Central Islip, N.Y. - With the conclusion of regular season play, the brackets for the East Coast Conference Men's and Women's Lacrosse Championships have been finalized.
Semifinals for the men will take place on Wednesday, May 4, followed by the women's semifinals on Thursday, May 5. All semifinals contests will be held on the campus sites of the higher seeds. The championship games of both tournaments will hosted by LIU Post on Saturday, May 7.
Men's Lacrosse
LIU Post (10-3 overall, 7-1 ECC) and NYIT (12-3 overall, 7-1 ECC) earned a share of the ECC Regular Season Championship, but due to their head-to-head victory, LIU Post will be the No. 1 seed. The Pioneers, two-time defending ECC Champions, have now earned the top seed in consecutive seasons.
LIU Post's semifinal opponent will be Mercy College. The Mavericks earned the final spot in the championship bracket after posting a 5-3 ECC mark (9-5 overall) on the season. LIU Post won the a thriller between the two schools in their regular season match up on April 23 by a tally of 10-9. The Pioneers scored the winning tally with under 2:00 minutes to go in the fourth quarter.
The other semifinal has No. 3 seed, Dowling traveling to take on No. 2 seed, NYIT. The Golden Lions, with an ECC record of 6-2 (10-4 overall) are back in the championship for the second time in the tournament's three year history. The Bears (11-3, 7-1 ECC), who are making their third straight appearance in the ECC Championship, topped Dowling on March 12 by a final score of 14-8.
Women's Lacrosse
On the women's side, three teams are making their third straight appearance in the ECC Championship, with one newcomer added in. Dowling earns the top seed after an unblemished 8-0 ECC record (15-2 overall) during the regular season. The Golden Lions, who are looking for their second ECC Championship title in three seasons, earned their first regular season championship since the 2012 season.
Dowling's semifinal opponent will be No. 4 seed, Molloy. The Lions earned a berth with a 19-13 win over University of the District of Columbia in their final game of the regular season. Molloy, who also earned the No. 4 seed by virtue of conference tiebreakers, wrapped up their regular season with a 5-3 ECC mark (11-6 overall).
Dowling won the regular season matchup between the Long Island rivals by a score of 12-8.
No. 2 seed and defending ECC Champion, LIU Post, will host the other semifinal. The Pioneers earned the right to defend their ECC crown by finishing with a 7-1 conference record (14-3 overall). Their opponent will be No. 3 seed, Mercy. The Mavericks make their first-ever appearance in the ECC Championship after posting a program record 12 wins (5-3 ECC).
The two schools also met in their regular season finales with LIU Post coming away with a resounding 16-2 victory.
All games during the championship will be broadcast live. The semifinal match-ups will be broadcasted by the host institutions. The final broadcasts will be streamed live on the ECC YouTube page. To read Twitter updates throughout the tournament, follow us @ECCsports. Tournament recaps, highlights, interviews, and box scores will also be available on www.eccsports.org at the tournament specific web pages.
2016 East Coast Conference Men's Lacrosse Championship
Semifinals - Wednesday, May 4
4:00 p.m. - No. 4 Mercy at No. 1 LIU Post
4:00 p.m. - No. 3 Dowling at No. 2 NYIT
Final - Saturday, May 7 at LIU Post
3:00 p.m. - No. 3/No. 2 vs. No. 4/No.1
2016 East Coast Conference Women's Lacrosse Championship
Semifinals - Thursday, May 5
4:00 p.m. - No. 3 Mercy at No. 2 LIU Post
7:00 p.m. - No. 4 Molloy at No. 1 Dowling
Final - Saturday, May 7 at LIU Post
12:00 p.m. - No. 3/No. 2 vs. No. 4/No. 1
