Four Of The Nation's Top Eight Teams Prepare for SAC Men's Lacrosse Semifinal

Tournament Bracket (PDF) | SAC Men's Lax Home Page

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – No Division II conference in the nation can boast a Men's Lacrosse Conference Semifinal like the South Atlantic Conference. Starting with a 3 p.m. face off at Limestone and concluding with a 5 p.m. start at Lenoir-Rhyne, the SAC semifinal round will feature four of the nation's top eight ranked teams according to the USILA National Poll.

#1 Limestone vs. #8 Newberry
Gaffney, S.C. | Saints Field
3 p.m.
Live Stats | Video  

In the first semifinal, the No. 1 team in the nation will host the No. 8 team as Limestone takes on Newberry. The Saints put their perfect 15-0 mark on the line as Newberry comes in at 12-3 and fighting to improve their NCAA Tournament stock. The game will feature the league's Offensive Player of the Year in Newberry's Scott Reed who leads the nation in goals (68) and points (89). On top of Reed, an impressive 16 all-conference players will be on the field as these two teams do battle, along with the SAC Coach of the Year in Brendan Storrier. The Saints won the first battle between these two squads this year, a 20-12 decision back on March 23 at Newberry.

Limestone captured the SAC Tournament Title in 2023 and won the SAC Regular Season crown this year with a 9-0 record. The Wolves have never advanced to a SAC Championship game in program history and will be looking to do so by being the first team to top the Saints in 2024.

#2 Lenoir-Rhyne vs. #6 Wingate
Hickory, N.C. | Helen & Leonard Moretz Stadium
5 p.m.
Live Stats | Video

One of the best rivalry games in Division II lacrosse will be renewed tonight as LR and Wingate do battle in the nightcap of the men's semifinals. The Bears are 13-1 on the season with their lone blemish being a one-goal loss at Limestone earlier this season. Meanwhile, Wingate is 11-4 on the year but all four of those losses have come to nationally ranked opponents and two have been by just one goal.   

LR boasts the best defense in the nation, allowing just 6.21 goals per game. They are led by SAC Defensive Player of the Year Victor Powell who just broke the program record for most caused turnovers for a career with 113. Behind him is the SAC Specialist of the Year in goalie Rob Pensabene who leads the nation in goals-against average and is second in DII in save percentage. The duo will try to slow the Wingate attack, led by Willie Grieco who is second in the nation with 86 points and leads the nation with 57 assists. Grieco sits 16 assists ahead of Mikey Berkman on Rollins who is second in the nation in helpers. Grieco is flanked by SAC Freshman of the Year Sean Clark who is third in the conference in goals scored with 39. Clark's teammate Danny Riley also has 39 tallies on the year and has 189 for his career.

LR lost in the SAC Championship to Limestone last year but used that to propel themselves to the 2023 NCAA Division II National Championship. The Bears took game one of the 2024 series, a 12-7 win in Wingate on March 23.

You can catch all the action of both games on FloSports or the FloSports app. Direct links to the broadcasts are above or you can go to flolive.tv.  

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