GAINESVILLE, Fla. – For the second consecutive year and third time in school history, the Florida lacrosse team (20-2, 5-0 Big 12) is NCAA Final Four bound after defeating the No. 15 Duke Blue Devils (14-6) 11-9 in the Quarterfinals on Thursday afternoon.

The Gators led by as many as nine goals and never trailed in this contest. Florida held off a second half Duke rally, in which the Blue Devils cut the Gators lead to just two. Florida came up with a key shot-clock violation, a key caused turnover from Celeste Forte and a major save from Georgia Hoey in the final six minutes to secure the win.

Six different Gators found the back of the net, headlined by two goals each from Gabbi Koury, Gianna Monaco, Clark Hamilton, Frannie Hahn and Josie Hahn. Jenny Markey converted on one goal as well.

It was a clean game all around with just 14 turnovers total (six from Duke, eight from Florida). The Gators defense held the Blue Devils to just .310 percent shooting (9-for-29), way below their season average of .462 percent.

Elyse Finnelle moved to 14-0 on the season, capturing nine saves, holding Duke to just two goals in the first half. Hoey was able to close the game out in the final 6:28 of the fourth quarter.

How It Happened

First Quarter

• The Gators struck first, as Frannie Hahn scooped the ground ball behind the net off a wide shot from Hamilton, where she came around the crease and put it into the back of the net, giving Florida a 1-0 advantage with 13:48 to play.
• Hamilton got in on the action at the 10:39 mark, darting by her defender for the right-hand rip and goal. With 8:28 to play, Jordan Basso found Koury for the score to give UF a 3-0 lead.
• Following a Duke goal with 4:35 to go, Florida answered 38 seconds later with two goals in 50 seconds. At the 3:57 point, Markey facilitated the offense from up-top and delivered a dime to Koury for the finish, before the 3:07 mark where Monaco used a silky spin move to find the back of the net. Florida led 5-1 after one.

Second Quarter

• Florida scored on the man-down, starting off a save from Finnelle, which led to the Gators in transition and Hamilton scoring her second of the game with 10:13 to play to give UF a 6-1 lead.
• Then following a Finnelle caused turnover, the Gators capitalized again with 6:30 to play as Josie Hahn scored off the feed from Basso to open up a 7-1 lead.
• Duke got one back, before Florida ended the quarter with two unanswered goals. Markey connected on a free-position with 2:51 to play, before UF scored with 22 seconds remaining. It took four shots on the possession, but Monaco connected on a score to give Florida a 9-2 halftime lead.

Third Quarter

• Florida captured two early goals, to push the lead to nine. Monaco connected on a free-position shot at the 11:18 mark, before Frannie Hahn found Josie Hahn for the score to give Florida an 11-2 advantage with 9:30 to play.
• Duke concluded the third quarter on a 3-0 run to make it 11-5 heading into the fourth.

Fourth Quarter

• The Blue Devils scored four straight goals to cut the Florida lead to 11-9 with 6:28 remaining.
• The Gators were able to weather the storm and hold Duke scoreless the final 6:28 to secure an 11-9 victory.

Coach O’Leary on making back-to-back Final Fours and what it says about the current state of the program…
“Yeah, I credit every player that came back this year, they got a taste of the Final Four. It’s such an exhilarating and exciting experience. I think they just wanted to get back there and they didn’t care that they had new players next to them, they had old players next to them, they just wanted to get back there. I think it started when they first got here on campus and they put the work in. The Final Four is kind of the icing on the cake, but I think we have higher aspirations, but I think it’s pretty exciting to get back.”

Key Notes

• Florida moves to 19-13 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 1-1 all-time against Duke
• The Gators move to 3-6 all-time in the Quarterfinals, moving on to their second consecutive semifinal and third in program history (2012, 2024, 2025)
• The Gators are just the sixth team to make three Final Fours since 2012 (Maryland, Northwestern, Boston College, North Carolina, Syracuse) as well joining those five, being one of six teams to make back-to-back Final Fours since 2012
• Florida has now won four consecutive games against ACC opponents in the NCAA Tournament
• The Gators move to 12-0 this season when winning more draw controls (12-11) and 16-0 while leading at halftime
• Florida moves to 7-2 this season against ranked opponents
• The Gators have rattled off back-to-back 20-win season, mounting a 40-5 record over the last 45 games

Active Streaks

Next Up
The Gators will travel to Boston for the NCAA Semifinal on Friday, May 23, where they will face the winner of Princeton vs. No. 1 North Carolina at Gillette Stadium.

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