READING, Pa. – The Albright men's lacrosse team pursuit to become MAC Commonwealth champions begins on Wednesday, May 2. The Lions will face off against Messiah at 3:30 p.m. at Starry Athletic Complex.
This marks the sixth straight time that Albright has reached the MAC Commonwealth Tournament since its 2012 inauguration. The Lions, who are the third seed in the tournament, enter Wednesday night's game with an overall record of 8-6 and 6-2 in the conference and winners of their last two matches.
Albright and Messiah squared off against one another once during the regular season. Despite a match-high five goals from
Cam Cetrone, the Falcons won the meeting 14-10. The Lions also received a pair of goals from
Tyler Strayline and
Nick Tonno.
Derek Stump added a goal in the match.
Messiah jumped out to an early 6-0 lead in the first quarter before Cetrone halted the Falcons hot start with his first goal in the opening minutes of the second. The Falcons kept their foot on the gas pedal and would extend their lead to 10-2 in the third quarter. Albright scored three of the next four goals to pull within six, but the Falcons responded by scoring three more goals to take a 14-5 lead. Albright mounted one last comeback in the final six minutes of the match as the Lions scored five unanswered goals. The comeback fell short as Messiah held on for the win. Matthew Franken led the Falcons with four goals, while Sam Stengel made 15 saves in the win.
Cetrone has had an impressive senior campaign leading the team in goals and points per match. His 59 goals and 78 points rank first in the conference. The senior also ranks nationally in the top-10 in two categories. His 4.21 goals per match are third best in the nation, while his 5.57 points per match rank eighth. Earlier this season Cetrone broke the school record for career goals, and is now a member of the 200-point club. Stump also has been an integral part of Albright's success. On top of netting 15 goals, the senior not only leads the conference but also ranks eighth in the country with 2.86 assists per game. Senior
Andrew Potter notched his third 20-plus goal season in his final season for the red and white scoring 25 goals in the regular season. He also became a member of the 100-point club.
M. Franken, who has career-highs in goals, assists, points and groundballs, paces Messiah's offense. His 32 goals and 18 assists lead the team. The senior, who has 50 points in 2017, averages 3.57 per match to rank sixth in the conference. He also ranks sixth in the conference in groundballs with the senior averaging 3.71 per match. Lorenzo DiPasquale makes his presence known on the field as the junior has caused 24 turnovers this season. His 24 caused turnovers ranks third in the MACC. Stengel also ranks in the conference leaderboards. The senior ranks second in both saves percentage (.584) and goals against average (7.90).
On Tuesday, the MAC honored Cetrone for his on-field accomplishments as he was named Offensive Player of the Year. Cetrone also earned First Team honors along with Potter. Stump was named to the Second Team, and
James Lettieri and
JJ Boliaux were named All-MAC Honorable Menion. Messiah led all conference teams with six First Team selections. M. Franken, Joseph Franken, Blake Knobloch, Drew Gugliuzza, DiPasquale and Stengel all earned First Team honors. Justin Bradley and Quentin Johnson were selected to the Second Team. Mitch Salanty was named All-Conference Honorable Mention.
Admission to the game is set for $5 adults, $4 for seniors and $2 for students. Children under 6 years old do not need a ticket for the game.
