Sports Lowdown

Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Wednesday was a night the Florida Tech Panthers men’s basketball team would like to forget. The Barry Buccaneers put on a clinic from beyond the arc, going 19-for-38 for the game and outgunning the Panthers 103-78. The win improved Barry's home record to 12-0. Last week Florida Tech coach Billy Mims said Barry would be their toughest game of the season and he was correct. The Buccaneers were number one in the region and the number one ranked team in the Sunshine State Conference, going into Wednesday’s game and by the end, they left no doubt. At one point in the contest, the with the Buccaneers up 65-39, Barry had 36 points just on three-pointers, while the Panthers had scored 39 for the game. “They have a lot of great shooters and got looks that other people wouldn’t make against us,” said Mims, in his post-game interview with Jerry Durney. “They looked like the Golden State Warriors. At one point, I thought Steph Curry and K...

Tereza Sedlakova - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech women’s basketball team fell to 1-6 away from home Wednesday, losing to Barry, 66-61 in Miami Shores. The win snapped a nine-game losing streak for the Buccaneers. The Panthers (9-9, 3-7 SSC) made a late charge in the contest, as they were down 59-46 with 4:16 left in the contest before making a 10-0 run, capped by a three-point basket by Tereza Sedlakova . Amanda Allen hit a three earlier in the run. After a couple free-throws by Barry, Kareese Johnson got the Panthers to within three again, 62-59 with 19 seconds left. Barry was able to seal the game from the free-throw line and send Florida Tech home with a tough loss. “I think we played really hard tonight, just some things didn’t fall our way,” said Florida Tech head coach John Reynolds, in his post-game interview with Jerry Durney. “I’m proud of them, I thought we worked hard.” Florida Tech scored the first five points of the conte...

Jordan Majors - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Men’s basketball team had a tough task Saturday, when they traveled to Rollins. For the first 20 minutes, they looked up for it, as they led the Tars 38-32 at the half. Unfortunately for the Panthers, the home team put the pedal to the medal in the second half, scoring 59 points and winning 91-82 in a Sunshine State Conference game. It was the second straight devastating loss in the conference for the Panthers, who dropped a very controversial home game to Saint Leo on Wednesday. “We must be the best first half team in America,” said Florida Tech head coach Billy Mims, in his post-game interview with Jim Mitchell. “But we can’t play 40 minutes of consistency to save or lives.” The Panthers (11-8, 4-6 SSC) were up 12 against Saint Leo and up six at Rollins at the half, but lost both games. Florida Tech got off to a good start Saturday, with Jordan Majors hitting two quick threes. Things sagged...

Tereza Sedlakova - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Things got off to a good start at Rollins for the Florida Tech women on Saturday, but three turnovers to start the second half started a downward spiral and the Panthers fell, 59-50. They are now 1-5 on the road this season. The Panthers played good defense and scored 14 points in the first quarter, holding a five-point lead as the second quarter got underway. The Panthers kept the momentum at the start of the second quarter, as they went on a 7-0 run in the span of 2:35, while the Tars were 0-for-5 and that translated to a 21-11 lead for the Panthers with 7:07 to go. Things were looking good at that point, but the Panthers went ice cold, as they turned the ball over six times in a stretch of 4:42. Rollins went on a 6-0 run and that grew to a 10-0 run, as Rollins tied it up at 21, as the half came to a close. The Panthers scored seven points in that second stanza. When all was said, and done, the Panthers drou...

Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech women’s basketball team got a much-needed conference victory Wednesday night against the Saint Leo Lions, at the Clemente Center. “We stole a win tonight,” said Panthers coach John Reynolds. “I’m not sure we outplayed them and we certainly didn’t outshoot them. We outworked them at times, but we’ve gotta become better communicators and we’ve gotta understand what the role is of the player on the floor.” Freshman Amanda Allen led the Panthers with 12 points, while Gudlau Juliusdottir , Tereza Sedlakova and DeLise Williams all had 10 points. Williams also had five assists, three steals and eight rebounds. Juliusdottir had two steals and five helpers. “That’s probably the most balanced scoring that we’ve had all year,” said Reynolds. “ The first quarter was knotted at 17, with the Lions shooting well beyond the arc. They hit three of their nine three-pointers in the game in that opening stanza, while the Pan...

Robert Booth - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers had their chances on Wednesday, but the Saint Leo Lions snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, beating the Panthers 90-79 in overtime. The game was much closer than the score would indicate, as the Lions outscored the Panthers 14-3 in overtime, with 11 of those points coming on free throws. The Panthers (11-7, 4-5 SSC) were frustrated at times down the stretch, combined with Saint Leo getting seemingly every call to go their way at crucial times in the game. Sam Daniel led all scorers with 28 points for Florida Tech, Patrick Anderson and Jordan Majors had 19 each.  The first half went the way of the Panthers as they held Saint Leo’s big three of Justin Satchell had seven points, Tyreece Bryce did not score and Marcus Dewberry had six points. Meanwhile, the Panthers closed on a 12-5 run to end the half and went to the locker room, up 12. “Our game plan was outstanding an...

Jordan Majors - James Ragan Photograaphy The Florida Tech Panthers took all the Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish could dish out on Saturday, withstanding a late charge by the home team, to earn a 76-73 Sunshine State Conference victory. “I was really, really pleased with how we never quit,” said Florida Tech coach Billy Mims, in his post-game interview with Jim Mitchell. “Guys could’ve given up, one more mistake could’ve killed us.” Florida Tech (11-6, 4-4 SSC) was led by Jordan Majors 22 points and got 18 from Sam Daniel , who also had 14 rebounds. In the end, this game came down to free-throws, with the Sailfish missing three of their final four free-throws down the stretch and going 8-for-19 overall. On the flip side, the Panthers were 7-for-7 for the game, hitting just two from the charity stripe in the second half. The Sailfish (7-9, 3-6 SSC) led 5-3 with 18:29 left in the first half and never led again. The Panthers got off to a fast start, with Majors, Pat Anderso...

Shequana Harris - James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech women’s basketball team escaped Saturday with a 61-58 road win against Sunshine State Conference foe, Palm Beach Atlantic. It was the Panthers first road win of the season. It was a bit if a different look for the Panthers to start the game, with Amanda Allen and Ashle Thompson getting the start, ahead of names like Julie McCarthy and Shequana Harris . Those players did come in a little more than halfway through the first quarter. “We had a couple things that went on this week that we weren’t happy with,” said Florida Tech coach John Reynolds, in his post-game interview with Jim Mitchell. “We started kids that hadn’t started and they had the lead 12-6. We subbed, but they continued to play in the first half for us. I thought this was the best team win we’ve had.” Despite not starting, Harris led the Panthers with 15 points and McCarthy finished with 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds. She also contribu...

Patrick Anderson - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Junior guard Patrick Anderson led all scorers Wednesday with 25 points, but in the end, it was not enough to keep the Florida Tech men from dropping a 98-90 decision at Florida Southern. The home team shot Florida Southern shot 60.3 percent (38-of-63) from the floor, including 9-of-10 from three-point range. They hit 13-of-18 from the charity stripe. Florida Tech shot 41.4 percent (29-of-70) and was just 9-of-27 from three. “We just didn’t shoot the ball very well,” said Florida Tech head coach Billy Mims, in his postgame interview with Paul Van Scott. “When you dig a deep hole, you can’t try to fight out of it and make mistakes.” Anderson made eight of his 16 shots and buried four from long range, but off shooting nights from  Sam Daniel and Jordan Majors , who had huge games in last week’s thrilling 109-106 win over Embry-Riddle, meant that the Panthers struggled offensively and that was the differen...

DeLise Williams - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Following a big win last Wednesday at home against Embry-Riddle, the Florida Tech women’s basketball team was hoping to make it two in a row against Florida Southern. Unfortunately, the Panthers were overmatched by the Moccasins and dropped an 87-73 decision at Jenkins Field House on Wednesday night. “They (Florida Southern) did a good job offensively, they did a good job defensively,” said Florida Tech coach John Reynolds, in his postgame interview with Jerry Durney. “Sometimes it’s not that you played so poorly, sometimes just gotta give the other team some credit.” Florida Tech (7-7, 2-5 SSC) did get out to an early 6-2 lead in the game, but the Panthers got some good defense, including a steal by Michaela Gelbaugh with 1:38 left to go in the quarter. DeLise Williams followed that with two free-throws, putting the Panthers up 14-11 with 1:35 to go. Gianna Vastola scored four of the next six points for the ...

Sam Daniel (0) and Jordan Majors combined for 68 points on Wednesday In one of the most exciting finishes you will see, Sam Daniel hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer Wednesday night, giving the Florida Tech Panthers a heart stopping 109-106 victory over Sunshine State Conference foe Embry-Riddle. Jordan Majors was the man with the ball in his hands as the read 4.7 seconds. He was going to the hoop, but the Eagles sealed it off and Majors found Daniel open and got it to him. Daniel beat the clock and the Eagles, with the biggest shot of his career. “Jordan driving down the court and I credit him for being focused enough to see me open and it was ballgame from there,” said Daniel after the game. “Coach tells us if you feel like you’re open take the shot. Him giving us that green light builds everyone’s confidence, it’s good to know that you have that green light and you’re not gonna be faulted, if you do take the shot.” “This is my 13 th season here and I don...

DeLise Williams scored 23 points in Wednesday's win Florida Tech’s women’s basketball team got the new year off to a good start, with a 73-60 win over Embry-Riddle Wednesday night, at the Clemente Center. The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Panthers and moved them to 5-1 at home. Embry-Riddle fell to 9-4 overall, suffering their first loss in Sunshine State Conference play this season. DeLise Williams led the home team with 23 points, while Julie McCarthy and Tereza Sedlakova had 15 apiece. “We haven’t had three guys in double figures in a while,” said Panthers Coach John Reynolds. “Every kid on that team played hard tonight and I was pretty happy with the effort.” The Eagles had four players in double figures, led by Tara Fields, who scored a career-high 20 points. The Panthers (7-6, 3-4 SSC) led 20-17 after a back-and-forth first quarter, but the Eagles stormed back in the second quarter, outscoring the Panthers 22-10. The Panthers, who h...