Lacrosse is known for its sudden and swift swings of momentum and potential outcomes that can be uncertain until the clock decrees an end.
Cautiousness turned to clarity for Delaware as the final minute arrived Saturday and the revelry soon followed.
The Blue Hens secured a coveted NCAA Lacrosse Men’s Tournament berth for the second straight year, scoring a wire-to-wire 13-10 win over stubborn Stony Brook in the Colonial Athletic Association title game at sun-soaked Delaware Stadium.
“It’s never over until the final buzzer sounds,” Blue Hens attackman J.P. Ward said. “Glad we were able to get it done.”
Helmets and sticks flew into the air as time ran out and the Hens, as its tradition, mobbed goalie and tournament MVP Matt Kilkeary to start the celebration in front of 1,083 fans.
“They came prepared today,” sixth-year Delaware coach Ben DeLuca said. “They were ready.”
No. 19-ranked Delaware (12-4) secured its eighth NCAA Tournament in men’s lacrosse, the others in 1984, 1999, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2011 and 2022. Delaware reached the quarterfinals in 1999, 2007 and 2022 and the Final Four in 2007.
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The field for the 17-team NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Tournament will be announced Sunday at 9:30 p.m. on ESPNU. There is one mid-week play-in game, one fewer than last year when Delaware trounced Robert Morris in one of them. Several pre-tournament bracketology predictions have forecast Delaware will be in the play-in again.
“It’s pretty special to win this at home in front of our friends and family,” said All-American defender Owen Grant, who was part of a team that won last year’s final over Towson on Drexel’s field. “We’re looking to keep going.”
Round-of-16 NCAA Tournament games will then take place Saturday and Sunday, May 13-14. Quarterfinals follow May 20 at UAlbany and May 21 at Navy with this year’s Final Four at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field May 27 and 29.
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Delaware downed Stony Brook 12-9 in their regular-season collision April 15 on Long Island. In Thursday’s semifinals at Delaware Stadium, the Blue Hens downed Towson 11-8 and first-year CAA member Stony Brook (9-7) scored 10 straight first-half goals in a 13-10 victory over Drexel.
Delaware scored the first three goals Saturday, as Towson did in its loss to the Hens Thursday, and led 7-5 at halftime. Ward had three goals and an assist in the first half for the Hens, who enjoyed a 28-16 advantage in shots.
“That was a big focus all week getting out to a hot start,” said Ward. who finished with four goals. ” . . . It gets our momentum going.”
Third-quarter goals by Cam Acchione and Mike Robinson put the Hens up 9-5. Stony Brook never got closer after pulling within 9-6 as Delaware’s lead grew to 13-7 before Stony Brook scored the last three. It wasn’t enough.
Acchione, Robinson and Tye Kurtz each scored twice for Delaware and Ward and Kurtz had two assists each. Kilkeary had 14 saves.
“Our guys knew it was gonna be a battle,” DeLuca said, “and right from the start, I’m proud of the way they focused, proud of the way they took care of themselves and locked into the game plan and executed for the majority of that game to win a tough one and get a back-to-back championship.”
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