Utes Fall in ASUN Semifinal

Friday, May 1

Jacksonville, Fla.

4:00 PM

University of Utah

9-5, 4-1

Air Force

7-7, 4-1

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Air Force	3	2	3	5	13
Utah	6	2	2	2	12

Photo by: Liv Medivitz/Utah Athletics

5/1/2026 6:49 PM | Lacrosse

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Utah’s title hopes come up short, fall to Air Force by one

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The University of Utah lacrosse team fell in the semifinal round of the Atlantic Sun Tournament, losing to Air Force, 13-12, inside Rock Stadium on Saturday night.

The Utes (9-5) got out to a hot start in Florida, leading 6-3 after the first quarter and 8-5 at the half. Air Force (7-7) battled back in the second half, going on a 7-1 scoring run between the third and fourth quarters – including five unanswered in the fourth – to take a two-goal lead late. Utah cut it to a one-score game with six seconds left on the clock, but could not find the equalizer before time ran out.

Utah trailed in total shots, 43-38, while both sides were even with 25 shots on goal. Utah held a massive advantage in ground balls, tallying 43 compared to just 21 by the Falcons, and caused eight turnovers. Utah also won the majority of faceoffs, nabbing 16 of the 28 tries. The Utes did not commit a penalty, but were only able to capitalize on one of their four man-up opportunities.

GAME LEADERS
Zachary White tallied a career-high eight points, scoring four goals and logging four of the Utes' six assists. Friday's performance marked the third time this season White has logged three-plus assists in a game and the fourth game with five-plus points.

Luke McNamara tallied four points on three goals and an assist, while Ryan Stines and Nathan Chalmers each scored twice.

Colin Lenskold spent all 60 minutes in the cage for Utah, making 12 saves. The senior recorded 10-plus saves in seven games this season. Luca Pivetta led the defensive effort in front of Lenskold, causing two turnovers, while Nikko DiPonio caused one turnover himself and picked up six ground balls.

Tyler Kloeckl went 15-of-25 on faceoff tries and nabbed a team-high 11 ground balls.

FIRST QUARTER BREAKDOWN
Neither side could find a goal through the first six minutes of play, as Lenskold saved three shots on goal to keep the Falcons scoreless. Air Force opened the scoring, but Kloeckl won the ensuing faceoff and picked up steam, evening the score with his first goal of the season.

The Falcons scored twice to go up by two goals, but Utah responded with five of its own to take the lead after 15 minutes. White entered the scoring column with 5:19 on the clock, then set up Stines for the score on back-to-back possession to put Utah ahead by one.

Chalmers net his first of the day to give Utah a 5-3 lead with 2:14 to go in the quarter, and McNamara net his first less than a minute later to extend the lead to three.

SECOND QUARTER BREAKDOWN
Air Force scored 90 seconds into the second quarter. Both defenses locked down their opponents for the next eight minutes as neither side could find nylon, but White snapped the scoreless spell with an unassisted score. After Air Force cut the lead down to two with another score, White again found nylon to give Utah an 8-5 halftime lead.

THIRD QUARTER BREAKDOWN
McNamara got the scoring started early in the second half, burying a shot just 46 seconds into the third quarter. Air Force answered with one of its own, but McNamara capped his hat trick off a feed from White to put Utah back up by four.

Air Force ended the quarter with two unanswered goals, making it a 10-8 Utah lead entering the fourth.

FOURTH QUARTER BREAKDOWN
Chalmers put Utah back up by three with a goal early in the fourth, using a spin move to break free of a pair of Falcon defenders and create space in front of the net.

Air Force responded quickly with a goal of its own, the first of five unanswered goals that put Utah in a 13-11 hole. White net his fourth of the night with six seconds on the clock after Stines drew a penalty to create the man-up chance. Bryce Madden won the ensuing faceoff, but Utah was unable to get a shot on goal.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can follow along on social media (X: @UTAHLacrosse | Instagram: @utahlacrosse), and the official mobile app of Utah Athletics, Utah360 -- download here.