Inaugural Season for the Sunshine State Conference.
Lynn, Florida Southern, Florida Tech, Rollins, Saint Leo and Tampa are ready to begin their first seasons in the Sunshine State Conference. This D II Conference has the potential to become one of the deepest and most competitive conferences in the nation. Florida Tech’s Head Coach Ryan MacAleavy stated that the growth of lacrosse in the South, especially in Florida, has been well received. He also added that the continued growth of the sport at the conference level brings more opportunities for local players to play at a high level.
Junior College Transfers boost Syracuse Roster
The additions of Offensive Dynamo Randy Staats of Onondaga Community College and Faceoff Stud Michael Iacono of Nassau Community College continue to bolster an already stacked Syracuse. The Orangemen begin ACC play now with two more weapons in their arsenal. I expect both players to have an immediate impact, especially Staats who had over 295 points at OCC. Iacono was a two-time All-American at Nassau and will be a physical presence at the faceoff X.
Southern Conference enters the fray in 2015
A joint agreement was recently reached between the Atlantic Sun and Southern Conference for the sponsorship of Men’s Lacrosse in 2015. Beginning in 2015, the Southern Conference will sponsor men’s lacrosse and will receive an automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament. The A-SUN will sponsor women’s lacrosse. Taking a good look at the agreement this is a win-win for the sponsorship of the sport in the South. In my opinion, the largest roadblock for any institution sponsoring the sport is conference affiliation. This agreement could lead to growth of the sport at the Division 1 level in the Deep South, and a tradition-rich Southern Conference is well placed to lead the charge in men’s lacrosse.
