UTICA, NY - Utica University's men's lacrosse team is set to begin the mid-season stretch by hosting the SUNY Morrisville Mustangs before hitting the road to take on Nazareth University in both teams' first Empire 8 conference game of 2026. The home game against Morrisville is scheduled to begin at 4:00 pm on Wednesday, March 25th, at Gaetano Stadium. Later in the week, on Saturday. March 28th, the Pioneers will head to NLPA Field in Rochester, NY, for a 1:00 pm-scheduled faceoff. 

Follow Along: Those interested in watching the home game against Morrisville from home can find the live video link HERE, with live stats available HERE. For the Nazareth road contest, a video stream is available HERE, with live stats found HERE.

Last Week's Recap: Utica returned from the break with a pair of tightly contested road games, falling by one goal in both matchups against Oswego State (8-7) and Misericordia (9-8). Ryan Considine (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) paced the Pioneer offense across the two games, totaling five goals and two assists, including a hat trick at Oswego, while Ethan Hunt (Skaneateles, NY/Skaneateles) added three goals and four assists over the stretch. Quinn Orsini (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) contributed two goals in the Misericordia contest, and additional scoring came from players including Michael Reid (Tully, NY/Tully), Danny Dunn (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), Noah Erickson (Auburn, NY/Auburn), Aaron Bergquist (Brewerton, NY/Central Square), and Lucas Donahue (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake). Defensively, Bergquist turned in a standout performance with six caused turnovers and nine ground balls against Oswego, while Colin Musso (Auburn, NY/Auburn) added three caused turnovers against Misericordia, and Michael Mecca (Oceanside, NY/Oceanside) consistently led the team on the ground. At the faceoff X, Chase Nappi (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna) went a combined 20-of-26, with Cade Bourcy (Syracuse, NY/Skaneateles) providing strong secondary support, and goalkeeper Jake Bowen (Williston, VT/Champlain Valley Union) totaled 18 saves across the two contests as the Pioneers continued to show competitiveness in narrow-margin games.

Strength of Schedule: While Utica has fallen to a 1-4 record in the early season, the Pioneers' winning percentage does not reflect their fight, as they are currently in the middle of a four-game stretch of one-goal games. Starting on March 3rd, Utica fell 8-7 to Farmingdale State, a squad that is 5-2 in 2026, and went 16-4 with an NCAA Tournament berth in 2025. The Rams' two losses came at the hands of Western Connecticut State, 15-9, and Oswego State, 14-13, in their two most recent matchups.

Utica's sole win of the season came in the second game of the last four, a 10-9 push over Plattsburgh State. In 2026, the Cardinals have posted a 5-2 overall record, with the only other loss a 22-6 defeat at the hands of 6-1 Clarkson University.

The two teams from last week, Oswego State and Misericordia, have had similar success, going 6-1 and 5-3 overall, respectively. The Lakers' lone defeat came 14-1 at the hands of Clarkson, and they have since won their last five games. The Cougars fell behind in the early season, stumbling to a 1-3 record before going on a four-game win streak, which they are currently riding into a March 24th matchup at Marywood University.

More on the Mustangs: SUNY Morrisville's men's lacrosse team has jumped out to a 5-2 record to begin its 2026 season. The team has won each of its last two games entering the matchup in Utica and has won four of the last five. On March 11th, the Mustangs turned in their biggest win of the season so far, cruising past Keuka College 23-4 in an evening home matchup. 

The attacking core of Noah Taylor and Kyan Dohn has paced the Mustang offense, with each player reaching 33 total points. Taylor has reached the count with a team-leading 25 goals and eight assists, while Dohn has netted 21 himself and turned in a team-leading 12 assists. Seniors Dean Mohammed and Jason Tedeschi have added further goal scoring to the offense, marking the final two players to reach seven or more goals. Outside of the offensive zone, Daniel Squires and Jack Pendergrass had been focal points of the Morrisville defense. Pendergrass leads the team with 11 caused turnovers and has added 19 ground balls. In a nearly identical stat line, Squires leads the team with 20 ground balls, while sitting second with 10 caused turnovers, the only other Mustang with more than seven. Several players have taken a significant number of faceoff draws for the Mustangs, with four players tallying between 38 and 59 total draws. Overall, the team has won 76 of 201 faceoffs, a 37.81% win rate. Six separate goalies have appeared for the Mustangs, led by Blake Dunton, who has played 261:16 of the 426:16 total minutes. In that time, he has posted an 11.71 goals allowed average and a .549 save percentage. Overall, the Morrisville goaltending corps has posted a combined 9.99 goals allowed average and a .542 save percentage.

Notes on Nazareth: The Nazareth University men's lacrosse team has played to a 2-6 overall record to begin 2026, but the Golden Flyers should not be underestimated. In their first six games, Nazareth fell in all of them, including three one-goal losses, including one in overtime. Over that span, the Golden Flyers faced teams such as RIT, St. Lawrence University, and SUNY Cortland, all of whom are nationally ranked. The squad carries a two-game win streak into the Utica matchup, defeating Western New England University 13-6 and Sewanee: The University of the South 11-6 in their most recent contests.

The Golden Flyer offense has been headlined by a trio of seniors: Kyle Rosenberger, Louis Cogliandro, and Matthew Farrington. Rosenberger leads the squad with 19 goals, followed by Cogliandro with 12, and Farrington with 11. Farrington leads the team with seven assists, while Rosnberger and Cogliandro have both added six helpers. Defender Connor Fundis leads the team with 11 caused turnovers, with sophomore Nicholas Hinck following closely behind with 10 caused turnovers, but leading the squad with 27 ground balls, the only Golden Flyer to reach 20. Cole Doldo has won 52-of-126 faceoffs so far this year, followed by Jonathan Zylinsky going 19-of-62, with the two combining for all but four of the team's 192 total draw attempts. Freshman Sven Habitzreuther has played 404:05 in net for Nazareth, posting a 10.99 goals allowed average and a .538 save percentage.

Up Next: The orange and blue return to action next week in their standard Wednesday and Saturday scheduling. On Wednesday, April 1st, the Pioneers will host nationally ranked St. John Fisher University in the squad's first home game against an Empire 8 opponent. Opening faceoff is set for 4:00 pm at Gaetano Stadium. Later in the week, on Saturday, the 4th, the team will travel to the Jephson Community Athletic Complex to take on Keuka College.