted.

00:13 – Wright, assisted by Ben French.

SECOND QUARTER

Rollins scored 48 seconds into the second frame, making the score 5-1 Tampa. French scored his second of the game, again assisted by Wood. The Spartans and Tars then went back-and-forth, tic-tac-toe, for three goals in just over a two-minute span: one by Rollins, one by Luke McAnaney, assisted by French, and another one by Rollins at the 10-minute mark, 7-3 Tampa. The Tars scored and the Spartans responded just under a minute later, 8-4 Tampa. The last goal of the first half came at 2:30, by Rollins. Tampa went into halftime with a 8-5 lead. Score: 8-5 Tampa

THIRD QUARTER

The third quarter was a defensive battle, with each team registering just five shots on goal. The Spartans' Sam Collingwood scored the only Tampa goal in the quarter. Rollins scored twice to move within two. Score: 9-7 Tampa

FOURTH QUARTER

The only goal scored in the fourth quarter came at the stick of Owen Miller, unassisted. Score: 10-7 Tampa

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Blake Ulmer was a brick wall between the pipes, as the sophomore goalkeeper would finish the game with a career-high 13 saves. 
• Ben French logged his fourth game of the season with 10 or more shots. He recorded five points (3G, 2A) against the Tars.
• Bryan Wright had his second multi-goal game of the year with two against Rollins.
• Jack Wood, the team's leading point getter, scored a goal and notched two assists.
• Sam Collingwood scored his first goal of the year.
• Luke McAnaney, Jake Mosher McGraw, and Owen Miller each scored once for Tampa.
• The Spartan defense came up big when down a man, as they would only allow the Tars to convert 1-9 extra-man opportunities. 

BEYOND THE BOX:

• Tampa's last regular season loss came against the Lynn University Fighting Knights on April 13, 2019.

UP NEXT: The Spartans are on the road Saturday to take on the Lynn University Fighting Knights in Boca Raton, Fla. The game begins at 6:00 p.m.

GAMEDAY MULTIMEDIA: Fans may watch all home games and Sunshine State Conference contests on TampaSpartans.tv. Live stats are also available through TampaStats.com. Follow UT Athletics: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.

Text Alerts: UT also offers a free text messaging service that sends text alerts following all Spartan events. To sign up, please register at www.tampaspartans.com.

Front Row: Download the official app of UT Athletics on the Apple or Android store. Look for the Tampa Spartans Front Row app to receive notifications from your favorite Spartan teams. The app is completely free.