CORTLAND, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State men's lacrosse team returns to the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) playoffs for the first time since 2019, wrapping up its regular season with a 26-3 road setback to Cortland on Saturday afternoon.

Junior attacker Jamie Gipe (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / C.W. Baker) led the way for the Cardinals with two goals, while first-year midfielder Connor Wiggins (Whitesboro, N.Y. / Whitesboro) added one. Junior attacker Peter Urso (Bay Shore, N.Y. / Bay Shore) recorded an assist for one point on the day. On the defensive end, senior defender Kevin Murray (Bellmore, N.Y. / Kellenberg Memorial) posted a team-high five ground balls and added two caused turnovers. Senior goalie Jack Mulcahy (Poughkeepsie, N.Y. / Arlington) made 10 saves in net for Plattsburgh.

For the Red Dragons, Nick Stoecker led all players with eight points on seven goals and one assist, while Sean Kavanagh and Caden Morra added five points each. Nicky Miltenberger won a game-high 12 faceoffs, and Charlie Falowski made seven saves in the win for Cortland.

The Cardinals found success in transition, finishing 21-for-26 on clears, while Cortland went 20-for-20. The Red Dragons controlled many of the statistical categories, holding advantages in shots (72-23), ground balls (53-27), and faceoffs (24-8). On extra-man opportunities, Plattsburgh went 0-for-2, while Cortland converted 1-of-5 chances.

The Cardinals' offense didn't get much going in the opening quarter and trailed 9-0 after one, but the second quarter saw Gipe tally two goals to give Plattsburgh some momentum.

The attacker struck first midway through the quarter with 6:57 to go, spinning off his defender and driving straight to the net from the right side for the Cardinals' first goal. It was Gipe again for Plattsburgh, this time off a feed from Urso, as he rolled around the crease for a pass and easy score on the doorstep to make it 15-2 going into halftime.

Out of the break, Cortland controlled play in the third quarter, extending its lead to 22-2.

Plattsburgh limited the Red Dragons' scoring in the fourth and added another goal, as Wiggins got on the board at 5:56. Driving to his left with a defender on his hip, the midfielder leaped in the air to create space and got it past the goalie, making the final score 26-3.

With the loss, Plattsburgh State wraps up its regular season with a 9-5 (4-3 SUNYAC) record, marking the team's best overall record since 2017 and best conference record since 2019. The Cardinals now turn their attention to postseason play.

Plattsburgh secured the No. 4 seed in the SUNYAC tournament and will travel to No. 1 Cortland on Wednesday, April 29, for a semifinal matchup with the Red Dragons.