Stetson lacrosse today announced its 2015 schedule, one which features 10 home games under first-year head coach Christy Leach.

The Hatters open play with an exhibition against the United States' U19 team at Barron Collier High School in Naples, Fla., on January 17, less than a week after practice begins.

The regular season begins on February 14 when the Hatters host Coastal Carolina at the Athletic Training Center.

“I think it's a pretty competitive schedule,” said Leach. “It's a schedule that should allow us to have some success. It will allow us to focus on us, but our non-conference games will prepare us for league games.”

The Atlantic Sun Conference has undergone some changes since the end of last season with the addition of Old Dominion, Mercer and Furman, while Elon departs. Stetson begins A-Sun play at Howard on March 27.

“Every game will help us improve,” said Leach. “We don't want to plateau in our last game in February. March will be a very trying time for us with eight matches in the month. It's going to be a character-building month. We just want to keep improving in every game we play, so when we get to the conference tournament, we're ready to make an impact.”

The A-Sun Tournament is scheduled for April 29 through May 3 in Jacksonville. The league's top six teams will advance to participate in the championship.

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