Bradford, PA. -- After a year as a club team and a month of preseason practices, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men's lacrosse program is prepared to begin its inaugural season of NCAA competition.

"After a year as a club team and a month of preseason practices, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford men's lacrosse program is prepared to begin its inaugural season of NCAA competition," said head coach Scotty Gwyn.

The Panther program began in the 2023-24 academic year as a club team, giving coach Gwyn two cycles to recruit new players to the program. They could play scrimmages against the Newtown Masters club team, and St. Bonaventure, but did not compete at the NCAA level.

In their first year of competition, the Panthers will look to a few upper-class players to lead a team comprised of a large freshman class. Logan Giles is a junior long-stick midfielder who has been with the program since its inception. He will step into a leadership role in the squad, along with sophomore midfielder Reid Kristufek and fellow captain Alex Ortiz. Along with his upper-class leaders, Gwyn will look to assistant coach Jarred Tabor and student assistant Tyrone Bowen-Collateta to guide a young Panther attack.

"We’re a young, exciting team that we’re looking forward to seeing live. They have worked extremely hard and deserve the opportunity to go out and start writing the history of our program," added Gwyn.

The Panthers begin their season on the road, traveling to Washington and Jefferson for their inaugural NCAA match on Saturday, Feb. 15th. They will play their first 6 matches away from Rathburn Family Field, including a spring break trip that will see them play two games in North Carolina, before competing in a two-day event at Juniata College. The Panthers' first home game will be on Saturday, March 22nd, when they host Bethany. Conference Play begins on SAturday, Apr. 5th, when they face Hilbert.

In the AMCC Pre-season Coaches Poll, the Panthers were predicted to finish 3rd.