The Maritime College men's lacrosse team remained undefeated in Skyline Conference play this season, as they defeated St. Joseph's (LI) on Wednesday evening by the final score of 17-6 in semifinals. The Privateers will look to complete their perfect season, as they secured their spot in the Skyline Conference Championship game. The Privateers will now make their first ever appearance in the conference title game on Saturday at 12 p.m. when they will take on rival USMMA.
 
In the contest, the Privateers were led by Matt DeMeo (Sayville, N.Y./Sayville), who totaled six goals and two assists in victory, for eight points. DeMeo was able to carry over the success he saw throughout his momentous 2019 season, in which he led the Skyline Conference in goals and points. Behind DeMeo, fellow attacker Mike Leake (Rockville Centre, N.Y./South Side) added five goals, along with an assist. Bryan Keegan (Lake Grove, N.Y./Sachem North) was efficient for the Privateers, as he totaled two goals, and one assist. To round off the seven Privateer point scorers, the Privateers saw one goal apiece from Danny Connell (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford), Collin Flannery (Shoreham, N.Y./Shoreham-Wading River), Noah Kelvas (Putnam Valley, NY/Putnam Valley), and Garrett Vincent (Tequesta, Fla./Jupiter Community).  The Privateers were led in assists by Brett Trodden (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley), who totaled four assists. In goal, Justin Weigold (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington) had five saves.

Maritime did not waste any time to get started in tournament play, as they scored four consecutive goals to jump out to an early 4-0 lead. With a strong finish to the half by the Golden Eagles, Maritime saw their lead fall to 5-3 leading into the break.

The Golden Eagles continued to control the momentum as they scored a goal in the first 45 seconds of the third quarter. Holding their smallest lead since fourth minute of the game, the Privateers turned to DeMeo to get the offense going. With 8:04 left in the third quarter, DeMeo ended the Maritime scoring drought, as he scored off of a pass from Vincent. With just 6:17 remaining in the quarter, Maritime turned to DeMeo once more, as DeMeo connected on a pass from Trodden to give Maritime the 7-4 lead. The Privateers would then go on to score 12 unanswered goals, off of the sticks of seven different players. The Privateers dominant stretch included a third quarter ending goal with just 00:01 left on the clock by Danny Connell (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) off of a rebound from a shot by DeMeo. Maritime did not wait long to add to their lead in the fourth quarter, as DeMeo connected off of a Keegan assist just 18 seconds into the final frame. The Privateers capped off their run with a seven goal fourth quarter.

The Privateers were able to see great success throughout the field, as they took the advantage in shots on goal, by a 29-to-15 margin. The Privateers also controlled ground balls, by defeating the Golden Eagles 36-to-27 in ground balls picked up. The Privateers dominated in clear attempts, as they connected on 16 of their 17 attempts. On defense, the Privateers forced 25 Golden Eagle turnovers, opposed to their 19.

The Maritime Men's Lacrosse team will now vie for the Skyline Conference Championship, as they host the Mariners on Saturday at Reinhart Field at 12 p.m. Check out post-game press conferences from both teams below!