WATERBURY, Conn. – It was déjà vu for Post University Men's Lacrosse in their Monday afternoon CACC Tournament First Round matchup against the University of Bridgeport. A year ago today, the two Connecticut teams squared off in the First Round with the Eagles coming out on top, 16-13, advancing to their second straight CACC Semifinals.

Fast forward 365 days, the four-seeded Eagles and fifth-seeded Purple Knights did battle once more in the First Round at LaMoy Field with the same result as Post used eight points each from junior attacker Ryan Denike and graduate attacker Hunter McCarty to get by Bridgeport, 15-12. The win propels the Eagles to their third straight semifinal appearances and second consecutive against top-seeded Wilmington University, whom they will face on Wednesday afternoon in Delaware at 3:30 PM. 

THE BASICS

Post University 15, University of Bridgeport 12

#4 Post University (9-6)

#5 University of Bridgeport (7-8)

HOW IT HAPPENED
It was all McCarty and Denike through the first 15 minutes of action as the duo played a part in all seven of the first-quarter goals that the Eagles scored, with Denike registering three assists and two goals, while McCarty had three goals. Jumping out to a 7-1 lead, Post accounted for nine of the first 10 goals in the affair with the junior and graduate student either assisting or scoring on all nine of the offensive scores. 

Breaking up what was a 6-0 run for Post, junior midfielder Matthew Levantini pieced together a hat trick over the course of four minutes in the second, cutting into the eight-goal lead that the Eagles had, making it a 9-4 game. Quelling the 3-0 run was McCarty with his fourth goal of the first half, sending Post into the halftime break with a six-goal advantage, 10-4.

By the end of the game, either McCarty or Denike accounted for a point in each of the 15 goals scored by the Eagles, who with 7:25 left, held an eight-goal lead, 15-7, after a no-look goal for junior attacker Leighton Cooke as the shot clock expired to seemingly seal the deal for Post. However, that would not be the case, as a last-second blitz from Bridgeport quickly turned the game on its head, and the Purple Knights stormed back within striking distance. 

Freshman midfielder Stephen Trama kicked off a 5-0 run for Bridgeport with his second goal of the afternoon at the 4:53 mark, but after a trio of unsportsmanlike penalties were assessed to both teams, Trama netted another with 3:21 left to cut the deficit further. Down six with three minutes remaining, two more goals in a span of 11 seconds suddenly made it just a four-goal advantage for Post, and Levantini's fifth of the game made it 15-12 with 1:28 on the clock. 

Following a faceoff win by the Purple Knights, graduate defender Thomas Pouliot drew an illegal body check penalty, giving Bridgeport a man-up with 1:20 to go. Graduate attacker Hunter Lizza would rifle a shot on freshman goalie Aiden Waller, who made 13 saves in the win, that was stopped, allowing Post to cross midfield with the ball, call a timeout, and waste the final minute on the clock to avoid any further damage. 

In all, the Eagles were outscored 6-2 in the final 15 minutes, with five of those goals coming inside of five minutes left in regulation. Post was outshot 34-19 overall and 19-12 on goal in the second half, after dominating by a 36-12 margin overall and a 19-6 margin on goal in the first half. Sophomore goalie Casey Dmochowski made 16 saves in the net for the Purple Knights as Post made it five consecutive wins in the all-time series and two straight in the postseason against Bridgeport. 

BY THE NUMBER

• Leighton Cooke delivered his 13th hat trick in 15 games this season for Post University – Cooke finished the game with three goals for a total of three points in the win 
• Both Ryan Denike and Hunter McCarty finished with eight points each as McCarty registered six goals and two assists, while Denike tallied three goals and five assists
• Post University remains a perfect 5-0 against the University of Bridgeport since they joined the conference in 2023 and are 2-0 in the CACC Tournament against them – This will be the third straight season in which the Eagles advance to the CACC Semifinals
• In their three seasons since joining the CACC, the University of Bridgeport has made the CACC Tournament twice, facing Post University both times in the First Round at LaMoy Field

WHO'S NEXT
For the second straight year, Post University will travel to top-seeded Wilmington University on Wednesday afternoon for the CACC Semifinals, which get underway at 3:30 PM. The Eagles are winless in their last seven matchups against the Wildcats, only winning the inaugural head-to-head battle in 2018, 9-5. Earlier this season, Post lost on the road to Wilmington, 18-8, on April 5th.