Championship Central |
Tournament Bracket
INDIANAPOLIS – The Great Lakes Valley Conference announced Saturday evening the field for the 2021 GLVC Men’s Lacrosse Championship Tournament, which will be hosted by Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo., on May 7-9.
The top four teams based on Conference winning percentage received a berth in the single-elimination tournament. The tournament location was determined prior to the academic year. Although a double round-robin Conference-only format was scheduled this spring, cancelations resulted in some programs competing in an uneven amount of games.
Lindenwood University (9-2) secured the No. 1 seed for the event after capping the regular season with a convincing 14-6 win over Rockhurst University on Saturday. University of Indianapolis (8-2) earned the No. 2 seed, while Rockhurst (8-4) and Maryville University (7-5) will be seeded No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.
UIndy has won each of the first two GLVC men’s lacrosse titles, winning the inaugural event in 2018 and successfully defending the crown the following spring. The Greyhounds downed then-member Young Harris College from Key Stadium in 2018, before defeating Rockhurst, 15-14, in 2019. The 2020 Championship was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Maryville is making its third appearance in the GLVC men’s lacrosse tournament, while Rockhurst will compete in its second next weekend. This season marks the first time advancing to the league postseason Championship for Lindenwood, which joined the GLVC prior to the 2019-20 academic year.
Carter Collins led the Lions with 44 points during the regular season and 33 goals, while Rob Tucker dished out a team-high 15 assists. Brian Kallberg caused 21 turnovers on defense and Jony Major has won 60.6 percent of his faceoff attempts at the x. For Maryville, Jake Foster scored 35 times in 12 games while five others recorded at least 10 goals. Freshman Connor Robinson collected a .551 save percentage in nine contests between the pipes.
The Lions and Saints square off on Friday at 4 p.m. CT in St. Charles. During the regular season, Lindenwood and Maryville played two tightly-contested games; the Saints snagged an 8-7 victory on February 24, while the Lions earned an 11-9 victory on April 6.
Four Greyhounds tallied at least 20 points this spring, with Drew Billig leading the way with 33 on 16 goals and 17 assists. Jack Belobrajdic scooped up 34 ground balls in 10 games, while Kyle Basch and Caleb Parker each grabbed 29. Austin Barnett made all 10 starts in net, recording an 8.54 goals-against average and .566 save percentage. Rockhurst also sported a balance offense, as John Myran tallied a team-high 29 points as one of four Hawks with at least 20. Brooks Hanson scored 20 goals for Rockhurst, while Luke Goetz (26) and Graden Soucy (25) combined for 51 caused turnovers. Sal Valdivia and Nick Mostrom have dominated on the faceoff as a duo this spring, winning 61.2 percent of attempts at the x.
The Greyhounds and Hawks compete at 6:30 p.m. CT on Friday evening. UIndy and Rockhurst split their pair of regular-season games this spring, as the Greyhounds won 13-8 back on March 7 before the Hawks returned the favor on April 17, 9-5.
Gates will open at 3 p.m. on Friday and noon on Sunday. Individuals must be on "will call" list (200 per team) in order to purchase tickets.
For complete coverage and tournament details, please visit championship central at
GLVCsports.com/2021mlax. All games will be streamed for free on
GLVCSN.com.