Concordia Irvine Athletics

Seven Eagles Earn Conference Honors Before MCLA Tourney Begins

Apr 30 | 9:48 AM

Ben Rosehart

IRVINE, Calif. – No. 10 Concordia University Irvine men's lacrosse will face No. 7 Colorado in the first round of the MCLA National Championships. 
 
The game will be played in Utah on Monday, May 6 at 6:15 pm PT (7:15 p.m.  MT) at the Salt Lake City Regional Athletic Complex. The winner will face either No. 2 seed Chapman or Minnesota. 
 
Colorado defeated CUI 17-10 back in late March when the two teams squared off in Boulder, Colo.

"I think the team is very motivated to play Colorado again," said CUI head coach Jesse Foss.  "Colorado is a great team but we played our last match up in back-to-back games, at elevation, and with a seriously limited roster due to injury.  The opportunity to play a team a second time and with a healthy roster is something we are looking forward to."

The Eagles defeated USC in their final home game of the year in the Southwest Lacrosse Conference (SLC) quarterfinals 15-9 before falling to No. 4 Arizona State 13-9 last week in the semifinals. The Eagles and Sun Devils played at a neutral site down in Carlsbad, Calif.
 
Despite the loss, CUI was picked as an at-large team in the MCLA bracket. Two years ago, CUI won the national championship.  Now the 2019 squad has a chance to make it two titles in three years.

"The guys are hungry and ready to make their mark at the MCLA Division 1 level," added Foss. "We talk a lot about the seniors leaving their legacy and a great finish to that would be getting that first MCLA D1 win at Nationals."

Defending national champion Michigan State is also back in the field as a No. 11 seed on Concordia's side of the bracket.  CUI defeated the Spartans at Eagles Field back in March when MSU was featured as the No. 1 team in the country.
 
Seven CUI players also earned recognition from the SLC this week. Midfielder Jackson Lienhart, defensive short stick midfielder Kobe Brown, long stick midfielder Connor Reed and defenseman Tyler Collins all were named First Team All-Conference. 
 
CUI midfielder Logan Perry made Second-Team All-Conference while senior attacker Brandon Mayo and sophomore goalie Tyler Schweickert received Honorable Mention.
 
To check out the 2019 MCLA National Championships bracket, click here.

For the full CUI men's lacrosse schedule, click here.