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Le Moyne Edges Top Seed Adelphi For 14th NE10 Crown
GARDEN CITY, N.Y. - NE10 Championships Most Valuable Player Riley Smith made 11 saves to lead the third-ranked and second-seeded Le Moyne College men's lacrosse team to its 14th Northeast-10 Conference Championship with an 11-9 victory over second-ranked and top-seeded Adelphi University on Saturday afternoon at Motamed Field. In addition to Smith, senior short-stick defensive midfielder Andrew French and freshman faceoff specialist Sam Kury earned spots on the all-championship team.
Adelphi held a 4-2 lead through the opening 12 minutes, but two late goals from the Dolphins tied it after one. The Dolphins kept the run going in the second, scoring three of the game's four goals for a 7-5 lead at the half. Le Moyne tallied the first four goals of the third to extend its lead to 10-5, before the Panthers answered back with two to trail 11-7 going into the fourth. Adelphi scored twice in the final 15 minutes but it wasn't enough to keep the Dolphins from their record 14th NE10 Crown.
Matt Hutchings had three goals and one assists to lead the Le Moyne offense, while Smith made 11 saves in net. Brendan McDougal stopped nine shots as he fell to 16-2 on the year. Gordon Purdie Jr. paced Adelphi with four points on two goals and two assists.
All-Championship Team
Riley Smith, Le Moyne - MVP
Andrew French, Le Moyne
Sam Kury, Le Moyne
Michael Papach, Adelphi
Gordon Purdie, Jr., Adelphi
Davis Cronin, Merrimack
Dan Keenan, Pace
Embrace the Victory: Adelphi, Le Moyne Set to Clash on Saturday After Men's Lacrosse Semifinal Wins
2 Le Moyne 12, #3 Merrimack 11 - Box Score
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Trailing by a goal with less than 30 seconds to play, No. 3 Le Moyne rallied past the No. 5 Merrimack men's lacrosse team with two goals in a 23-second span – including the go-ahead strike with only three seconds left by Evan Kelly – to stun the Warriors in the semifinal round of the 2019 Northeast 10 Conference Championship.
It was a game of runs as Le Moyne led 3-0 after the first, before giving up six straight goals. They rebounded to trail by just a 6-5 margin at the half. The Dolphins outscored the Warriors 4-2 in the third for a 9-8 advantage, however, Merrimack scored three straight for an 11-9 lead with five minutes left. Le Moyne pulled within one with four minutes remaining, and Matt Hutchings tied up the contest with 26 seconds left. The Warriors won the ensuing faceoff but turned the ball over, allowing for Kelly's late game heroics.
#1 Adelphi 15, #4 Pace 12 - Box Score
Garden City, N.Y. - For the fourth time in the past six years, the Adelphi men's lacrosse team will play for a Northeast 10 Championship. The top-seeded Panthers down fourth-seeded Pace, 15-12, in Wednesday's semifinal on Motamed Field to return to the NE10 title game after a year's absence. Adelphi is 3-2 in NE10 championship games all-time, winning its last title in 2015 as the second of back-to-back titles, and last finishing runner-up to Le Moyne College on home turf in 2017.
A 6-1 scoring edge in the third quarter turned a one-goal game at halftime into a six-goal lead for Adelphi, and the Panthers kept the Setters at arms' length from there over the final 15 minutes. Ian Kirby and Michael Osmundsen both tallied hat tricks for the Panthers (16-1) in the victory, with Osmundsen also tallying an assist for a team-high four points.
High Seeds Advance After First Round of NE10 Men's Lacrosse Championship
Merrimack 14, Saint Anselm 8 - Box Score
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The fifth-ranked Merrimack men's lacrosse program is headed back to the NE10 Semifinals after the Warriors toppled sixth-seeded Saint Anselm, 14-8, in the opening round of the 2019 Northeast 10 Conference Men's Lacrosse Championship on Saturday afternoon at Duane Stadium.
Sophomore Christian Thomas led the way up front for the high-powered Merrimack offense, finishing with seven points, while classmate Sean Black shared the game lead with three assists and finished with four points. Another sophomore Davis Cronin, was phenomenal on the faceoff X with a 20-of-24 clip on the day, and freshman Christian Glover was a force in the middle of the field, as well, causing three turnovers.
Pace 16, Bentley 10 - Box Score
PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Beginning their quest for an NE10 Tournament Championship, the 11th-ranked Pace University men's lacrosse team (No. 4 seed) earned a 16-10 win over fifth-seeded Bentley in the quarterfinal round on Saturday night. The victory advances the Setters (13-3, 8-3) to the NE10 semifinals where they will meet top-seeded Adelphi on Wednesday night. Pace's 13 triumphs this year are the second most in a single season in program history.
The duo of Connor Vercruysse and Daniel Keenan was once again lethal on the attack for Pace. They each finished the night with five goals, while combining for 13 total points.
ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 14 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 student-athletes compete in conference championships, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
