The 2011 America East Men's Lacrosse Championship gets underway with semifinal action tonights. Top-seeded Stony Brook hosts fourth-seeded Binghamton in one matchup while second-seeded Hartford entertains third-seeded UMBC in the other. Both games start at 7 p.m. with the winners advancing to Saturday's championship game.
Stony Brook (9-3) is the tournament's top seed for the second straight season after completing a perfect conference schedule for the second straight year, something no America East team had accomplished since Hofstra did it four times from 1995-98. The top seed has won five straight America East titles and 10 tournament games in a row overall.
Hartford (9-6), which is making its first tournament appearance in eight years, is the championship's No. 2 seed, its highest finish since 2003. The Hawks' nine wins this season is more than their victory total in their last four seasons combined (8).
UMBC (6-6) is appearing in its seventh straight America East tournament since joining the league in 2004. The Retrievers, the No. 3 seed, will be the lower-seeded team for the first time in the semifinal round. Winners in four of its last five games, UMBC has won two of the last three America East titles.
Binghamton (7-7) returns to the championship after missing it last year for the first time since joining the league in 2002. The Bearcats are in search of their first tournament win since 2004 when the Bearcats won their only America East title. Binghamton's seven victories are its most since 2006.
Stony Brook and Binghamton are meeting for only the second time in championship play. The Bearcats won the only previous meeting, a 7-6 overtime decision in 2004, en route to the conference crown. The Seawolves downed the Bearcats, 13-6, in their regular-season matchup.
Hartford and UMBC will meet in the tournament for the first time. The Hawks have won three straight regular-season meetings against the Retrievers, including a 10-6 decision Saturday.
Tickets for the two semifinal contests can be purchased through the Stony Brook and Hartford UMBC ticket offices. Prices are $8 for adults, $5 for youth and $2 for students of America East institutions with proper ID. Tickets for the Stony Brook-Binghamton semi can be purchased online
or by calling the box office at 631-632-WOLF (9653). Tickets for the Hartford-UMBC semi may be obtained online
or by calling the Hartford box office at 860-768-HAWK (4295).
Fans who can not attend the games, visit Championship Central
for live coverage links, including live video streaming (pay-per-view) and live stats.