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Limestone, LIU-Post To Play For Division II Title

Upset-minded Long Island University-Post will try to end their surprise post-season run with a victory in the NCAA Division II Title game when they face second-ranked Limestone College on Sunday.

The game will be played at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Sunday May 24th at 4:00 pm, as part of the NCAA Men’s Lax Championships weekend.

LIU-Post (11-5) arrives to Baltimore winner of five-straight games. A mid-season slump saw the Pioneers drop four of six and a third place finish in the East Coast Conference. Victories over co-conference champion NYIT and Dowling in the ECC Tournament earned Post an at-large bid to the eight team NCAA Tournament field.

In the quarterfinals Post cruised to a 9-3 win over defending national champion LeMoyne College. Another impressive victory over top-ranked Adelphi University in the semifinal earned the Pioneers their spot in the championship game.

Leading scorer Matty Beccaris has 31 goals and 22 assists for Post. The sophomore, who had seven points in their semifinal victory, is a native of North Babylon, NY. Chris Caiazza (34 goals, 7 assists), Ryan Slane (23 goals, 17 assists), Connor Drost (17 goals, 19 assists) and Joe Costello (29 goals, 6 assists) provide a balanced offensive attack for the Pioneers.

Limestone (18-1) suffered just one defeat during their regular season, a 12-8 decision to LeMoyne. A 14-game winning streak has the Saints poised to win their third national championship. Limestone has outscored opponents 284-123 this season, led by Kyle Rhatigan (35 goals, 32 assists), Mike Messenger (42 goals, 22 assists) and Todd Nakasuji (41 goals, 23 assists).

Limestone will be playing in their eighth championship game. Coming up short in 2012, 2005, 2004, 2003 and 2001, the Saints hope to bring back their first title to the Gaffney, SC campus since 2002.