PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – One of the fiercest SUNYAC men's lacrosse rivalries will play out at the Field House Lacrosse Complex on the campus of Plattsburgh State on Wednesday afternoon. 

For just the second time in program history, the Cardinals will serve as a host institution for a SUNYAC Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament as they brace for a visit from a third-seeded SUNY Potsdam squad with revenge on its mind. If the first meeting between the two institutions was any indication, there will be little to no love lost between the squads when the cross paths against at 4 p.m. 

Tickets prices have been set by the SUNYAC and are $6.00 for general admission and $3.00 for children ages 5-12. All Children ages four and under will be admitted for free as will all SUNY students with a student ID card. Those students who do not have a valid student ID will be charged the general admission rate. Tickets will be available for purchase at the Field House Lacrosse Complex beginning at 3 p.m. Wednesday afternoon.

Those who are unable to make the trip to Plattsburgh can follow all the SUNYAC Championship Tournament semifinal action via live statistical coverage and live video coverage (provided by Northeast Sports Network). The links for the aforementioned multimedia services can be found below.

Live stats – Live video

Plattsburgh State – No. 2 seed
Roster – 2015 Schedule/Results – 2015 Statistics
Led by the tactical mind of fourth year head coach and all-time Plattsburgh State wins leader Ryan Cavanagh, the Cardinals have earned the number-two seed in the conference tournament for the second time in the past three seasons by way of a 12-5 overall record which features a 4-2 mark in league showdowns.

Wednesday's bout between the birds and Bears is a rematch of the 2014 SUNYAC Championship Tournament semifinals where the then-third-seeded Cardinals knocked off their North Country rivals in Potsdam by an 11-6 margin to advance to the finals of the league tournament for the second consecutive year.

No figure has been more influential to the Cardinals' successes on the field than junior Brendan Damm. The 2014 USILA All-American attacker has conjured up another splendid season as he leads Plattsburgh State – as well as the SUNYAC – in points (76) and goals (47). A product of Montauk, N.Y., Damm ranks 24th in all of NCAA Division III lacrosse in points per game (4.47) and 42nd in goals per outing (2.76). 

Damm, though, is just one of four individuals who have registered 40 or more points for the Cardinals' high-octane offensive approach. The primary scoring threat off the Plattsburgh State bench, senior James Read has taken part in each and every one of the Cardinals' 17 battles and has racked up 23 points and 32 assists for 55 points.

Read's assists per game figure of 1.88 ranks second in the SUNYAC and 35^th among all other NCAA Division III men's lacrosse players. Jack Felter, a senior out of Binghamton, N.Y., is second only to Damm in terms of slinging in goals as he has totaled 43 in his final year.

Eleven of Felter's scores – and 11 of sophomore Austin Belz's goals – are of the man-up variety, giving the pair a tie for ninth in the nation in terms of extra-man tallies. Freshman Ryan Hubbard has shouldered a big part of Plattsburgh State's scoring load, too, by recording 33 goals and 11 helpers for 44 points which ranks fifth in the conference and first among SUNYAC freshmen.

Between the pipes, the Cardinals have relied almost exclusively on the shot-stopping prowess of junior Matt Massaria. A native of Floral Park, N.Y., Massaria has scored a trio of SUNYAC Goalie of the Week citations in his third year of collegiate lacrosse and was named the USILA's Division III North Defensive Player of the Week back on April 8.

With a goals against average of 8.53 and the SUNYAC's third-best mark in terms of save percentage (.596) as well as saves per game (11.29), Massaria has cobbled together a 12-5 mark. The Cardinals back line features the likes of Peter Johann, Andy Krolczyk and Andrew Sofroniou who have caused 18, 14 and 13 turnovers respectively.

Handling faceoff duties for the Cardinals is Joey Kromer who has won 226 of his 400 attempts and scooped up a team-high 108 ground balls.

SUNY Potsdam – No. 3 seed
Roster – 2015 Schedule/Results – 2015 Statistics
By virtue of a tiebreaker advantage over Oneonta State, the Bears secured the third overall seed in the SUNYAC Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament with a 7-7 overall record which features a mark of 3-3 in league skirmishes.

Defense and goaltending are the Bears' major strength and solidifying those efforts is junior netminder Pete Gropp who is the league leader in both goals against average (8.24) and save percentage (.605). Among other NCAA Division III men's lacrosse backstops, Gropp ranks 30^th in save percentage.

In order to advance to the finals of the SUNYAC Tournament, the Bears will have to put the brakes on a two-game losing skid. Potsdam dropped their final two games of the regular season including a 16-11 setback to the Cardinals in Plattsburgh last Wednesday.

Leading by three goals with 7:24 to go at Oneonta State last Saturday, the Bears surrendered four consecutive scores to the Red Dragons and came up on the wrong end of a 14-13 decision. Gropp has allowed 30 goals to sneak by him over the 120:00 minutes of lacrosse.

Freshman Eric Soderquist has been a pleasant surprise for the Bears. In his inaugural collegiate campaign, the Watertown, N.Y., product is tops among the SUNY Potsdam ranks in goals (25), assists (15) and points (40). Other Potsdam scoring threats include Ed Doherty (29 goals, six assists) and Jon Woodworth (16 goals, 10 assists) who ripped in four goals in the Bears' first visit to Plattsburgh.