Spartans Move Up One Spot to No. 4 in Men’s Lacrosse Poll
TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa men's lacrosse team has moved up one spots to No. 4 in the USILA poll, which was release earlier today. This is the second time this season the Spartans have been ranked No. 4 in the country and is the third straight week Tampa has been in the top five.
The Spartans are 10-1 and 3-0 in the Sunshine State Conference after wins over Colorado Mesa and Saint Leo last week.
Tampa has averaged 15.09 goals per game. Jake Rooney, Conor Whipple, and Mike Morris have played a major role in the offensive success. Whipple leads the team with 24 assists and 56 points while Rooney has netted a team-high 41 goals. Morris has tallied 17 goals and seven assists this season. Three other Spartans have netted double-digit goals.
Andrew Failla is 8-1 in the cage this season and has a .615 save percentage. The trio of Larry Gress, Marty Heyn, and Nate Tembi have helped hold opponents to 7.09 goals per game.
The Spartans will defend their new ranking Thursday, April 3, when they travel to Rochester, N.Y to take on Robert Wesleyan. The Redhawks are 6-1 after defeating Walsh 12-7 last Saturday. Tampa will wrap up their two-game trip Saturday, April 5, when they take on Mercyhurst. The Lakers are 4-2 after defeating No. 5 Dowling 10-8 last weekend.
LeMoyne held on to the top seed in the poll, followed by Adelphi who is 8-0. Limestone and Dowling round out the top five. Conference rival Florida Southern is ranked No. 13 in this week poll.
Fans may follow University of Tampa athletics on Twitter (www.twitter.com/utspartans), Facebook (www.facebook.com/tampaspartans), YouTube (youtube.com/utathletics) and Instragram (tampaspartans). UT also offers blast, a free text messaging service that sends text alerts following all Spartan events. To sign up, please register at www.tampaspartans.com.
