FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Fourth NE10 Title for Adelphi.
GARDEN CITY, N.Y. - For the first time since 2015, the Adelphi men's lacrosse team is Northeast-10 Conference champions after a 9-2 decision over Le Moyne on Saturday in less than ideal weather conditions.
Grad student James Hall was announced as the tournament MVP, accompanied by Tom Galgano and Joseph Duchnowski on the All-Tournament team. Hall finished the game with two goals and two assists en-route to the victory.
The two teams have matched up in the finals four times since 2013, with the Dolphins winning three of their four matchups. This victory marks the sixth victory ever against Le Moyne and Adelphi's fourth NE10 Championship title in program history. The Panthers snapped the Dolphins two year conference title win streak and held Le Moyne to the fewest goals scored since scoring one against Geneseo State in 1990.
In the opening frame of the rematch between top two seeds, the home team dominated the stretch with three unanswered goals. Duchnowski called his own number to jump out to an early 1-0 lead. Three caused turnovers from the Panther defense helped them keep the second seeded Dolphins at bay. Brian Harinski and Michael Paccione chipped in with one a piece to head into the second quarter with a three goal advantage.
The second frame started off with Joseph Diggle slicing through the defense to get it past NE10 Goalkeeper of the Year, Frank Delia. A 4-0 lead was in the Panthers grasp as the defense forced two more turnovers. A late surge from the Dolphins included goals from Devin Andrews and Zach Pierce to cut the home team's lead in half. With a chance to take a 5-2 lead into the break, the Jason Rebaudo shot was saved by netminder Delia as the Dolphins took a timeout. Their attempt to cut the lead before the half was thwarted by Dylan Renner to go into the halftime intermission up 4-2.
With Le Moyne surging heading into the half, Adelphi cut the Dolphins momentum with a Hall goal early in the third quarter to stretch out the lead 5-2. The eventual MVP continued to set the table for the offense, assisting Steinbach for his 31st goal of the season. The Dolphins kept pushing, forcing four turnovers and shooting five times on goal, none resulting in points. Adelphi headed into the final 15 minutes of championship action with a 6-2 lead.
The Panthers set the tone early, as Hall and Steinbach each added a point to the board to stretch the home team lead out to 8-2 - a six goal lead is what they used in the regular season to secure the victory in April. The defensive pressure was too much for Le Moyne, holding them scoreless in the second half as the Panthers continued their offensive streak. Michael Caiazzo came on the field and scored his fifth goal of the season to cap the scoring in the 9-2 victory.
The NCAA Selection show will take place on Sun. May 8 at 7:30 pm on ncaa.com.
-Recap provided by Adelphi athletic communications-
ALL-CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM
James Hall, Adelphi *
Joseph Duchnowski, Adelphi
Tom Galgano, Adelphi
Ryan Albert, Le Moyne
Zach Pierce, Le Moyne
Keaton Roarick, Bentley
Noah Larsen, Saint Anselm
*Most Outstanding Player
ELITE 24 AWARD
Henry Miller, Le Moyne
2022 NE10 Men's Lacrosse Championship
Saturday, April 30th
First Round
Game 1: #3 Saint Anselm 18, #6 Southern New Hampshire 6
Game 2: #5 Bentley 7, #4 Pace 3
Wednesday, May 4th
Semifinals
Game 3: #2 Le Moyne 15, #3 Saint Anselm 11
Game 4: #1 Adelphi 15, #5 Bentley 10
Saturday, May 7th
Championship
Game 5: #1 Adelphi 9, #2 Le Moyne 2
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 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, 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.
