Kansas City, MO – On the heels of finishing as the AAC Tournament Runner-Up, the Cumberlands men's lacrosse team earned the third-seed in the 2025 NAIA National Tournament, announced by the national office Monday.  It marks the seventh straight year that the Patriots have qualified for the national tournament.
 
UC will face sixth-seed Indiana Tech, who earned an at-large berth on Wednesday, May 7^th at 6 p.m.  It marks the fourth time that these two teams will square off in the NAIA Championship and they first time that they will meet in the quarterfinals.  Earlier this season UC defeated Indiana Tech 8-7 in Fort Wayne, IN.
 
Cumberlands enters the NAIA Tournament with an 11-4 record, including a 5-3 mark in conference play.  The Patriots posted nine wins over teams that were ranked or receiving votes, including four wins over teams that qualified for this year's championship.  UC defeated second-ranked Webber 12-5 in the semifinals of the AAC Tournament.  The Patriots are ranked second in the NAIA with a 90.5% clear percentage, while there 8.77 goals against average is ranked fifth in the country.
 
UC is led by a balanced attack with five different Patriot players recording at least 40 points on the year.  Nick Kava has notched 36 goals, 23 assists, and a team-best 59 points.  He is coming off a strong AAC Tournament, where he set the single game points record.  Maalek Wilson tallied 56 points, while Evan Barton has netted a team-high 37 goals.  Johnathon Vanover and Will Rogers have notched 44 and 42 points, respectively.  Gabe Schwaiger and Taylor Long have 25 caused turnovers apiece and combined for 99 ground balls, while Dakota White has a 60.6% faceoff win percentage.
 
Indiana Tech earned the sixth-seed after a 13-3 season, including a 6-1 mark to be the WHAC regular season champions. The Warriors have outscored their opponents 279-148 on the season, while they are fourth in the NAIA with a 56.1% save percentage.  Devin Macomber has notched 101 points, while Kyle TwoBulls has made 187 saves on the year.
 
UC has won the last two match-up between these two schools.  This year marks the inaugural NAIA Championships after it was a National Invitational previously.
 
The winner of this game will face the winner of #2 Reinhardt taking on #7 Madonna.  Both teams earned an at-large berth into the championship field.
 
More information about the NAIA women's lacrosse championships can be found here.
 
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