The 2019 Spring semester has been full of action-packed contests between the Lions and their opponents. If you haven’t had a chance to catch as many games as you had hoped, here’s a quick update on everything you might have missed from Saint Leo’s athletic teams so far this semester, and what to look forward to in the near future.
Softball:
The softball team has been on a bit of a roller coaster ride to start the season. They currently stand at an even 7-7 record, and after winning two out of three games last weekend against Palm Beach Atlantic, they start of the year with a content 2-1 record in the Sunshine State Conference. Senior Auria Mounts earned both a win and a loss in the series, bringing her individual clip on the season to 4-4. The other W went to junior Sadi Avants, bringing her personal record to 1-1. The Lady Lions currently stand at fifth place in the SSC and will seek to improve their position when they take on Rollins College in a three-game series this weekend, starting Friday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. at the University Softball Stadium. Rollins also stands at 2-1 in the SSC but holds the second place ranking due to their 7-1 overall record, so the Lions are sure to have their work cut out for them. Junior Kelly Kacie leads the team’s offense (of those who have appeared at the plate twice in over 75 percent of games) with a .404 batting average in 47 plate appearances, and Kendyl Crean and Kayleice Hooks lead the team in home runs with two apiece.
Baseball:
The baseball team has only been in season for a few weeks now, playing their home opener Feb. 1. They currently stand at 6-4 overall, and have yet to play a game against one of their SSC rivals. Last weekend they took on Columbus State in a three-game series, and unfortunately dropped all three games in close contests, two of which ended in an 11-10 decision. Juniors Joey Antonopoulos and Ryan Nolan led the team’s defense, each having pitched 15.2 innings so far and currently holding 3.45 and 5.17 ERAs, respectively. Senior Peyton Isaacson leads the team with four home runs on an impressive .405 clip, and senior Jared Morello is the Lions’ most efficient batter (of those who have appeared at the plate twice in over 75 percent of games) so far this season, having already accumulated 17 hits on a .459 avg. The Lions take on Valdosta State in a one-game homestand tonight (Feb. 19) at 5 p.m. before facing their first conference series against Lynn this weekend. The Fighting Knights stand at 7-2 overall.
Basketball:
As for our basketball teams, it hasn’t been quite the season we had hoped for this year. The men’s team currently holds a 12-13 record, and are a respectable 9-8 against other SSC teams. The Lions are hot coming off of two close conference wins against Florida Tech and Embry-Riddle last week, and will take on Tampa for the second time this season tomorrow (Feb. 20) at 7:30 p.m. Saint Leo topped the Spartans 72-66 earlier in the year in their own building, so it should be a pretty heated contest when they come to the Bowman Center. With three conference games being all that remains this season, the team has a great opportunity to finish with an impressive 12-8 SSC record; we’ll see if they can pull it off. No one on the team has impressed more this season than junior Kyran McClure. The 6’2 point guard from North Carolina has led the team in scoring all season with 17.8 points per game on 42 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent from deep. He also distributes the wealth and leads the Lions in assists as well, tallying just over three a game. Other team leaders include Yalen Reed (5.2 RPG,1.3 BPG), Isaiah Hill (10.8 PPG, 2.8 APG, 1.4 SPG) and Junior Searcy (11.3 PPG, 2.3 APG).
With the Lady Lions’ 87-63 loss to Embry-Riddle Saturday, the women’s basketball team moved to 10-15 overall, and 5-12 in the SSC, placing them ninth out of the 11 teams in the conference. With three more contests remaining against teams in the sunshine state, the team has a chance to improve their conference record and finish the season on a high note, but this obviously wasn’t the year that they had hoped for. Graduate student Casey Wortley had a dominant individual season on all accounts. The 6’3 forward led the team in points (11.2), rebounds (6.2) and blocks (1.5). Junior floor general Gina Brierley also turned in a commanding season, leading her Lions in assists (3.5), steals (1.1) and free throw shooting (2.1 on 63 percent), while also leading the team in minutes, playing over 34 a game. Finally, sophomore sharpshooter Delaney Bernard finished first on the team in three-point shooting, connecting on 1.2/G on a 30 percent clip. With so much young talent on the team, there is an incredibly bright future ahead for the girls’ program as their chemistry builds. Make sure to come out and support them as they take on UT at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 20 in the Bowman Center.
Track:
The men and women’s track teams will open their season March 1 when they attend the UT Track Invitational at 6 p.m.
Tennis:
After being ranked first in the nation last season, the men’s tennis team is off to a rocky 2-2 start, and are 0-1 in the SSC. They will take on conference rival Florida Southern on Feb 20 at 3 p.m. Chilean freshman Bruno Faletto, and English sophomore David Perez both hold a 3-1 individual record. The women’s team is off to a similar start, standing at 3-1 overall and 0-1 in the conference. Their next match will be at Flagler College Thursday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. Polish freshman Nina Furmaniak holds the best individual record at 4-0.
Lacrosse:
The men’s lacrosse team is off to a 2-1 start, and have five more games to play before they face their first conference contest against Palm Beach Atlantic. In their home opener against Alabama-Huntsville, Senior Charlie Kurtenbach tallied seven points, and Junior Phillip Buque scored five goals. The women’s team is off to a similar 2-0 beginning to their season, and they topped their last opponent, Westminster, 20-5 on University Turf Stadium, where junior Lexie Walstad scored five times, and junior goalie Erin Davis had eight saves. Their next contest will be Friday, March 1, in North Carolina against Mount Olive who is also undefeated at 3-0.
Make sure to come out and support our athletics programs whenever you can, and don’t forget that many of our sporting events, whether home or away, are available via live stream with commentary that you can access for free using your D2L account.
