SAINT LEO, Fla. – Behind a six-goal run in second half, the Saint Leo men's lacrosse team registered a 12-9 victory against fifth-ranked Rollins in the regular season finale at home on Wednesday night and Lions punched their ticket to the Sunshine State Conference (SSC) Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament.

Rollins jumped out to an early 3-1 at the end of the first quarter. Sophomore Matthew Cleary kickstarted the Lions will a goal off a dish from classmate Aidan Knoetgen followed by senior Guy Bistrow scoring off a pass from sophomore Greg Palmer to tie the game at 3-3 at the 12:51-mark of the second quarter. The Tars answered with a pair of goals to claim a 5-3 edge before Bistrow found the back of the net, assisted by Palmer. With 3:36 remaining in the second frame, Rollins tallied a goal and held a 6-4 lead at halftime.

The six-goal run for the Lions started in the third quarter as Bistrow scored in man-up opportunity followed by Palmer and Knoetgen each lacing a goal. Sophomore John Raucci continued the scoring frenzy with an unassisted goal before Bistrow and Palmer were able to score again as the Green and Gold led by a 10-6 margin with 8:43 left to play in the game.  The Tars trimmed their deficit to 10-8 after scoring consecutive goals, however, the Lions countered with goals from junior Xan Hayes and Bistrow, 12-8 and secured the victory with 58 seconds left on the clock. With less than a minute remaining in the game, Rollins scored to cut its deficit to 12-9.

Palmer recorded seven points with three goals and four assists while Bistrow posted five goals and one assist. Raucci tallied one goal and a pair of assists. Knoetgen finished the game with one goal and one assist. Additionally, Cleary and Hayes notched one goal each. Senior Michael Flores won 15-of-21 faceoffs and collected 10 groundballs. Knoetgen also grabbed four groundballs in the process. Sophomore James Davies recorded three groundballs and caused one turnover. In the net, senior Chase Strait posted 12 saves in the complete-game effort to earn the win.

Saint Leo returns to action on Saturday, April 20 as it travels to face Florida Southern in the first round of the SSC Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament at 12 p.m.