PENSACOLA, Fla. -[SCHEDULE | BRACKET] Keiser (Fla.) and Indiana Tech won their respective semifinal on Thursday and will continue the Battle for the Red Banner to the title game on Saturday afternoon. 

No. 1 Keiser (Fla.) def. No. 5 Webber International (Fla.), 15-10

Keiser (Fla.) utilized a six-goal second quarter to pull away and defeat Webber International (Fla.) 15-10 in the first semifinal of the NAIA Men’s Lacrosse Invitational Thursday afternoon.  

Season Records: Keiser (Fla.) 16-1 | Webber International (Fla.) 16-4

Game Highlights

- The two teams traded goals in the opening three minutes of play. Keiser took the lead with 7:45 remaining on a goal from Michael Shephard, while Webber’s Nick Sheaffer added a goal a minute later to tie the game at two apiece. AJ Badik of Keiser tallied a goal and an assist to give the Seahawks a 4-2 advantage after the opening quarter.  

- Keiser opened the second quarter with four unanswered goals, which included a goal and an assist by Jack Gillen, to extend the Seahawks lead to 6-2 with 9:18 remaining. Webber took advantage of a couple of Keiser penalties as the Warriors tallied a pair of man-up goals to close the scoring gap to four. Keiser closed out the half by netting two of the final three goals, including a goal with three seconds left as the Seahawks gained a 10-5 advantage.

- Christian Tomei of Webber opened the third quarter with a save and on the ensuing transition Gillen of KU connected with teammate Brent Young for a goal. Midway through the quarter, Jeremiah Loo of Keiser scooped a ground ball and had a one-on-one as Tomei notched his tenth save of the contest. Two minutes later, Chase Jackson of Webber found teammate Blake Nelson for a goal to cut the score to 11-6 with 4:06 remaining. The score remained that way until the closing seconds of the period as Alex Cordero of Webber made a save before teammate Nick Shaffer netted a goal to make it 11-7.

- Keiser opened the fourth quarter netting two of three goals to extend their lead to 13-8 midway through the period. The teams traded goals through the remainder of the quarter for the 15-10 final.  

- For Keiser: Jack Gillen led the way for the Seahawks with three goals and three assists in the game. Vincent Cerasuolo, Josten Ucros, and AJ Badik each netted a pair of goals, while Badik and Cole Stassi dished out three assists apiece. Cam Provines went 16-26 on faceoffs and scooped six ground balls, while Christian Tomei made a game-high 12 saves.

- For Webber: Nick Sheaffer tallied a hattrick and finished with three goals, while Chase Jackson notched three assists and four points in the game. Dane Fasano and Hunter Scott scooped four ground balls apiece. Austin Schepers tallied three caused turnovers. Alex Cordero made eight saves between the pipes.  

Keiser advances to the finals where they will face the winner of No. 2 Indiana Tech vs. No. 3 Cumberlands (Ky.) on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT

Subject: NAIA MLAX: #2 Indiana Tech def. #3 Cumberlands (Ky.)

No. 2 Indiana Tech def. No. 3 Cumberlands (Ky.), 7-6

Indiana Tech advanced to their third straight NAIA Men's Lacrosse Invitational final after Devin Macomber netted the game-winning goal with 2:39 remaining in the fourth quarter to defeat Cumberlands (Ky.) 7-6 in the second semifinal of the NAIA Men’s Lacrosse Invitational Thursday night.  

Season Records: Indiana Tech 17-3 | Cumberlands 13-6

Game Highlights

- Cumberlands struck first with a goal just over four minutes into the game. The teams traded goals before Samuel Bodley of Indiana Tech dodged and scored to tie the game at two all. Khanan Bodley of Indiana Tech added a goal in the closing minute of the opening quarter as Indiana Tech held the early 3-2 advantage.

- The Patriots came out in the second quarter with back-to-back goals from Tanner Popovich to retake the lead at 4-3 with 10:33 remaining in the second quarter. The score remained that way until the 3:30 mark when Josh Bramley of Indiana Tech connected with teammate Samuel Bodley for a goal to even the score at four.   

- The two goalies combined for eight saves in the third quarter as Michael Toohey of Cumberlands made five saves and Kyle Twobulls of Indiana Tech made three stops in the period. 

- Offensively, the two teams traded goals midway through the quarter before Will Rogers of Cumberlands put a well-placed shot into the cage to give the Patriots a one-goal edge with 3:21 remaining. In the closing seconds of the period, Samuel Bodley of Indiana Tech completed his hat trick and tied the score at six apiece.  

- The fourth quarter continued to be a defensive battle as both teams contested every shot and forced numerous turnovers. The score remained tied until the 2:39 mark when Devin Macomber of Indiana Tech netted an unassisted goal to give the Warriors a one-goal lead with a 7-6 score. Cumberlands had two chances to even the score but couldn’t convert as the Warriors held onto their one-goal lead for the 7-6 final.

- For Indiana Tech: Devin Macomber tallied two goals and an assist, while Samuel Bodley netted three goals in the win. Tristan McKneely went 12-17 on faceoffs with seven ground balls as Grant Seaman notched a pair of caused turnovers. Kyle Twobulls made six saves in the win.

- For Cumberlands: Will Rogers tallied a team-high four points to lead the way for the Patriots as Tanner Popovich and Dom Lulow tallied a pair of points each. Chrystian Coleman and Gabe Schwaiger each accumulated two caused turnovers and a pair of ground balls. Michael Toohey notched 13 saves in the game.  

Indiana Tech advances to the invitational final where they will face top-seed Keiser (Fla.) on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT

For more information about the NAIA Men’s Lacrosse Invitational click here.