STONY BROOK, N.Y. - The 2015 America East Men's Lacrosse Championship, featuring two nationally ranked teams and several of the top players in the nation, kicks off with semifinal action on Thursday at Albany's Bob Ford Field.
No. 2 Stony Brook battles No. 3 Vermont in the first semfinal at 4:30 p.m. while No. 1 Albany faces No. 4 Hartford in the second semi at 7 p.m. The two winners will face off for the league title on Saturday, May 3 at 10 a.m. with the winner earning a trip the NCAA Tournament, where America East teams have won four games since 2007.
Free, live video of the semifinals will air for free on AmericaEast.TV Thursday. .
Tickets for the two semifinal contests can be purchased in advance through the UAlbany ticket office or at the gate tonight. Prices are $10 for adults, $5 for youth and $2 for students of America East institutions with proper ID. Tickets can be purchased in advanced online.
Fans who can not attend the games, visit Championship Central for live coverage links, including free live video streaming and live stats. Fans can also join the conversation on Twitter all weekend long by using the hashtag #AEChamps.
Semifinal Primer
- The last five America East champions are in this year's field (Albany - '13, '14; Stony Brook - '10, '12; Hartford - '11)
- Albany, the sevent-ranked team in the country, is the tournament’s top seed for the sixth time and seeks its thirdstraight league crown and fifth overall.
- The Great Danes have won 20 straight games against America East foes dating back to 2012.
- Albany is the highest scoring team in the nation, averaging 17.3 goals per game.
- Stony Brook has its best seed since 2012.
- The Seawolves' 12 wins are their most since 2010 and the second-most in program history.
- Vermont is in the tournament field for the first time since the 2010 season and just the fourth time overall.
- The Catamounts, winners of three straight, have their best tournament seed (No. 3) and most conference wins (4) in program history.
- Hartford is in the tournament for the fourth time in the last five years.
- Albany’s Lyle Thompson is one of 25 candidates for the Tewaraaton Award, given to the nation’s top player.
- The reigning Co-Tewaaraton Trophy winner, Thompson leads the nation averaging 6.1 points per game.
- Stony Brook's Mike Rooney is second to Thompson by percentage points, also averaging 6.1 points per game.