GREENSBURG, Pa. – The No. 1 and No. 3 seeds will collide on Saturday with a chance for the title following the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Men’s Lacrosse Semifinals that were completed on Thursday.
Top seed and regular-season conference champion Seton Hill ousted No. 4 Wheeling Jesuit in the opener, 17-6, before third-seeded Mercyhurst pulled out the upset in the later matchup over No. 2 Lake Erie with an 8-5 win.
Seton Hill and Mercyhurst will now play for the Great Midwest Championship at DICK’s Sporting Goods Field in a rematch of last year’s title game. Start time on Saturday is set for noon ET.
All-conference performers stood out for their respective programs with the four-team bracket cut in half after the semis.
Tournament host Seton Hill improved to 15-1 overall and the program extended its win streak to 14 straight while remaining undefeated at home. The Griffins toppled new associate member Wheeling Jesuit after the Cardinals qualified for the playoffs in their first try.
Seton Hill remains ranked third in both the USILA National Poll and NCAA North Region rankings; the Griffins are seeking out back-to-back conference championships after beating Mercyhurst in 2017.
Newly-minted Great Midwest Offensive Player of the Year Jack Moran had three goals and three assists while teammate John Hofseth had five points with three and two assists.
The upset-minded Cardinals threw an early scare into Seton Hill after winning the battle of the first period, 3-1. But the Griffins blanked their opponent in the second period, 5-0, to take a 6-3 lead into the break.
Wheeling Jesuit officially closed the book on its first year with the conference with a 6-9 overall record.
Mercyhurst had a tough draw in the opening round against No. 2 seed and No. 9 nationally-ranked Lake Erie. LEC had beaten Mercyhurst in the lone regular-season meeting between the two talented programs by a score of 7-6.
Another defensive struggled ensued as Mercyhurst head coach Chris Ryan and Lake Erie head coach Steve Gartelman matched wits against each other.
The Lakers had two goals apiece from Oran Horn, Dom Perna and Nathan Grenon. Keeper Alec Starr made 15 saves as Mercyhurst’s defense kept high-scoring offensive threats Lucas Shafer and Edmond Renaud in check.
The Lakers are going into the conference championship game with an 11-4 overall record. Mercyhurst was the top seed in last year’s inaugural offering of the conference championship.