DANBURY, Conn. - Second-seeded Massachusetts Maritime Academy overcame a 7-3 halftime deficit to record a 13-10 victory at top-seeded Western Connecticut State University Saturday to claim the 2026 Little East Conference (LEC) Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament title. This marks the first-ever conference championship for the Bucs. 

Records: Maritime 15-2 | WestConn 15-4

Between The Pipes

Maritime: Nicholas Hall (W, 13-1): 10 GA | 17 SV | 27 SOG | 60 Mins
WestConn: Jake Kelly (L, 14-4): 13 GA | 12 SV | 25 SOG | 60 Mins

Maritime

• James Sullivan led all scorers with four goals in the win. Daniel Kane and Camden Stern tallied two goals each, and Chilton Cabot, Quinn Mucha, Jayson Kelleher, Joe Vricella, and Kyle Shanahan all scored one.
• Kane and Sullivan had two assists in the game. Chris Sullivan and Stern had one apiece.
• Nicholas Hall picked up a team-high five ground balls. 
• On the faceoff, Colin Fitzsimmons won 11 of the 16 faceoffs he took.
• Defensively, C. Sullivan and Seamus Buckley each caused two turnovers. 
• In total, Maritime picked up 27 ground balls, was successful on 19 of 20 clearances, won 15 of 27 faceoffs, and took 36 shots in the game.

WestConn

• Tristan McMahon and Sam Rosa led the Wolves with two goals each. Joseph D'Orazio, Cody Suhr, Michael Zapatka, Thomas Keegan, Michael Mrzyglod, and Alex Burbank all scored once.
• McMahon tallied three assists, and Keegan added two. Jame Krieg, Sawyer Deseve, Rosa, and Tyler Moeller all had one helper.
• Jake Kelly led all players with six ground balls in the loss.
• On the faceoff, Chase Canfora won 12 of the 26 faceoffs he took. 
• Defensively, Moeller led all players with four caused turnovers.
• In total, WestConn picked up 36 ground balls, was successful on 14 of 15 clearances, won 12 of 27 faceoffs, and took 52 shots in the game.

How It Happened

There were only two goals scored in the first quarter, both by the Wolves. Sam Rosa opened the scoring with 9:32 left in the quarter, and McMahon scored his first with 7:40 remaining. WestConn led Maritime at the end of one, 2-0.

In the second, the Bucs scored first, getting their first goal at 13:56 from Sullivan, cutting the deficit in half to 2-1. Beginning with 10:50 left in the half, the Wolves started a five-goal run. Keegan scored first, then McMahon at 8:34, Mrzyglod at 5:46, Surh at 5:05, and finally Zapatka at 2:12. WestConn led 7-1 with two minutes left in the first half. In the final 71 seconds of the second quarter, the Bucs got two goals back. Kane scored at 1:11 and again with 36 seconds left. The Wolves led 7-3 at the break. 

After the break, the Buccaneers began their comeback, holding the hosts scoreless in the third and scoring four of their own. Sullivan scored at 12:17 to start a four-goal Buc run. Stern scored back-to-back at 10:28 and 7:16, and Shanahan added a goal with 11 seconds left in the third. At the end of the quarter, the game was tied, 7-7.

In the fourth, the Bucs extended their unanswered run to eight goals, going back to the second quarter. Vricella scored at 13:13, and Sullivan added another off the ensuing faceoff at 13:00, and the Bucs had a two-goal lead; their first and last lead of the game. WestConn scored its first goal of the second half with 10:27 left in the fourth from Burbank, ending a scoring drought that lasted 21 minutes and 44 seconds of game time. The Bucs led, 9-8. Cabot put the Bucs back up two goals, 10-8, with 9:58 remaining. D'Orazio answered for the Wolves at 9:01 to get back within one goal, 10-9. Kelleher and Mucha went on to score back-to-back for the Buccaneers at 8:00 and 7:19, putting the Bucs up three goals, their biggest lead of the day, 12-9. At 1:32, Rosa pulled WestConn within two goals, 12-10. Then, Sullivan scored the dagger with 47 seconds remaining, giving the Bucs a 13-10 advantage. Maritime saw out the final seconds and were crowned Little East Conference Champions!

After the game, freshman goalie Nicholas Hall was named LEC Men's Lacrosse Playoffs Most Outstanding Player. In two games against UMass Boston and Westconn, Hall made 32 saves and earned the win in both games.

What's Next

The Buccaneers are on to the NCAA Tournament and will find out who they play, where, and when, in the NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Selection Show on Sunday evening.