STANDISH, ME - The 2013 Saint Joseph's College men's lacrosse schedule has been announced. The Monks will play 16 games this spring with a docket that includes nine Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tilts and seven non-league contests.
Head Coach Mike Edgar, the only skipper the program has known who is about to begin his sixth season at the helm for the Royal Blue, has raised the bar for his team every spring and looks to continue the trend in 2013. Last year, the Monks produced a program-best 6-3 conference record and advanced to the postseason for the fifth-consecutive season.
Saint Joseph's figures to develop further this spring and an impressive non-conference schedule will only help the team reach its goals late in the season. Non-league foes include the likes of Husson University, Salem State University, Plymouth State University Centenary College, Salve Regina University, University of Southern Maine and Colby College. The Monks have never before played Centenary, Salve Regina or Colby and all three programs will add strength to the team's 2013 schedule.
The 16-game slate features an even home-road split with eight games at home (either Deering Memorial Stadium in Portland or Westerlea Way Field on campus) and eight on the road. Saint Joseph's takes on Husson, Salem State, Plymouth State, Anna Maria College and Emerson College at Deering before hosting Lasell College, Mount Ida College and Norwich University at Westerlea Way Field, weather pending.
The Monks' 16 opponents combined to post a 115-131 (.467) record last spring and Saint Joseph's owns an all-time record of 16-26 (.381) versus the group, collectively.
The 2013 season features the earliest start in the program's six-year history, as the Monks host Husson at Deering Memorial Stadium on Wednesday, February 27th at 4:00 PM. St. Joe's has never before played a contest in February and the earliest start to a season came last spring when the Royal Blue played at Husson on March 3rd.
Saint Joseph's hosts Salem State in a 1:00 PM start three days later and continues the streak of home contests with a game versus Plymouth State on March 7th at 4:30 PM.
Over Spring Break, the Monks travel to the New Jersey metro area where the team faces a brand new opponent in Centenary College on Sunday, March 10th in Hackettstown, N.J. Saint Joseph's takes on another unfamiliar foe, Salve Regina, on March 12th on the return trip to Standish.
Upon returning to Maine the Monks kick off GNAC play with a home contest against Anna Maria at 1:00 PM on Saturday, March 16th. Saint Joseph's plays at Emmanuel College on March 19th and travels to Southern Maine four days later to face off against the Huskies in a 1:00 PM start.
On Tuesday, March 26th the Monks make the trek to Waterville to face Colby in what will be the first-ever meeting between the pair of in-state programs. A top program in the always-competitive New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC), the Mules promise to be one of the Monks' strongest opponents this spring.
The Monks then finish out the season with seven-consecutive conference contests, beginning with a home game versus Emerson on Saturday, March 30th. After an April 3rd tilt at Rivier University, Saint Joseph's hosts a tough Lasell program in what is slated to be the first contest on campus on April 6th. Four days later, the Monks travel to Becker College and remain on the road with a game at Daniel Webster College on April 13th.
Two regular-season games remain, as Saint Joseph's hosts Mount Ida, the defending GNAC champions, on Tuesday, April 16th and battle Norwich University in the season finale at Westerlea Way Field four days later.
The GNAC Tournament begins with a quarterfinal round on Tuesday, April 23rd and continues with the semifinals to be played on Thursday, April 25th. The conference championship takes place on Saturday, April 27th and the GNAC Champion advances to the NCAA Tournament, which begins on Wednesday, May 8th.
Saint Joseph's went 8-10 overall and 6-3 in GNAC play en route to claiming the #5 seed in the GNAC Tournament last spring. The Monks' season came to an end on April 25th when the Royal Blue suffered a 9-4 loss at the hands of fourth-seeded Norwich University in the first round of the tourney.
2013 Schedule Synopsis:
Saint Joseph's College, founded in 1912 by the Sisters of Mercy, celebrates its Centennial year in 2012 with a theme of "Realize the Promise" – honoring our commitment to educating well-rounded graduates who combine career focus with classic liberal arts studies. A Private, Catholic, primarily residential, coeducational liberal arts institution, Saint Joseph's welcomes students of all ages and all faiths. The campus, located 18 miles northwest of Portland and just two hours from Boston, encompasses 350 acres along the shore of beautiful Sebago Lake in Standish, Maine. Enrollment ranges between 1,000 and 1,100 students annually. Saint Joseph's offers challenging academic programs in the liberal arts and sciences, education, nursing and business fields in a value-centered environment.