Men's Semifinal Recaps
No. 1 Adelphi 24, No. 4 Assumption 5
Box Score
Garden City, N.Y. - From the first faceoff, the Adelphi University men's lacrosse team meant business, outscoring Assumption University 24-5 in the Northeast 10 Conference semifinals on Wednesday.
Series History:
- Adelphi (15-0) holds a 17-0 advantage all-time against the Greyhounds, dating back to the 2010 season, when the Panthers. joined the Northeast 10.
- Today's contest marks the largest margin of victory for the Cats in the 17 meetings.
Highlights:
- Braden Donnellan finished with a career-best 10 points courtesy of eight assists and a pair of goals. Kyle Lewis had the next highest number of points, finished with six on the back of a hat trick and three helpers.
- Noah Gibson and Ryan Woodland got all their points from scoring, chipping in five and four goals, respectively.
- At X, Michael Reilly finished .500 and William Greaves went 9-for-12 with five ground balls.
- Defensively, Carter Linkletter and Michael D'Alessandro accounted for three and two caused turnovers, while eight other individuals were responsible for one of the team's 13 caused turnovers.
How It Happened:
- The offense got rolling very quickly, after Vincent McDermott netted a pair to start the contest. The Panthers scored four goals under the three minute mark to jump out to an 8-0 lead after the first 15 minutes of action.
- Before the Greyhounds had a chance to score, Christian Tomei collected five saves between the pipes but the damage by the Panther attack continued to push the game well out of reach. Reilly and Greaves teamed up for three straight wins to start the second, making way for a pair of Gibson goals and one Donnellan strike. By 6:22, Lewis had made it 14-0 in favor of Adelphi with his man-up tally.
- Assumption found some life in their offense under the two-minute mark, scoring their first and then throwing a flurry of shots towards the cage, but nothing managed to hit.
- Coming out of the halftime break, the Panthers used a trio of goals to stretch the advantage to 16. Linketter found himself in Adelphi's offensive territory and wanted in on the scoring, which he did when Alex Titto found him down low to make it 18-2.
- The fourth quarter saw the most action by Assumption's offense, as they put up a 3-4 battle in scoring.
Hear from Associate Head Coach
Joe Catalanotti:
- "To hold the NE10 Offensive Player of the Year to just one assist speaks volumes about our defensive preparation tonight. On the other end of the ball, Braden was the engine, facilitating eight assists and controlling the tempo from the first whistle. It's a great win, but we're already looking forward to playing Pace on Saturday."
Recap Courtesy Adelphi Athletics
No. 3 Pace 8, No. 2 Saint Anselm 7
Box Score
MANCHESTER, N.H. – Representing the conference as the third-seed, Pace University Men's Lacrosse authored one of the biggest wins in program history Wednesday afternoon, rallying from a four-goal third-quarter deficit to defeat #2 seed Saint Anselm College, 8-7, in the Northeast 10 Conference (NE10) Semifinals at Grappone Stadium. With the victory, the Setters improved to 12-4 overall and advanced to the NE10 Championship game for the third time in program history, and for the first time since 2003.
The Blue and Gold found themselves trailing 4-2 at halftime and then 6-2 early in the third quarter as Saint Anselm appeared in control. But the Setters responded with one of their most dramatic runs of the season.
Will Danowski ignited the comeback with a goal at 11:47 of the third before
Zach Goetze scored less than a minute later to cut the deficit to 6-4.
Declan Landers added a goal 31 seconds later, and
Jake Cenci completed the stunning four-goal run with the equalizer at the 9:00 mark as Pace erased the four-goal deficit in just under three minutes.
The momentum carried into the fourth quarter, where Danowski gave the Setters their first lead since the opening quarter at 7-6 with 11:53 to play. With just 3:43 remaining, Goetze buried his third goal of the day for what proved to be the game-winner.
Saint Anselm answered 22 seconds later to make it 8-7, but Pace's defense stood firm down the stretch.
Jack Kern made 13 saves, including a stop in the final seconds while the Setters killed off a late extra-man opportunity to preserve the victory.
Goetze led Pace with a hat trick, while Cenci and Danowski each scored twice. Landers added a goal and an assist, while the defense forced 21 turnovers and held off a Saint Anselm squad that entered the game 11-1.
After being outscored 6-2 through the opening 17 minutes, the Setters closed the game on a 6-1 run, turning a four-goal deficit into one of the most significant postseason victories in program history.
The historic victory adds another chapter to an impressive season under Head Coach
Tom Mariano, who earlier this spring became the all-time wins leader in program history and now has the Setters one win away from a conference crown.
Pace previously reached the NE10 Championship in 1999, capturing the title against Merrimack, and returned in 2003 before falling to Le Moyne. Now, the Blue and Gold will compete for the trophy once again.
Recap Courtesy Pace Athletics
Women's Semifinal Recap
No. 1 Adelphi 16, No. 5 Saint Anselm 14
Box Score
Garden City, N.Y. - With under half a quarter remaining in regulation, the Adelphi University women's lacrosse team used a pair of goals from
Ashley Kolomechuk to punch its ticket back to the Northeast 10 Conference Championship, following a 16-14 defeat of Saint Anselm on Wednesday.
Series History:
- Adelphi (12-4) maintains its 22-game win streak against the Hawks (11-7) following the victory, in a history that dates back to the 2002 season.
Highlights:
- Kolomechuk scored a team-leading four goals en route to a five-point afternoon. She was one of four players to post five or more points, as Alexandra Leggio put together a three-goal/four-point performance to lead the way with seven.
- Marielle Colalillo had a trio of scores and added two helpers as playmaker Julia Foppiano had five assists with one goal for six points on the afternoon.
- Rory Meehan and Sonny Lionetti each caused four turnovers each, combining for five ground balls.
- Saint Anselm held a 19-13 advantage in draw control wins, despite a team-high 10 from Rita Sefransky. The senior also tallied a pair of goals and collected two ground balls.
How It Happened:
- After scoring a pair of goals in the opening five minutes, Adelphi was only up one following a Saint Anselm strike. Adelphi managed three unanswered to make it a 5-1 game, capped with a goal from Emma Mclam. The team's traded goals but it was Julia Rowley's first of three strikes that began the run for the visitors.
- Very quickly the Panthers were back to only having a one-goal lead, but a 4-1 stretch to close out the second made it a four-goal margin at the half.
- The script flipped coming out of the break, as the hosts were held to two goals while Saint Anselm rattled off six in the third quarter to make it 11-all. Adelphi still managed five shots on goal but Hawks netminder picked up three stops to keep the Cats off the board.
- Mclam capitalized on a woman-up possession to make it a two-goal advantage at 8:39 in the fourth, but the visitors stormed back with two in less than a minute to bring the game even for the third time.
- A timely Sefransky draw control win sent Kolomechuk to the cage for her 56th goal of the season and the eventual gamewinner. She tacked on one more a minute later and the defense did the rest. Jillian McFadden, who finished with 12 saves in the win, collected one under the one-minute mark to keep Saint Anselm off the board.
Recap Courtesy Adelphi Athletics
No. 2 Pace 17, No. 6 Bentley 6
Box Score
PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Pace Women's Lacrosse secured its place in the Northeast 10 Conference (NE10) Championship game on Wednesday, defeating Bentley University, 17-6, in the semifinals at Northwell Stadium. The Setters improved to 14-4 overall behind a dominant performance on both ends of the field, returning to the NE10 final for the third time in program history, all within the last five years.
Pace set the tone immediately, erupting for eight first-quarter goals to take control early. Doty sparked the opening surge with two goals, while Sheehan and Schubert each added multiple tallies as the Blue and Gold built an 8-1 lead after one. The Setters outshot Bentley 12-2 in the opening frame and controlled seven of the first 10 draw controls to dictate possession.
The advantage continued to grow in the second quarter, as Pace outscored Bentley 4-1 to carry a 12-2 lead into halftime. Doty added two more goals in the period, while Nawrocki found the back of the net twice. The Setters held a 24-5 shot advantage through the first half and committed just five turnovers, maintaining complete control of the tempo.
Pace remained in command after the break, pushing the lead to 14-4 heading into the fourth. Schubert capped her hat trick in the final period, while Villari added the final goal to seal the 17-6 victory. The Setters finished with 17 goals on 34 shots and held Bentley to just 16 total shots in the game.
Doty led the offense with four goals and two assists, while Sheehan, Schubert and Heffernan each recorded three goals. Nawrocki added two goals and two assists, giving Pace five players with multiple goals and six with multi-point performances.
Kulo once again controlled the draw circle, recording eight draw controls while surpassing 400 for her career, continuing to extend her program record. Her performance helped Pace hold a 14-9 edge in draw controls and maintain possession throughout the contest.
The Setters' return to the NE10 Championship continues a sustained stretch of success. Pace reached the title game last season before falling to Adelphi, 14-13, and captured its first conference championship in 2024 with a 16-14 victory over the Panthers.
Recap Courtesy Pace Athletics
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