Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 12/30/16
From Press Release
The Cabrini men’s lacrosse team will face a tough slate in 2017, as it looks to make its 16th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
Head coach Steve Colfer recently announced the Cavaliers’ schedule, one that includes three teams that competed in the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
The Blue and White – ranked No. 6 by Inside Lacrosse in its pre-season rankings – will open the campaign on Feb. 18, as it welcomes Haverford College to Edith Robb Dixon Field. The Cavaliers will then head to Virginia to face Lynchburg and Hampden-Sydney Colleges.
Cabrini’s three game road swing continues to Dickinson College on March 4, before returning to its home turf for four straight contests.
The Cavaliers will host Frostburg State on March 11, before Ursinus College makes its first appearance at Edith Robb Dixon Field since topping the Blue and White 8-7 in the first round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament.
Cabrini will open Colonial States Athletic Conference play on March 21, as it hosts Rosemont College with a chance to make history. The Blue and White have won 101 consecutive CSAC games, just one win shy of the NCAA record for consecutive conference wins.
The Cavaliers will conclude their home stand with a visit from SUNY Cortland on March 25.
With a win over the Ravens, the Cavaliers could break the NCAA mark on April 1 when they head to Keystone College. The Blue and White will visit CSAC opponents Centenary and Neumann before Cabrini hosts defending national champion Salisbury University on April 14.
One week later, the Blue and White will host 2013 national champion Stevenson University, who will be looking for revenge after the Cavaliers ended their hopes of a title repeat.
The Cavaliers will close the regular season on April 26, when they host Gwynedd Mercy University on a rematch of the 2016 CSAC championship game.
The top four teams in the CSAC standings will qualify for the CSAC Tournament, slated to begin on April 29, with the champion to be decided one week later. The tournament champion will also claim the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Colfer returns an experienced club that went 15-5 last season, including the program’s 16th consecutive CSAC championship, before suffering a heartbreaking 11-10 overtime loss at No. 5 Gettysburg in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Blue and White will be led by a pair of returning USILA/Nike All-Americans in senior Evan Downey and sophomore Matt LoParo.
Downey, who was also named Colonial States Athletic Conference Player of the Year, tallied 50 points on 31 goals and 19 assists, while LoParo led the team and CSAC with 85 points and 45 assists, both among the best single season marks in program history.
2017 Schedule
FEB 18 (SAT) 12PM VS HAVERFORD COLLEGE EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
FEB 25 (SAT) 1PM AT LYNCHBURG COLLEGE LYNCHBURG, VA
MAR 1 (WED) 4PM AT HAMPDEN-SYDNEY COLLEGE HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, VA
MAR 4 (SAT) 1PM AT DICKINSON COLLEGE CARLISLE, PA
MAR 11 (SAT) 1PM VS FROSTBURG STATE UNIVERSITY EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
MAR 18 (SAT) 3PM VS URSINUS COLLEGE EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
MAR 21 (TUE) 4PM CSAC VS ROSEMONT COLLEGE EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
MAR 25 (SAT) 2PM VS SUNY CORTLAND EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
APR 1 (SAT) 4PM CSAC AT KEYSTONE COLLEGE LA PLUME, PA
APR 8 (SAT) TBA CSAC AT CENTENARY COLLEGE (NEW JERSEY) HACKETTSTOWN, NJ
APR 12 (WED) TBA CSAC AT NEUMANN UNIVERSITY ASTON, PA
APR 14 (FRI) 6:30PM VS SALISBURY UNIVERSITY EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
APR 18 (TUE) 4PM CSAC VS MARYWOOD UNIVERSITY EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
APR 21 (FRI) 6:30PM VS STEVENSON UNIVERSITY EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
APR 22 (SAT) 1PM CSAC AT IMMACULATA UNIVERSITY IMMACULATA, PA
APR 26 (WED) 7PM CSAC VS GWYNEDD MERCY UNIVERSITY EDITH ROBB DIXON FIELD
CSAC TOURNAMENT APR 29 (SAT) TBA; MAY 6 (SAT) TBA