MEN'S LACROSSE NOTEBOOK
 
The America East Champion Vermont men's lacrosse team makes its second straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday when it hosts Manhattan in an Opening Round matchup.
 
All the action between the Catamounts and Jaspers begins at 6 p.m. at Virtue Field and can be seen on ESPN+.
 
Tickets are available by clicking here. All UVM students will receive free admission with their Cat Card courtesy of the UVM President's Office. A $2 group rate is available for all youth lacrosse players 12 & under wearing a jersey and their families.
 
RELATED LINKS
ESPN+ | Live Stats
 
LAST TIME OUT
Trailing 6-3 late in the second quarter, Vermont scored 10 of the games next 15 goals to outlast UMBC in the America East tile game, 13-11, on Saturday afternoon. The Cats erased that deficit with three goals in a 48-second span and then scored the first four goals of the second half to take control. Thomas McConvey scored five goals en route to being named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Ryan Cornell made 12 saves while Nick Alviti scoped up seven ground balls. The win gave UVM its second straight championship and marked the 12^th straight win over league opponents dating back to last season.
 
MILESTONES
Thomas McConvey etched his name once more into the UVM record books on Saturday shattering the single-season goals record. Needing just one to break the mark, McConvey scored five more (19 in the last three games) to give him 55 goals this season. Head coach Chris Feifs is now tied for second all-time with 48 career wins. David Closterman (27G, 34A) and McConvey (55G, 12A) represent the first tandem each with 60+ points in a season since 1997.
 
ALL-LEAGUE HONORS
Eleven Catamounts earned 14 spots across the America East All-Conference teams, it was announces earlier Wednesday. A program and conference record nine Cats earned First Team All-Conference status headlined by Offensive Player of the Year Thomas McConvey and Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Cornell. David Closterman, Brock Haley, Will Jones, Jackson Canfield, Tommy Burke, Pat Murphy and Nick Alviti were all named to the First Team. Michael McCormack earned a spot on the Second Team while Charlie Pope was UVM's lone representative on the All-Rookie Team.
 
CATS IN THE RANKINGS
UVM finds itself in the thick of the national rankings in a number of categories. The Cats rank second in the country in man-down defense killing penalties at a .764 clip and they rank ninth in caused turnovers per game (9.82). Vermont's scoring defense ranks third nationally giving up 8.88 goals per game. UVM ranks 10^th overall in assists per game (8.59). Individually, Nick Alviti is 17^th in the country in caused turnovers per game. Ryan Cornell ranks third in goals against average and is tenth in save percentage while Tommy Burke sits seventh in faceoff winning percentage. McConvey is ninth nationally with 3.24 goals per game and second in total goals.
 
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Wednesday marks Vermont's second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. Last May, the Cats dropped a 17-11 decision to Maryland in their tournament debut in College Park.
 
SCOUTING THE JASPERS
Manhattan is making its first trip to the NCAA Tournament in 20 years by virtue of an 8-7 win over St. Bonaventure in the MAAC Championship Game Saturday. The Jaspers have won three straight overall and knocked off the top two seeds in the MAAC Tournament last weekend. A trio of First-Team All-Conference selections pace the Jaspers on offense led by Kyle Gucwa's 39 points (30G, 9A). Defensively Luke Pacher was also named to the First Team while goalie Brendan Krebs finished the regular season with a 9.58 goals against average.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
Wednesday's meeting will be just the 2^nd all-time between Manhattan and Vermont with UVM winning the lone prior matchup, 20-5, back in 1999. Manhattan head coach Drew Kelleher played for the Catamounts back in the late 2000s and was named America East Fans' Choice Player of the Year in 2009.