Men's Lacrosse

No. 1 UAlbany & No. 3 Vermont Cruise in #AEMLAX Semifinals

ALBANY, N.Y. – Vermont had an explosive start in the opening game on Thursday, while the UAlbany defense didn't allow a goal until the third quarter, as both programs secured #AEMLAX Semifinal victories to advance to Saturday’s conference championship.
 
Vermont jumped out to a 6-2 lead after the opening quarter and led 9-4 at the half. Bryant got as close a four in the second half before two late goals provided the 13-7 margin. The Catamounts are making their fourth championship game appearance in the past six season.
 
UAlbany jumped on UMBC and led 7-0 at the half. The Great Danes extended the lead to 9-0 before the Retrievers got on the board, but UAlbany finished with the 14-3 win. The three goals allowed is tied for the fewest given up in a #AEMLAX Championship contest, matching efforts by UMBC in 2006 and UAlbany in 2005.
 
The Great Danes look for the three-peat in the #AEMLAX Championship against No. 3 on Saturday at 1 p.m. on the campus of UAlbany. Vermont fell to the Great Danes 12-9 earlier this year.
 
 
#AEMLAX Semifinal Recaps
No. 3 Vermont 13, No. 2 Bryant 7
  • The Bulldogs scored first, but Vermont responded with four goals in a four-minute span for a 4-1 advantage on a Matthew Drimmie man-up goal.
  • The Catamounts added two more in the period before Bryant ended the run to trail 6-2 after the first quarter.
  • Bryant scored first in the 2nd period, but Vermont returned with two quick goals with Max Frattaroli’s 27th of the season and Ethan Pearson followed up for an 8-3 lead in the second. Each team scored in the final minute of the half for a 9-4 contest.
  • Cullen Decker scored one minute into the third quarter, but Bryant went on a 3-1 run over the final 12 minutes to train 10-6 through three quarters.
  • Vermont capped off the game with two empty net goals in the final 1:40, while holding Bryant scoreless.
  • Zack Toll had a team-high six points on two goals and four assists while Frattaroli added four goals.
  • Ryan Daly finished with 12 saves to earn the victory while Jack Combs had three caused turnovers and five ground balls.
 
No. 1 UAlbany 14, No. 4 UMBC 3
  • Daniel Kesselring scored 56 seconds into the game to give the Great Danes the early lead and added two more for a 3-0 advantage after the opening 15 minutes.
  • Ryan Doherty grabbed his own rebound to give UAlbany a 5-0 lead in the second and he added one more, along with Brendan O’Keefe for a 7-0 advantage at the half.
  • Great Danes continue to dominate, stretching the lead to 9-0 in the third while limiting UMBC to only four shots on goal and forcing 15 turnovers.
  • Connor Chick put UMBC on the board in the third, but two more UAlbany goals made it an 11-1 contest through 45 minutes.
  • Each team scored twice in the final 15 minutes for the 14-3 final.
  • Ryan Doherty led the offense with four goals while Silas Richmond dished off three assists. Max Neeson had four caused turnovers while Brady Smith made eight saves and gave up two goals in 54 minutes of action.
 
Visit Championship Central for complete streaming and live stats links as well as box scores, highlights and recaps following each round in addition to team information, tournament history and more.
 
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