View 2014 Men's Lacrosse Schedule

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Peter Lawrence, head coach of the University of Hartford men's lacrosse team, is pleased to announce the 2014 men's lacrosse schedule and the team captains. With opening day set for Saturday, February 15, a quartet of seniors will lead the Hawks in their quest for their second-ever America East Championship crown as Justin Bentivegna, Andrew Cacchio, Tate Klidonas and Frank Piechota were tabbed captains by their teammates.

Hartford will take the field 15 times in the 2014 regular season, a slate that is highlighted by eight home contests at Al-Marzook Field at Alumni Stadium.

The new season begins away from home on Saturday, February 15 as the Hawks head south for Virginia to face Richmond in its inaugural Division I season at 1 p.m. The road stand is not long, though, as the team returns to the Northeast to open its home schedule a week later on Saturday, February 22 at 1 p.m. against two-time Northeast Conference champion Bryant. The non-conference clash between the foes will be the first of its kind since the Bulldogs made the jump to the NCAA's highest ranking back in 2007.

Following the home debut, the Scarlet and White opens the month of March with back-to-back road games before returning to West Hartford for a pair of contests.

The short road stint begins with a stop at Manhattan on Saturday, March 1. The scheduled 1 p.m. opening faceoff will end a nine-year hiatus between the Hawks and Jaspers as the two teams last met in the New York borough back in 2005. The next stop for the Hawks will be on Wednesday, March 5 with a 4 p.m. tilt at Brown, a team that went 8-6 last season.

Back-to-back opponents from the MAAC highlight Hartford's two-game homestand as Siena and Quinnipiac both visit West Hartford on Saturday, March 8 (1 p.m.) and Wednesday, March 12 (4 p.m.), respectively. The runner-up of the MAAC last season, Siena went 8-9 last year while the Bobcats, who finished 6-8 in 2013, will vie for a league title in their debut season in the conference.

Hartford will spend the next two weeks on the road with a pair of contests scheduled at Sacred Heart on Saturday, March 15 and at UMass on Saturday, March 22, with both game times set for 1 p.m. Against the Pioneers, the Hawks have won two of the last three while last season, they took the Minutemen down to the wire, but fell victim to a pair of late goals at home.

A Tuesday evening non-conference matchup with the Holy Cross Crusaders on March 25 kicks off a four-game home stretch for the Hawks that extends into the second week of April. Following the Holy Cross game, Hartford begins America East Conference play by welcoming Binghamton to Alumni Stadium for a 2 p.m. contest on Saturday, March 29.

Conference play continues one week later as Albany, the defending America East champion, visits the Hawks in West Hartford on Saturday, April 5. The first of two-straight night games, Hartford will look to end a two-game skid to the Great Danes. On Tuesday, April 8, Hartford concludes its longest homestand of the year and wraps-up non-conference play with Dartmouth at 7 p.m.

After hitting the road for UMBC on Saturday, April 12 (1 p.m.), the 2013 regular season home finale will be played on Saturday, April 19 as the Hawks welcome the Vermont Catamounts to Alumni Stadium for a clash under the lights of Al-Marzook Field at 7 p.m. Hartford wraps up the regular season on the road with a trip to Stony Brook's La Valle Stadium on Friday, April 25 at 7 p.m.

The top-four regular season finishers will qualify for the America East Championship which begins with the semifinals on Thursday, May 1. The league champion, which will be crowned on Saturday, May 3, will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament beginning on Saturday, May 10.

In three seasons with the Scarlet and White, the 2014 captains have helped lead Hartford to 23 wins as well as three-consecutive America East Championship appearances. The foursome has also played an integral role in piloting the program to its first-ever tournament crown, a feat that was accomplished during their freshman seasons back in 2011. In addition, they have had success off the field, leading the team to four-straight Community Service Awards while helping the University of Hartford earn back-to-back America East Academic Cups for the first time in the history of the league award.

A 6-3 midfielder out of Wantagh, N.Y., Bentivegna has played in 15 career games, scoring his first career point on a goal at Brown during his sophomore season. Off the field, he is a member of Hartford's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and is also dedicated to giving back to the community as an individual and with his team. Chosen to attend the NCAA's Career in Sports Forum last summer, Bentivegna has landed a spot on the America East Commissioner's Honor Roll on three occasions for achieving a grade point average of 3.5 or higher.

Hartford's second active leading goal-scorer, Cacchio enjoyed a breakout season last year as a junior, more than quadrupling his offensive output from his freshman and sophomore seasons combined. An America East All-Academic Team selection in 2013 who has earned Academic Honor Roll accolades three times, Cacchio finished second on the team in goals (24) and added a pair of assists for 26 points last season. The 6-0 attacker from Richboro, Pa., has accumulated 30 career points, scoring 28 times and assisting on two goals.

The Hawks' glue guy, Klidonas has made an instant impact since his arrival for the 2011 season. Playing in every game since stepping foot on campus, he enters his final season with the Hawks with 37 career points on 22 goals and 15 assists. A short-stick, 5-10 midfielder from Emmaus, Pa., he gets it done on both ends of the field as he finished second in both caused turnovers (12) and ground balls (48) last season. Klidonas earned a spot on the America East All-Academic Team last year and is a three-time America East All-Conference honoree, earning First-Team billing in 2013.

Rounding out the captains is Piechota, a 6-1 goalie from Trumbull, Conn. Ranked seventh in Hartford's record books for career wins with 12, he is on pace to finish his stint with one of the top career goals-against averages and save percentages in program history. Already ranking eighth in the books with 261 total saves, Piechota enjoyed a breakout year in 2013, posting double digit saves on 10 occasions while ranking second among America East netminders in save percentage (.508) and saves per game (11.36). He was also named to the America East All-Conference First Team last season.