No More Waiting: Florida Southern Wins First NCAA Title Since 2016

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A miserable weather day in Western New York that featured unseasonably cool temperatures, steady winds and non-stop rain often coming down sideways will nevertheless be remembered as one of the best days in Florida Southern lacrosse history. It was a perfect (water) moccasin day.

FSC played a near flawless first half while building a five-goal lead and held off a fourth quarter charge from Maryville to register a 9-7 victory and secure the program’s second NCAA Division II championship.

A balanced offense, strong man-to-man defense, and a clear advantage on the draw circle equaled a winning formula for Florida Southern, which finished the year with a 17-game winning streak and a final 21-1 record.

Seven different Mocs scored in the first half as Florida Southern outshot Maryville 16-5 and bult a 7-2 halftime lead. A five goal run over a stretch of 25 minutes created all the separation needed to eventually lead FSC to its first NCAA title since 2016.

In the final tally, eight different players accounted for the Mocs’ nine goals.

“We have said all season long that we never know whose day it’s going to be and we can rely on anybody at any given time,” said FSC head coach Kara Reber. “We have a lot of different looks, and you can’t really shut down one person.”

The FSC defense was equally as dominant in the first half, forcing nine Saints turnovers and limiting MU’s top two scorers – Paige Murphy and Helen Bae -- to zero goals and just two combined shots.

“We knew that number 10 (Bae) and number 12 (Murphy) were their biggest threats going into this game, but for us, it was mostly about playing through the weather,” said Reber, who has now led FSC to three different 20-win campaigns.

While FSC’s offense cooled a bit in the third quarter, tallying just two goals to increase its lead to 9-2, the Mocs’ defense continued to thrive, with freshman goalie Annesley Flint making four saves.

Limited to just 10 shots through three quarters, Maryville’s offense finally came to life in the fourth quarter. Bae and Murphy both tallied their first points of the day when Bae scored at 14:02 on Murphy’s assist. Murphy then scored her first of the day 90 seconds later on a laser from the left wing that was the first open look she had all day.

Those two goals sparked a late charge from the Saints who added three more tallies and eventually cut the lead to 9-7 on Kylie Pettus’ second goal of the game with 2:20 left. Maryville won the ensuing draw and had a chance to pull closer, but a costly turnover coming out of a timeout cut the rally short.

“I think we started the game a little too tight and a little too nervous and didn’t really play to our identity,” said Maryville coach Melissa Gyllenborg. “The second half, for us, was much better. We made some adjustments in our sets to try to get our shooters their shots.”

An FSC turnover with 59 secs left provided Maryville with another chance to pull to within one, but Murphy’s shot from the crease with 34 seconds left was saved by the Mocs’ Rebekah Bargeron, who had relieved Flint in the cage four minutes earlier.

“We had a little crash there in the fourth quarter, but we got ourselves in position to play through that and finish the game,” Reber said. “I knew I was going to get Rebekah on the field at one point or the other, and the fact that they had gone on a five-goal run was a good opportunity to put her out there. Obviously, she made a great stop that we needed.”

Maryville entered the championship game ranked seventh in the nation in scoring, averaging 16.7 goals/game, and had scored at least 10 goals in every game this season. FSC’s stellar defensive effort, spearheaded by Julia Lucas and twins Brayden and Audrey Cannelli, among others, held the Saints to single digits for the first time all year.

Murphy finished with two goals in the game and 113 on the season, falling two goals shy of the NCAA Division II record for most goals in a season. The Saints finished the year with a 17-5 record while advancing to the championship game for the first time in program history.

Junior midfielder Kolby Cohen, FSC’s primary draw specialist, was selected as the tournament’s most outstanding player after finishing as the Mocs’ only multi-goal scorer and adding a game-high six draw controls.

“We really put a focus on draw controls and one of our goals is to score on 75-percent of the draws that we win,” Cohen said. “It emphasizes how important every single possession is so that we have as many opportunities on offense as we can.”

The 2026 championship was the third straight for a member of the Sunshine State Conference (Tampa won in 2024 and 2025), which Reber noted in her postgame comments.

“We play a lot of close games all season long and play a tough schedule, so our players are used to being in tight games,” Reber said. “Our conference prepares us for the national stage. Absolutely.”