2016 Landmark MLAX Championship Preview

Men's Lacrosse

Blue Jays take first title shot Saturday against Catholic

GAME INFO
Landmark Conference Men's Lacrosse Championship
#1 Elizabethtown vs. #3 Catholic

Date: Saturday, May 7, 2016
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Elizabethtown, Pa. (Wolf Field)
Live Stats & Video: BlueJays.TV

TICKETS
$5 - Adults
#3 - Non-Landmark Students/Seniors (62+)
FREE - Landmark Students, Faculty & Staff (with ID)/Youth (10 and under)

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – The top-seeded Elizabethtown College men's lacrosse team will play its first conference title game in program history Saturday when it hosts third-seeded Catholic in the 2016 Landmark Conference Men's Lacrosse Championship at Wolf Field.

The Blue Jays advanced to the championship game with a commanding 11-4 win over No. 4 Scranton Wednesday, while Catholic outlasted No. 2 Susquehanna, 8-6, in the other conference semifinal.

Catholic has won two games in a row after a three-game slide. The Cardinals (10-6) are no strangers when it comes to playing the underdog role. Last year, as the No. 4 seed, they upset the top-seeded Blue Jays, 11-10, in the
semifinals before toppling No. 3 seed Scranton for the program's first Landmark title. Wednesday, the Cards again knocked off a higher seed, taking down the second-seeded Crusaders. Today marks CUA's third trip to the conference final (2010, 2015, 2016).

Roles were reversed for E-town (12-5) and Scranton in their Landmark semifinal Wednesday. The Royals came in with the conference's top defense, allowing just 6.75 goals per game, but it was the Blue Jays putting up a wall in front of goalie Davis Miracle in an 11-4 victory. E-town neutralized the Scranton offense, holding the Royals to their third lowest scoring output of the season and putting forth its second best defensive effort of 2016. Miracle made nine saves and the Jays forced seven of Scranton's 15 turnovers. Offensively, the Blue Jays committed a season-low eight turnovers. Joe Clark scored five points (3 goals, 2 assists) and Mike Specht added three points on a goal and two helpers.

Victor Licata's third goal of the game pushed Catholic in front of No. 2 Susquehanna in the second quarter and the Cardinals protected a tight lead the rest of the way to reach today's championship game. Bennett Bradley (1 goal, 2 assists) and Ethan Rodriguez (2 goals) collected multi-point games along with Licata, and goalie Harrison Holak stopped 12 Crusader shots for a CUA team looking to defend its 2015 title.

Elizabethtown junior attackman Joe Clark is two goals shy of becoming the program's fourth 100-goal scorer. The last player to reach the century mark was Aaron Weber in 2009. Weber is the school's career record holder with 143 goals.

Saturday's game will be broadcast in HD on BlueJays.TV, along with featuring live stats. The winner of the 2016 Landmark Conference Championship will receive the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Tournament, which begins next week.
 
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Players Mentioned

Joe Clark

#1 Joe Clark

A
5' 10"
Junior
Davis Miracle

#34 Davis Miracle

G
6' 3"
Senior
Mike Specht

#12 Mike Specht

M
6' 3"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Joe Clark

#1 Joe Clark

5' 10"
Junior
A
Davis Miracle

#34 Davis Miracle

6' 3"
Senior
G
Mike Specht

#12 Mike Specht

6' 3"
Junior
M