UTICA, NY - Utica University's men's lacrosse team is set to continue into the back half of the 2026 season, taking on two Empire 8 opponents. On Wednesday, April 8th, the Pioneers will take on crosstown rival SUNY Poly in a 4:00 pm-scheduled contest. On Saturday, April 11th, Utica will play host to SUNY Brockport in the squad's Mike Parnell Game, remembering an iconic member of the Utica men's lacrosse program. Opening faceoff is set for 1:00 pm at Gaetano Stadium.

Follow Along: The video stream for the road game against SUNY Poly can be found HERE, with live stats available HERE. The video stream for all Utica home men's lacrosse games can be found HERE, with live stats HERE.

Last Week's Recap: Utica split its Empire 8 slate last week, dropping a midweek contest to #11-ranked St. John Fisher before responding with a dominant road win over Keuka. Against the Cardinals, the Pioneers showed flashes offensively despite the 18-10 final, led by Ryan Considine (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee), who totaled six points on four goals and two assists. Lucas Donahue (Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) added a pair of second-half tallies, while Danny Dunn (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) also scored twice to help fuel a late push. Logan Waterman (Ava, NY/Rome Free Academy) and Ryan Hollenbeck (Baldwinsville, NY/Charles W. Baker) each found the back of the net as well, with Hollenbeck opening the scoring for Utica early in the first quarter. Jake Bowen (Williston, VT/Champlain Valley Union) made eight saves in a full-game effort in net, while Aaron Bergquist (Brewerton, NY/Central Square) anchored the defensive unit with four ground balls and three caused turnovers.

The Pioneers bounced back in a big way on Saturday, rolling past Keuka by an 18-5 margin behind a breakout performance from Considine. Considine erupted for nine points on three goals and six assists, while Hollenbeck recorded his first hat trick of the season to go along with an assist. Nolan Shea (Williston, VT/Champlain Valley Union) and James Morris (Clayton, CA/Clayton Valley Charter) each posted two goals and one assist, with Morris tallying the first points of his collegiate career. Waterman and Dunn each added two goals, as Utica saw contributions across the lineup in the win. Bowen secured his second victory of the season with seven saves, while the Pioneers controlled possession at the faceoff X and dominated the final quarter to pull away.

Early E8 Outlook: Through three conference games, the Pioneers have started 1-2, ranking seventh in the E8 and sitting as the first team out if the postseason were to start today. A silver lining to the start has been that Utica has already faced some of the most challenging opponents on its slate, potentially setting it up for a hot month of April. Just three E8 teams have started 3-0, including St. John Fisher and Nazareth University, previous Utica opponents, and SUNY Geneseo, who the Pioneers are slated to face in their final regular season game. The next two Saturdays seem to present the next largest challenges, as the Pioneers are slated to face the two 2-1 teams over the coming weekends (SUNY Brockport on April 11th, Alfred University on April 18th). SUNY Poly has matched the orange and blue's 1-2 record, while each of Keuka, Russell Sage, and Hartwick is still in pursuit of their first conference win of the season.

Words on the Wildcats: The SUNY Poly Wildcats have had a streaky 2026 season, currently sitting 5-5 overall and 1-2 in the Empire 8. The squad took each of its first three games against Alfred State, SUNY Canton, and Hilbert before falling victim to a three-game losing streak against Oswego State, SUNY Morrisville, and SUNY Potsdam. The Wildcats ended March with wins over Elmira and Keuka by scores of 17-3 and 15-2 before falling to Nazareth 26-5 and Brockport 14-8 in their first two matchups of April. 

Several Wildcats have been valuable contributors to the offense, with five players reaching 20+ points, four of them between 20 and 29. Junior Kai Hew has been an elite distributor, recording an E8-leading 28 assists, while also netting 16 goals himself, leading the team with 44 points. Midfielders Ryan Carroll and Luke Taylor have been the team's primary goal scorers, netting 21 and 20, respectively. Freshman Kaiden Aton has been a key part of the defensive unit, recording a team-leading 16 caused turnovers. Just behind him is senior Liam Podszebka, whose 15 ground balls put him as the only other player with 10+, and his 40 ground balls rank second best on the team. Ranking first in that category is junior faceoff specialist Graham Genevick, who has pulled in 48 ground balls as part of a 97-of-219 season at the faceoff X. Freshman Tyler Baisley has served as the primary goalie for SUNY Poly, appearing in all 10 games, starting nine, and recording 401:41 between the pipes. In that time, he has posted an 11.35 goals allowed average, a .500 save percentage, and a 4-5 record.

Golden Eagles at a Glance: SUNY Brockport has started 2-8 in 2026, with both wins coming inside the conference. The season began with back-to-back one-goal losses to Western Connecticut State and Oneonta, before a five-game stretch of multi-goal losses to several strong opponents, namely SUNY Cortland, Ithaca, and Clarkson. The team's first win came in a 10-7 result over Hartwick on March 28th to start conference play. To start April, the squad fell to SUNY Geneseo 14-4 and defeated SUNY Poly 14-8. The Golden Eagles will also face Alfred University this week ahead of their contest in Utica.

Brockport's offense has been concentrated on three players, as three Golden Eagles have either 19 or 20 points, followed by players with 11 and 10, with only two other team members recording more than 7. Juniors Daniel Wright and Michael Dowden have reached 20, Wright doing so with a team-leading 13 goals and seven assists, while Dowden has scored 12 and assisted eight. Freshman Daniel Stiles has turned in a team-leading nine assists and 10 goals to reach 19. First-year long stick midfielder Austin Thornhill has been a major addition to the Brockport defense, leading the squad in both caused turnovers (12) and ground balls (25). Five netminders have appeared for the Golden Eagles, but junior Jared Kulik has been the top option, playing 533:12 in net. In that time, he has posted a 12.38 goals allowed average, a .579 save percentage, and a 2-7 record.

Up Next: The Brockport matchup begins a three-game home stand for the Pioneers, continuing next Wednesday and Saturday. On Wednesday, April 15th, Russell Sage comes to town for a 4:00 pm opening faceoff. On Saturday, the 18th, action is slated to begin at 1:00 pm against Alfred University.