Wheaton and Mass. Maritime To Play In ECAC New England Tournament
Springfield, Mass. - Both Wheaton College and Mass. Maritime earned berths into the upcoming Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) New England Tournament this week. The Lyons enter as the second-seed, while the Buccaneers will be the fifth-seed in the tournament.
Nationally-ranked Endicott College, which is the top seed and will receive a first-round bye in the seven-team field, hosts the semifinals on Saturday and the final on Sunday. Other first-round games are third-seeded New England College hosting number-six Castleton State College and fourth seed Plymouth State University welcoming fifth-seeded Massachusetts Maritime Academy.
Wheaton will be seeking its first ECAC New England title as the second-seeded Lyons begin their quest on Wednesday against number-seven Becker College in a first-round game at Mirrione Stadium at 4:30 p.m.
At 7-7 under first-year head coach Brian Endicott, Wheaton is making its fourth ECAC appearance and first since 2006, while the Hawks are 9-3.The Lyons are 3-3 in ECAC Tournament play after winning their opening-round games in 2002, 2004 and 2006. With a four-team field three years ago, the Blue and White advanced to its first final. Since an 0-6 start, Wheaton has won seven of its last eight contests, including matching a program record with seven consecutive wins. Finishing second in the Pilgrim League at 6-1, the Lyons reached their second straight title game for the first time in school history before falling at perennial conference power Springfield College, 12-7.
The Massachusetts Maritime men's lacrosse has earned a berth in the tournament as the fifth-seeded Buccaneers (8-6) will take on fourth-seeded Plymouth State (7-8) in tournament quarterfinal round action on Wednesday, May 6th at Panther Field in Plymouth, N.H. beginning at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
Massachusetts Maritime brings a four-match winning streak into post-season play, as Head Coach Barry Joyce's squad netted 54 goals over that span to finish with their highest victory total in five seasons, including three triumphs in Pilgrim Lacrosse League action.
