SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The University of Hartford men's lacrosse team is back for round two of the Conference of New England (CNE) tournament after a 12-6 win in round one over Nichols College. The Hawks will take on Western New England looking for revenge from a overtime loss during the regular season.
No. 3 University of Hartford Hawks (11-5 Overall, 7-2 CNE)
No. 2 Western New England University Bears (11-6 Overall, 8-1 CNE)
Game Headlines:
The Hawks will travel to Springfield for round two of the CNE tournament at Golden Bear Stadium where they will challenge WNE. Hartford fell 14-13 in the team's regular season matchup back on April 8th. The Hawks come into the second round of the tournament with a 12-6 victory under their wings against Nichols in the CNE this past weekend.
Hartford Headlines:
- Away this season the Hawks tied with a 5-5 overall record in regular season.
- The offense has been stellar this season with 214 goals (14.3 per game). The attack is led by junior Michael Novotny (Cornwall, N.Y.) who has tallied 57 points on 38 goals and 19 assists this season. Sophomore Shaun Wright (Frederick, Md.) put together quite the sophomore season with a conference-leading 36 assists to go with 18 goals for 54 points. Junior captain Aidan Ezra (New Milford, Conn.) gave 49 points (28 goals, 21 assists). Junior Colin Reilly (Southington, Conn.) has shown out huge with 48 total points on 40 goals and eight assists.
- Defensively the Hawks start with graduate student Nick DiDomizio (Cheshire, Conn.) who has been the top defender for Hartford over the last two years. Nick ended the year with 12 caused turnovers and 22 ground balls while also scoring a game winning point in CNE round one. Senior Tobias Ballester (Westwood, N.J.) follows with 10 caused turnovers and 50 grounders. Other defensive players to look for include junior Trent Beggs (Somers, Conn.) who have been quality defensive midfielders.
- In the cage will be junior CJ Ledwick (Falmouth, Mass.) who holds a 9-4 record this year with 112 saves this season.
- Sophomore Ian Reynolds (Queensbury, N.Y.) had a great year from the face-off circle going 148-241 (61.6% face off success rate).
- In the first round the Hawks used a stellar defensive showcase to defeat the Bison 12-6 at home.
WNE Highlights:
- The Bears have had a consistent 2026 season finishing 11-6 overall with a conference score of 8-1. WNE picked up a pair of huge CNE wins over the Gordon College and Nichols College to close out April. On the road the Bears have been steady going 4-2 away from Springfield.
- The offense is led by Jacob Roy who ended the year with 39 goals and 29 assists. Logan Jenkins follows with 28 goals and 11 assists. Thomas Labbe and Logan Proctor both added 15+ point seasons.
- The defense is led by David Noel who had 22 caused turnovers with 67 grounders and Jack Gara with 18 causes and 39 ground balls this year.
- Jeffrey Wojtowicz is the number one goalie his year with 121 saves and a save percentage of 50%.
- Chris Catuosco is the face-off specialist for WNE going 180-273 (66%) from the dot this year.
All-Time Against Western New England:
The Hawks are 1-2 all-time against Western New England University with the last victory coming on April 19th last season winning 13-11 at home. Hartford is 0-2 all-time at Western New England and will be looking for their first win against the Golden Bears.
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE OF NEW ENGLAND:
Originally founded in 1984 as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) and reconstituted as the Conference of New England (CNE) in 2024, the CNE is an NCAA Division III athletic conference composed of 11 full member and five associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition, and a meaningful student life. The Conference administers championships in 21 intercollegiate sports.
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