Men's Lacrosse 4/20/2026 11:00:00 AM #AEMLAX Week 11: Championship Field is Set BOSTON – Bryant, UMBC and Vermont all secured wins to each clinch their spot in the 2026 #AEMLAX Championship field with one week remaining in the regular season. The field is set but seeding for seeds 2-4 is still up for grabs going into the final weekend. Need to Know: UMBC needed a victory to secure a championship berth in its game against NJIT and jumped out to a 10-3 lead at the half against the Highlanders. They finished with a 16-11 win to conclude conference play 4-2. Bryant opened up a 7-3 halftime lead against Binghamton, and scored just once in the second half but held off the Bearcats to move to 3-2 in league play and earn a championship berth. Vermont led UMass Lowell 11-5 at the half and 14-7 late in the third before finishing with a 14-10 victory. Vermont is up to 2nd nationally in face-off percentage at 62.6%, while Walter Zhao is third nationally in face-off percentage (68.9) and ground balls (8.8). Jack Combs is 8th in CT per game (2.2). UMass Lowell ranks 8th in the nation in face-off percentage at 61.1%. Justin Alexander is also 5th nationally in ground balls per game at 8.0 and 9th in face-off % (61.5). Silas Richmond is tied for 8th in the nation in points per game (4.77) while the Great Danes are 8th in caused turnovers per game (10.1). Binghamton’s Connor Winters is 6th nation in saves per game (13.5) while also ranking 10th in save percentage (56.3). NJIT’s Cameron Kurdyla is 2nd in the nation in saves per game (14.69) and 15th in save percentage (55.0). Freshman Blake Piscitiello is 8th nationally in points per game (4.77). Up Next: On Friday UMBC faces Bucknell in a non-conference matchup. Vermont hosts Binghamton, looking to go to 4-2 in league play, while Bryan looks to do the same while welcoming UMass Lowell. UAlbany travels to NJIT for a 7:30 p.m. matchup to conclude the regular season. The full championship bracket will be released after Saturday's game. #AEMLAX Weekly Award Winners – Apr. 20 Offensive Player of the Week Ryan Demato, UMBC – Jr., Attack, Medford, N.J. Scored career-high five goals with one assist in a win over NJIT Picked up two ground balls as UMBC clinched a championship berth. This is Demato’s first #AEMLAX Player of the Week honor this season. Defensive Player of the Week Dylan Sharpe, UMBC – Jr., Defense, Crofton, Md. Registered five caused turnovers and four ground balls in a 16-11 win over NJIT. This is Sharpe’s first #AEMLAX Defensive Player of the Week honor this season. Goalkeeper of the Week James Carr, Bryant – R-Jr., Goalkeeper, Natick, Mass. Recorded 12 saves in an 8-6 victory over Binghamton. Posted a .667 save percentage in the win. This is Carr’s third #AEMLAX Goalkeeper of the Week honor. Face-Off Specialist of the Week Alex Steers, UMBC – Sr., - Face-Off, Westminster, Md. Won 18-of-23 face-offs in a 16-11 win over NJIT. Finished with 11 ground balls and added his first career goal. This is Steers’ second #AEMLAX Faceoff Specialist honor this season. Rookie of the Week Blake Piscitiello, NJIT – Fr., Attack, Lakeville, Minn. Posted three goals and four assists in a 16-11 loss to UMBC. Ranked 8th nationally with 4.77 points per game, second among freshmen. This is Piscitiello’s fifth #AEMLAX Rookie of the Week honor. #AEMLAX Links Full #AEMLAX Schedule/Results #AEMLAX Standings #AEMLAX Statistics Fans will once again be able to watch the majority of the #AEMLAX this season. Select games will air on The AE on ESPN while others will air on AmericaEast.TV. Those games will be available on computers, OTT devices and the brand new America East app, which is available on all IOS and Android devices and can be found by searching ‘America East Conference’ in app stores. Follow the @AmericaEast on X to stay up-to-date on America East men's lacrosse news all season long and use #AEMAX to join the conversation. 2026 #AEMLAX Weekly Award Winners Feb. 9 – Offensive Player of the Week: Blake Piscitiello, NJIT; Defensive Player of the Week: Sullivan O'Brien, NJIT; Goalkeeper of the Week: Cameron Kurdyla, NJIT; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Nirio Garcia, NJIT; Rookie of the Week: Blake Piscitiello, NJIT Feb. 16 – Offensive Player of the Week: Jackson Palumb, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Justin Lee, UAlbany; Goalkeeper of the Week: Connor Winters, Binghamton; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Walter Zhao, Vermont; Rookie of the Week: Zack Toll, Vermont Feb. 23 – Offensive Player of the Week: Silas Richmond, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Jackson Schlicker, UMass Lowell; Goalkeeper of the Week: James Carr Bryant; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Justin Alexander, UMass Lowell; Rookie of the Week: Cade Lennon, Bryant Mar. 2 – Offensive Player of the Week: Zack Toll, Vermont; Defensive Player of the Week: Dante Marinello, UMBC; Goalkeeper of the Week: Connor Winters, Binghamton; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Walter Zhao, Vermont; Rookie of the Week: Zack Toll, Vermont Mar. 9 – Offensive Player of the Week: Silas Richmond, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Luke Mead, Bryant; Goalkeeper of the Week: James Carr Bryant; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Walter Zhao, Vermont; Rookie of the Week: Blake Piscitiello, NJIT Mar. 16 – Offensive Player of the Week Andrew Girolamo, Binghamton; Defensive Player of the Week: Jack Combs, Vermont; Goalkeeper of the Week: Ryan Daly, Vermont; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Alex Steers, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: Zack Toll, Vermont Mar. 23 - Offensive Player of the Week: Zac Amend, Bryant; Defensive Player of the Week: Max Neeson, UAlbany; Goalkeeper of the Week: Cameron Kurdyla, NJIT; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Flynn Wilson, Binghamton; Rookie of the Week: Carson Piscitiello, NJIT Mar. 30 – Offensive Player of the Week: Max Frattaroli, Vermont; Defensive Player of the Week: Eddie Schwasnick, Vermont; Goalkeeper of the Week: Brady Smith, UAlbany; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Walter Zhao, Vermont; Rookie of the Week: Zack Toll, Vermont April 6 – Offensive Player of the Week: Owen West, Bryant; Defensive Player of the Week: Jacob Smith, UAlbany; Goalkeeper of the Week: Connor McMahon, UMBC; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: JJ Murphy, Bryant; Rookie of the Week: Blake Piscitiello, NJIT April 13 - Offensive Player of the Week: Silas Richmond, UAlbany; Defensive Player of the Week: Max Neeson, UAlbany; Goalkeeper of the Week: Cameron Kurdyla, NJIT; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Walter Zhao, Vermont; Rookie of the Week: Blake Piscitiello, NJIT April 20 - Offensive Player of the Week: Ryan Demato, UMBC; Defensive Player of the Week: Dylan Sharpe, UMBC; Goalkeeper of the Week: James Carr Bryant; Faceoff Specialist of the Week: Alex Steers, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: Blake Piscitiello, NJIT ABOUT AMERICA EAST Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast. - America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -