NEWTON, Mass. – Mount Ida College is one win away from their first Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's lacrosse title since 2012, also the last conference title for any sport at Mount Ida College.
To get there, they will have to go through their arch-rivals and Newton co-habitants in Lasell College, who is the number one seed and will host Saturday's championship game at 1:00 pm at Grellier Field.
Faceoff is set for 1:00 p.m., and the contest can be viewed live at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/lasell/.
Mount Ida (14-4) is in the midst of a program-record eight-game winning streak, and they dispatched Johnson & Wales University 16-13 in Thursday evening's semifinals game at Alumni Field. Marcus Donahue (Braintree, Mass.) had eight goals and ten points in the victory to help send Mount Ida to their second championship game in three years.
Senior captain Anthony Saitta (Derry, N.H.), Ryan Madden (Hingham, Mass.), and Austin Shindoll (Denver, Colo.) recorded hat tricks in Thursday's win for Lasell. Fellow sophomore Austin Tomasetti (Elmsford, N.Y.) scored once and added five assists, increasing his season total to 41, good for second in the GNAC.
The Lasers trailed 5-2 in Thursday's second quarter, tied the game at halftime, and then rattled off seven goals in the third quarter to earn the victory, while senior Jorge Salazar (Waltham, Mass.) made 11 saves for his fourth double-digit effort in the last five games.
Scouting the Teams
Mustangs senior Chad Coehlo (Salem, Mass.) ranks third in the GNAC with 65 points and fourth with 33 assists. Additionally, Hayward's 220 total saves and .608 save percentage stand second, while senior Wyatt Sullivan (Arlington, Mass.) has 25 assists, fifth-most in the league.
Matchup and Postseason History
Lasell was the only team to defeat Ida in GNAC play as it earned an 11-10 win across town on April 6, thanks to four-goal outbursts in both the first and third quarters. Salazar made 18 saves and sophomore Michael Susi (Gorham, Maine) scored three goals on four shots in the contest.
Mount Ida has two GNAC championships to their name, second to last year's champion Emmanuel, who holds three overall. The Saints were ousted from the postseason tournament this year by the Cadets in a 9-8 overtime thriller.
What's Next?
The winner of Saturday's game receives the GNAC's automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championships, with the Selection Show set to air live Sunday, May 7 at 9:00 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Parking at GRELLIER FIELD
We advise all fans to use 33 Forest Avenue, Auburndale, MA (Rockwell Lot) as the primary address for game day parking. If that lot is full, please park in the East/West garage, or Bancroft Lot. All parking areas will be marked and you can find them here on our campus map.
For visiting teams, please advise your busses to drop the team off at 33 Forest Avenue, Auburndale, Mass. The bus will then be directed to park at 259 Woodland Road. Area will be marked Bus Parking. Driver is to stay with the vehicle.
NOTE: PARKING IS PROHIBITED ON STUDIO ROAD, ASPEN AVENUE, AND FOREST AVENUE.
