America East teams in several sports are approaching championships as the spring weather and competition starts to heat up.
Boston University has clinched the top seed in the America East Women’s Lacrosse Championship and will host the event at Nickerson Field on Thursday, April 30 and Saturday, May 2. The Terriers are a perfect 5-0 in America East and are 11-3 overall and ranked No. 11 in the most recent Inside Lacrosse national poll. Albany and No. 18 New Hampshire have clinched two of the other spots in the four-team tournament.
UMBC is now ranked No. 10 in the nation in men’s lacrosse and will host one semifinal on Wednesday, April 29. The Retrievers are 9-3 overall and 3-1 in America East. The winner of the game between No. 20 Albany and Stony Brook this Saturday (7 p.m.) will host the other semifinal game. The championship game will be played at the higher remaining seed on Saturday, May 2.
Hartford freshman Scott Bement was named the Nike/Inside Lacrosse National Player of the Week after making a season-high 19 saves in a 10-8 win over UMBC Saturday. He is the third America East player to receive the honor this season, joining Albany’s Brian Caufield and UMBC’s Jeremy Blevins.
Sarah Dalton of Boston University and Jeremy Blevins of UMBC have been named Tewaaraton Award nominees. The awards are presented to the top nation’s players in men’s and women’s lacrosse.
Don’t miss your chance to vote for the America East Fan’s Choice Player of the Year in men’s and women’s lacrosse. Voting closes Wednesday, April 22 at 5 p.m.
America East will crown champions in men’s and women’s tennis and golf this weekend. The tennis championship begins Friday in New Haven, Conn., and continues Saturday before the titles are decided on Sunday. Boston University has won 15-straight women’s titles. There has been a different men’s champion in each of the last three years. Binghamton won the event last year, defeating 2007 champion UMBC. Stony Brook won the title in 2006.
Albany looks to defend its title in golf as host of the two-day event at Shaker Ridge Country Club in Loudonville, N.Y. on Saturday and Sunday.
The America East Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships are quickly approaching. The two-day event will be held May 2-3 at Binghamton University. Albany, which became the first America East team to win the prestigious IC4A Indoor Track and Field Championship in March, defends its America East outdoor title. Boston University is the defending women’s champion.
Defending America East Champion Stony Brook continues to lead the softball standings at 30-9 overall and 11-3 in America East. Albany (28-10, 9-3) is chasing the Seawolves, while four other teams (Boston University, Maine, Hartford and UMBC) are separated by a game. The top four teams advance to the America East Championship at the high seed on May 7-9.
Maine is off to a fast start in baseball with a 7-1 mark in conference games and a 24-13 record overall. Binghamton (16-14, 8-2), defending champion Stony Brook (17-16, 7-5) and Albany (14-21, 7-5) are others with winning records in conference play.
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