Empire 8 Men's Lacrosse Tournament Homepage | Stevens Live Stats | Empire8.tv

HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 30, 2013) – The nationally ranked No. 11 Stevens Institute of Technology men's lacrosse team plays host to Ithaca College in the Empire 8 Conference Semifinals at the De Baun Athletic Complex this Wednesday afternoon, May 1 at 4 p.m. Stevens (12-3) enters the four-team championship as the second seed, while Ithaca (11-5) is the No. 3 seed. The Ducks won their first-ever Empire 8 crown last season.

The Ducks and Bombers squared off in both team's regular season finales in Hoboken last Saturday, April 27, as Stevens came away with an 11-4 victory to clinch the second seed. Both teams entered the contest with 5-1 conference marks.

Stevens held Ithaca shot-less in the first quarter and shutout the Bombers through the first 30 minutes to take a 6-0 lead into halftime. The Bombers were held to their lowest goal output this season, while Stevens was just the fourth team this year to net double-digit goals against Ithaca.

In last weekend's affair, the Ducks controlled much of the game due to 29 turnovers from Ithaca and a shot differential of plus-21 in favor of Stevens. The 29 turnovers by Ithaca nearly doubled its season average of 15.31 per game which ranks 11th in the country. Stevens also scored nearly twice as many goals (11) as the 15th stingiest defense in the nation allows at 6.38 goals per game.

The Ducks will enter this matchup as the ninth-best scoring offense in Division III at 15 goals per outing, while their 22.8 points per game rank 14th.

Since Stevens joined the conference back in 2008, the Ducks hold a slim, 4-3, edge in victories. The Ducks have won each of the past four meetings, including a 10-7 win in the Empire 8 title game last season, and have held the Bombers under seven goals in each contest. Ithaca claimed the first three meetings between the two schools from 2008-10 by a 35-25 total in goals scored. The Ducks have outscored the Bombers, 49-19, since then.

In the other Empire 8 semifinal contest, No. 1 Nazareth College (12-4) hosts No. 4 Utica College (9-6) in Rochester, N.Y. at 4 p.m. tomorrow. If Nazareth defeats Utica, the winner of Stevens/Ithaca will travel to Rochester for the title game on May 4 at 12 p.m. If Utica pulls off the upset, Stevens or Ithaca will host the championship showdown for an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship.

Tomorrow afternoon's coverage can be accessed via live stats and video on Empire8.tv.