Providence celebrates first BIG EAST Men's Lacrosse Championship victory (photo by David Silverman).
Friars Advance To #BIGEASTmlax Title Game With 10-7 Win Over Villanova
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – No. 3 Providence advanced to its first BIG EAST Championship with a 10-7 win over No. 2 seed Villanova on Thursday night in the second semifinal of the BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse Championship presented by Jeep.
The Friars played in front of their hometown crowd at Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium and used a three-goal run in the final 39.9 seconds at the end of the first half to change the momentum of the game in favor of Providence.
Villanova was ranked fifteenth nationally.
With the win, Providence improved to 10-6 overall on the year, which ties the program record for wins in a single-season. It also marks the most wins for Providence since 2006, when the team finished the year with a 10-7 mark. The Wildcats dropped to 9-6 on the year.
It was Providence’s first win in the BIG EAST Championship. The Friars made their first appearance in the league tournament in 2016.
Providence will face No. 4 seed Marquette in the Championship game on Saturday on FS2. The last time a No. 3 and No. 4 seed were in the league title game was in 2012 when No. 3 Syracuse faced No. 4 St. John’s. Marquette upset top seed Denver, 10-8, in the first semifinal.
The Wildcats rushed out to a two-goal cushion at 4-2 after the opening quarter on the strength of two goals from Danny Siebel. Trailing 2-0 just 2:17 into the game, the Friars responded with back-to-back goals by Conner and Brendan Kearns to draw even, before Villanova regained its two-goal lead with strikes from Seibel and Christian Cuccinello.
Providence took over the momentum in the second quarter, out-shooting the Wildcats by a 14-4 margin and notching all four goals of the quarter to take a 6-4 lead into the half. After Ryan Schaffer made it a 4-3 game on the man-up just 21 seconds into the quarter, the teams went scoreless for the next 14 minutes. The Friars exploded for three goals in a span of 38 seconds in the final minute of the half to take a two-goal lead into the locker room (6-4).
The Friars scored five straight goals in the second quarter and into the third to take a 7-4 lead.
Schaffer led Providence in scoring with four points (a hat trick and an assist). BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year Tate Boyce made 16 saves for the Friars. Kearns finished with three points with two goals and an assist.
For Villanova, Cuccinello led the point effort with three (two goals, one assist). Jake Froccaro and Seibel marked two goals each.