Stony Brook, N.Y.—Top-seeded Albany used a 9-1 run in the second and third quarters to defeat UMBC, 19-10, in the America East Conference men’s lacrosse championship game.
UMBC, which entered the game 4-1 in its last five contests, finished the season at 7-8.
Senior attackmen Joe Lustgarten (Wading River, N.Y./Shoreham-Wading River) and Scott Jones (Port Coquitlam, B.C./Terry Fox) and junior face-off specialist Phil Poe (Harwood, Md./DeMatha) were selected to the All-Tournament Team.
Jones led the Retrievers with four goals vs. Albany and amassed seven goals in the two games.
There were four ties and lead changes in the first half until Albany closed the stanza on a 5-0 run. UMBC trailed, 3-2, after one quarter and 4-2 just 34 seconds into the second, but went on a 3-0 run to take a 5-4 lead with 9:18 to play in the frame.
Freshman midfielder Nate Lewnes (Arnold, Md./St. Mary’s) started the surge with an extra-man goal at the 12:41 mark, and Jones tied the score, converting a feed from senior middie Nick Doub (Annapolis, Md./St. Mary’s) at the 10:04 mark. Senior attackman Matt Gregoire (Crofton, Md./South River) got inside and beat UA keeper Blaze Riordan from a tough angle to put UMBC back out in front at 5-4 with 9:18 to play in the half.
After a time out, Albany tied the game 42 seconds later, starting the 5-0 surge. Albany outshot UMBC, 31-15 in the first 30 minutes, and despite nine saves by DiRito, the Danes led by four at the break.
UMBC came out quickly in the third quarter, winning the opening face-off after a loose ball battled and cashed in when freshman Pat Young (Ewing, N.J./Christchurch School) scored with just 39 seconds elapsed. But the Danes went on a 4-0 run before Retriever senior midfielder Dave Brown (Coopersburg, Pa./The Hill School) stopped the surge and cut the deficit to 13-7 with 4:25 remaining.
But the Retrievers could get no close in the final 19 minutes of the game and fell to 3-2 in America East title games.
In his final game along with 13 other seniors, Brown scored a goal and added two assists. Lewnes scored twice, while Doub added a pair of helpers.
Tournament Most Valuable Player, Albany sophomore attackman Lyle Thompson, led all scorers with three goals and six assists.
Albany outshot UMBC, 49-36, and DiRito finished the game with 10 saves. Albany freshman netminder Blaze Riordan made nine saves for his side.
The Danes converted on 4-of-6 extra-man opportunities, while UMBC was 1-of-2.
“I would like to thank our seniors for the great job they have done over the past four years, especially this year,” head coach Don Zimmerman said. “The guys are disappointed, but they should hold their heads up high. It’s a great group of guys, they work hard and they represent the school in a tremendous fashion.”
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