DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle men's lacrosse team added another program first to its resume on Saturday. Seeded fourth in the 2025 Sunshine State Conference Tournament presented by Pollo Campero, the Eagles downed fifth-seeded Saint Leo 14-9 in the quarterfinal round, marking the program's first postseason victory and the first trip to the conference tournament semifinals.
 
In the regular season meeting between the Eagles and the Lions, Tim Keefe scored the goal that sent the game to overtime as well as the game-winner. On Saturday, Keefe led the Eagles once again with four points on three goals and an assist to bring the Lions' season to a close.
 
RECORDS
Embry-Riddle: 9-6
Saint Leo: 8-7
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
• Saint Leo had a 13-5 advantage in shots and converted that into a 4-2 edge on the scoreboard.
• The Lions scored twice before Lucas Anthony got the first goal of the game for the Eagles at the 9:49 mark.
• Following a successful clear, Tim Keefe found Connor Hinson whose third goal of the year pulled the Eagles level at 2-2.
• Two goals by the Lions in the last 3:28 of the quarter gave the visitors a 4-2 lead heading into the second.
 
Second Quarter
• The Eagles owned the second stanza, outscoring the Lions 6-1 in the second 15 minutes of play.
• Keefe got the rally started scoring the first goal of the quarter off a successful clear at the 13:08 mark.
• Over the next 10 minutes, the Eagles got another goal from Keefe, two scores from Pete Abbes and another from Luke Barber to open a 7-4 advantage.
• Saint Leo got its only goal at the 2:08 mark, but Barber scored with 29 seconds left to make it 8-5 Eagles at the half.
 
Third Quarter
• The third period featured more Eagle domination with the Blue and Gold outscoring the Lions 4-1.
• Hinson, who had a season-high three goals, netted two of those goals in the third.
• Abbes assisted on one of the Hinson goals and rifled a pass from Christian Hofer into the net with 11 seconds left to extend the Eagle advantage to six (12-6) with one quarter remaining.
 
Fourth Quarter
• The Lions edged the Eagles 3-2 in the fourth and scored the first two goals of the quarter to narrow the gap to 12-8.
• Keefe's 20th goal of the season ended the Lions spurt and Trey Dring sealed the win by finishing a pass from Christopher Harper.
 
UP NEXT
The Eagles' semifinal opponent will be top-ranked Tampa in Tampa at 4 p.m. on Wednesday.