CORTLAND, N.Y. –  The Plattsburgh men's lacrosse team won its first-ever SUNYAC Tournament title with a 10-6 victory at nationally fourth-ranked Cortland Saturday afternoon at the Stadium Complex. The Cardinals improved to 12-5 on the season and earned an automatic NCAA Div. III berth. The Red Dragons fell to 15-2 and await a possible al-large bid.

Junior Devin Phelps (Chittenango) led Cortland with two goals and one assist, and junior Nate Beresovoy (LaFayette) also netted two goals. Junior Thomas McNaney (Marcellus) recorded one goal and one assist, and senior Mike Hart (Cornelius, NC/Hough) chipped in with an assist.

Junior goalie Joe Scalise (Fairport) made six saves for the Red Dragons. Hart won 11-of-17 faceoffs and collected four ground balls. Sophomore Dean Riley (Homer) scooped up five ground balls, and senior Dave Foster (Farmingville/Sachem East) caused four turnovers.

Junior Ryan Hubbard (Aquebogue/Riverhead) paced the Plattsburgh offense with three goals and one assist to earn tournament MVP honors, and sophomore Jake Carroll (East Northport/Northport) also notched three goals. Senior Ryan Callahan (Miller Place) tallied two goals and one assist, while senior Mike Gay (Ronkonkoma/Connetquot) and junior Brandon Heimbuch (Geneva, IL) each added one goal and one assist.

Junior goalie Austin Graham (Yorktown Heights/Yorktown) turned aside 13 shots for the Cardinals. junior Joe Eiseman (Farmingville/Sachem East) won 9-of-17 faceoffs and recorded five ground balls, and senior Kyle Espejo (Poughkeepsie/Arlington) secured five ground balls.

Plattsburgh led 2-1 after the first quarter and held a 4-3 lead at the half. The Cardinals made it a 6-3 score after three quarters before Cortland gut its deficit to 7-5 at the 10:59 mark of the fourth quarter. Carroll made it an 8-5 game at 10:21, and Phelps pulled Cortland to within 8-6 at 7:59. Cortland had several chances to cut the score to a one-goal game but Graham made several stops. With time winding done, Plattsburgh added a pair of late goals as the Red Dragons attempted to double the ball.

Joining Hubbard on the All-Tournament Team were Graham, Carroll, Eiseman, Callahan and Espejo for Plattsburgh; Hart, Beresovoy and Foster for Cortland; Jake Giudice for Brockport; and Jack Crowley for Geneseo.
 
Plattsburgh 10, Cortland 6

GAME SUMMARY:

Team                       1-2-3-4  Final
Plattsburgh              2-2-2-4      10
Cortland                   1-2-0-3       6

Scoring (Goals-Assists):
Plattsburgh: Ryan Hubbard 3-1, Jake Carroll 3-0, Ryan Callahan 2-1, Mike Gay 1-1, Brandon Heimbuch 1-1, Chris Rupp 0-1
Cortland: Devin Phelps 2-1, Nate Beresovoy 2-0, Thomas McNaney 1-1, Mike Hart 1-0

Goalkeepers:
Plattsburgh: Austin Graham, 13 saves (6 GA in 60:00)
Cortland: Joe Scalise, 6 saves (10 GA in 60:00)

Shots: Cortland 37, Plattsburgh 24
Ground Balls: Plattsburgh 33, Cortland 28 
Turnovers: Plattsburgh 20, Cortland 17
Caused Turnovers: Cortland 11, Plattsburgh 8
Clears: Plattsburgh 16-of-20, Cortland 13-of-16
Faceoffs Won: Cortland 11, Plattsburgh 9
Penalties: Cortland 5-4:00, Plattsburgh 1-0:30 
Extra-Man Offense: Plattsburgh 2-5, Cortland 0-1 

Records after game: Cortland (Red Dragons) 15-2 (ranked 4th in Div. III); Plattsburgh (Cardinals) 12-5