The Florida Tech Panthers are the athletic teams that represent the Florida Institute of Technology, located in Melbourne, Florida, in intercollegiate athletics at the NCAA Division II ranks, primarily competing in the Sunshine State Conference since the 1981–82 academic year.
| Florida Tech Panthers | |
|---|---|
 | |
| University | Florida Institute of Technology |
| Conference | Sunshine State (primary) |
| NCAA | Division II |
| Athletic director | Jamie Joss |
| Location | Melbourne, Florida |
| Varsity teams | 15 (8 men's, 6 women's, 1 co-ed) |
| Basketball arena | Charles and Ruth Clemente Center |
| Baseball stadium | Andy Seminick-Les Hall Field |
| Softball stadium | Nancy Bottge Field |
| Soccer field | Rick Stottler Field |
| Aquatics center | Panther Aquatic Center |
| Lacrosse field | Panther Field (men's) Rick Stottler Field (women's) |
| Nickname | Panthers |
| Colors | Crimson and Gray[1] |
| Website | floridatechsports |
| Team NCAA championships | |
| 3 | |
Sports currently offered by the program include baseball, softball, men's cross country, men's track and field (both indoor and outdoor), women's volleyball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's lacrosse, men's rowing, men's and women's soccer, and men's and women's swimming.
Due to financial difficulties, the women's golf and the men's and women's tennis programs were canceled in the spring of 2019.[2] The men's football program was also canceled in the spring of 2020.[3] Other sports formerly offered by the program include men's golf, men's and women's cross country, women's rowing, and women's track field (both indoor and outdoor).
Varsity sports
edit| Men's sports | Women's sports |
|---|---|
| Baseball | Basketball |
| Basketball | Lacrosse |
| Cross country | Soccer |
| Lacrosse | Softball |
| Rowing | Swimming |
| Soccer | Volleyball |
| Ice Hockey | Swimming |
| Track and field† | |
| † – Track includes both indoor and outdoor | |
Baseball
editFlorida Tech has had nine Major League Baseball Draft selections since the draft began in 1965.[4]
| Year | Player | Round | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Tim Wakefield | 8 | Pirates |
| 2006 | Jonathan Baksh | 7 | Blue Jays |
| 2007 | Steven Condotta | 12 | Blue Jays |
| 2011 | Jonathan Cornelius | 24 | Cardinals |
| 2012 | Steven Schils | 9 | Braves |
| 2012 | K.C. Clabough | 28 | Braves |
| 2013 | Scott Carcaise | 14 | Marlins |
| 2015 | Austin Allen | 4 | Padres |
| 2018 | Ty Cohen | 31 | Cardinals |
Basketball
editFlorida Tech's basketball teams competes in the Sunshine State Conference. They compete in a very competitive NCAA DII Conference with schools like Florida Southern that have won National Championships. Due to this Florida Tech occasionally plays higher caliber Florida D1 Schools such as Florida State, Florida Gulf Coast, and Florida Atlantic University. In 2011–12 the Men's team would win the SSC Regular Season Championship with a record of 21–5 (12–4 SSC) and reach the NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Tournament, where they would advance to the second round of the South Regional . That year they would play two DI schools University of Alabama at Birmingham and University of Central Florida, losing to both.
The Panther women's team has been playing since the 1986–87 season and have been coached by John Reynolds since 1987–88. The Panther women have reached the NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament nine times, won six regular season Sunshine State Conference Championships, four SSC Tournament Championships, one NCAA Division II South Region title and appeared in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in 2002. Entering the 2018–19 season, Reynolds' 559 wins ranks him at No. 8 among active D-II women's coaches and 20th all- time.
Football
editThe Florida Tech Football program was the intercollegiate American football team for Florida Institute of Technology located in the U.S. state of Florida. The team competed in the NCAA Division II and were members of the Gulf South Conference. Florida Tech's first football team was fielded in 2013. They played at the Florida Tech Panther Stadium. The football program closed after the 2019 season.
National championships
editTeam
edit| Association | Division | Sport | Year | Opponent/Runner-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCAA | Division II | Men's soccer | 1988 | Cal State Northridge | 3–2 |
| 1991 | Sonoma State | 5–1 | |||
| NCAA | Division II | Women's golf | 2019 | Cal State San Marcos | 4–1 |
References
edit- ^ "Florida Tech Athletics Logo (PDF)" (PDF). Retrieved January 16, 2023.
- ^ "Florida Tech discontinuing three varsity sports". Florida Today. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
- ^ staff, Scott Gleeson and Florida Today. "Florida Tech eliminates its football program amid coronavirus pandemic". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
- ^ "MLB Amateur Draft Picks who came from "Florida Institute of Technology (Melbourne, FL)"". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2013-09-05.
