WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. ––– Palm Beach Atlantic head coach Chris Southard announced his team's 2016 season schedule today, featuring last year’s national champion, the University of Dayton, and three other teams that qualified for the national tournament. In our first edition of ‘Fish Facts, we’ll break down the PBA’s slate of games and what to expect.
Building Blocks Last season was a banner year for the Sailfish, who finished 2015 in the SELC Championship Game. They also had a top-ten strength of schedule in 2015 (according to LaxPower), but were left on the outside looking in for last year’s national tournament field. The litmus test for this year’s PBA team will be reaching and surpassing last year’s success.
“We’re looking to improve on where we were last season," said Coach Southard, entering his fourteenth season with PBA. “We will be tested again. Our program is excited to get better from one day to the next."
The Sailfish will get started right out of the gate, opening with two future NCAA opponents in the Sunshine State Conference: Lynn on February 6 and Embry-Riddle on February 13. After an early divisional game against Florida Atlantic (Wed., Feb. 17) and a date with the Miami Hurricanes (SELC, Division 1), the intention is clear.
“Our goal is to win our league and advance to the national tournament,” said Southard.
We’re Going On A Trip Palm Beach Atlantic will hit the road in March, embarking on an 800-mile trek to the Christian Academy of Knoxville (Tenn.). The Warriors are launching lacrosse at the youth and high school levels in 2016 and will host an extended weekend of college lacrosse to kick off their season.
No. 108 Grove City College will kick off the event against Missouri Baptist University on Fri., March 4 (4:00 p.m.), before CAK’s first-ever lacrosse game later that night. GCC has a quick turn around, playing at 3:00 p.m. against Palm Beach Atlantic on Sat., March 5. The Wolverines bested PBA in 2015, winning in a come-from-behind fashion, 12-11. Missouri Baptist plays No. 9 Siena Heights at 5:00 p.m., while No. 1 Dayton and No. 17 Reinhardt will tangle at 7:00 p.m.
On Sun., March 6, the Sailfish meet the No. 1-ranked University of Dayton (1:00 p.m.). In 2015, the ‘Fish and Flyers met in an early-season matchup, with Dayton coming out on top, 17-7. UD finished the year 16-3 and went on to win the Division II national championship.
Following a Monday game between No. 9 Siena Heights and No. 17 Reinhardt, the event will conclude as SHU plays Palm Beach Atlantic on Tuesday (both games at 1:00 p.m.). The Sailfish and Saints (Adrian, Mich.) have never played before previously.
By The Numbers Six teams from three conferences will clash in Knoxville for a weekend of games. Here are the distances from their respective campuses:
Reinhardt University – 168 miles
University of Dayton – 311 miles
Siena Heights University – 490 miles
Missouri Baptist University – 490 miles
Grove City College – 572 miles
Palm Beach Atlantic University – 802 miles
Home Sweet Home Palm Beach Atlantic ends its spring break at home, taking on Stonehill College (Fri., Mar 11, 7:00 p.m.). The Skyhawks and Sailfish have met twice before; PBA won 19-11 in 2014 and 13-11 in 2010.
On Mon., March 14, Palm Beach Atlantic hosts an SELC newcomer, Columbus State University. They'll compete in the Southwest Region, with the likes of Reinhardt and Kennesaw State, but shouldn’t be taken lightly; the Cougars beat six MCLA opponents last season.
After a game against Morehouse College on Sat. March 26, the ‘Fish will wrap up their home stand on Wed., Mar 30 at 7:00 p.m. against Lindenwood University–Belleville. The Lynx (out of Belleville, Ill.) traveled down to Palm Beach in 2014 and 2015, falling short by a goal in both games.
To Savannah And Back PBA opens its April slate of games on a trip to the Savannah area to take on the Savannah College of Art & Design and Coastal Carolina. It’ll be the first time the ‘Fish play both SCAD and CCU since the 2009 season–––––a year in which all three teams tied for first place in (what was then) the SELC South Division. But that was then and things are different now: both the Bees and the Chanticleers play in the SELC Northeast.
SCAD, ranked fourth out of nineteen teams in the SELC Preseason Poll, will look to avenge last season’s 17-4 loss at Palm Beach Atlantic. Though they’re both 2-2 in the past four contests, the Bees lead the overall series dating back to 2008. The weekend's games will take place at the SCAD Athletic Complex (Hardeeville, S.C.) with a 2:00 p.m. start time on Saturday and a noon start time on Sunday.
The Final Stretch On Sat., April 9, Palm Beach Atlantic resumes its Southeast Division schedule against Georgia Southern University. The Sailfish have won seven of eight games against the Eagles and also won last year’s matchup in Statesboro, 18-9.
PBA wraps up the regular season at home against No. 11 Florida Gulf Coast University on Sat., April 16. Last year, the Eagles and Sailfish met twice: once for the division championship and once for the conference championship (FGCU won both). Palm Beach Atlantic will look to stem the advantage, knowing that a rematch could be in the cards during both the conference and national tournaments.
Postseason Aspirations The 2016 Southeastern Lacrosse Conference tournament will be held in Johns Creek, Georgia on April 22-24, with day two and three matchups to be held at Northview High School. The MCLA National Tournament is set for May 9-14, 2016 in Orange County, California. The first two rounds will be played on the campus of UC-Irvine, while the semifinals and finals will be played at Chapman University.
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