The Gators face the Temple Owls in the AAC Championship at Donald R. Dizney Stadium Saturday.
No. 7 Florida, the AAC regular-season champions, defeated Cincinnati 19-6 Thursday, while Temple slipped past Vanderbilt in a much closer 16-11 match.
The last time the foes squared off, on March 19 and 21, UF scored 29 goals across two days of competition to top the cherry and white.
The fiery Gator offense saw 11 different goal-scorers against Cincinnati. Midfielder Paisley Eagan and AAC Attacker of the Year Grace Haus combined for eight goals.
Shannon Kavanagh, the AAC Midfielder of the Year, became the seventh Florida lacrosse player to record 200 career goals Thursday. Brianna Harris hit a similar milestone, scoring her 100th career goal in an orange and blue uniform to become the 14th Gator to do so.
Owl midfielder Belle Mastropietro led Temple in its efforts against Vanderbilt. The sophomore posted four goals on the Commodore goalkeeper and added an assist for a final total of five points Thursday.
Midfielders Charessa Crosse and Bridget Whitaker each earned a hat trick in the game. Whitaker leads Temple this season with 40 goals.
Kavanagh and Whitaker face off in the draw circle. The Temple senior claims 80 assertive wins, while Kavanagh boasts 86.
The AAC Goalkeeper of the Year Sarah Reznick recorded a career-high five ground balls in Thursday’s victory. The redshirt freshman added seven game-changing saves.
UF looks to win its seventh straight championship title since program inception in 2010.
Opening draw is set for noon at the ‘Diz and the game will stream on ESPN+.
Contact Karina Wilson at kwilson@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter @kk_rinaa
Karina Wilson is a second-year student at the University of Florida within the College of Journalism and Communications with a specialization in sports and media. She aims to produce engaging, accurate and current content for all types of sports fans. Currently, Karina is The Alligator's lacrosse beat writer.
