The top-seeded men’s lacrosse team will be hosting the NESCAC championship this weekend, following a stellar effort led by Chris Albanese ’17 and Quinn Moroney ’16 last Saturday. Albanese contributed six goals while Moroney tallied six assists in the 12-9 victory over Colby on April 25.

Moroney got things started early for the Jeffs with a goal just under two minutes into the first quarter. The Mules responded a minute later with a goal of their own to tie the score at 1-1. Moroney and Albanese found fire shortly after, as Moroney fed Albanese for three goals in a row to bring the purple and white lead to 4-1. Moroney dished another to Mike Litner ’16 with just eight seconds left to play in the first quarter, giving the Jeffs a 4-point advantage.

Colby came out hard in the second quarter, putting a second goal on the board a minute into play. Amherst responded just 15 seconds later when Moroney fed Albanese who found the back of the net, followed by a goal from Matt Killian ’17 at the 11 minute mark. The Mules and Jeffs traded goals, as Colby put their third away before Charlie Gill ’16 found the back of the net, followed by another from Colby and a fifth Albanese goal. The Mules tallied the final goal of the quarter, bringing the score to 9-5 at the close of the first 30 minutes.

Connor Sheehan ’18 notched the 10th Amherst goal just a minute and a half into the third quarter. At the 8:12 mark, Albanese found Litner, who sent one into the net to bring the score to 11-5. With just under five to play in the third stanza, Colby managed to put a sixth goal on the board.

The start to the fourth quarter was back and forth, but Albanese broke the silence off of a feed from Moroney after seven minutes into play. It looked as if the Mules were going to make a comeback in the last six minutes, scoring three unanswered goals before time ran out. It wasn’t enough, however, and the Colby season came to an end when the Jeffs advanced to the semifinals.

A strong defensive effort by the purple and white kept the Colby offense at bay. Cody Tranbarger ’17, the NESCAC save percentage leader, made 26 saves and collected four groundballs in the win. Ryan Cassidy ’16 led the team with eight groundballs, while senior midfielder Pat Routh collected five for the Jeffs. Rob Butko ’16 led the defense with four caused turnovers, while Killian added three more for the purple and white.

The Jeffs will face Bates on Saturday, May 2. No. 2 Tufts will play No. 3 Middlebury in the other semifinal contest.