Championship Date: Saturday, May 4
Location: President's Stadium| Old Westbury, N.Y.
Game Links:  Watch Live | Live Stats
Twitter: @LIUPostPioneers | @LIUPMLAX
LIU Post Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats 
Mercy Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats 

THE FIRST LOOK
 
LIU Post dismantled No. 3 seed New York Institute of Technology on Wednesday at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium, earning a 15-4 victory. The Pioneers head back to the East Coast Conference Championship for the second-consecutive season and fifth time in the past six years as they look to capture their 13th ECC title.
 
Mercy continued its strong play this season with a dominating performance of their own against No. 4 seed Roberts Wesleyan College, taking down the Redhawks 16-2 at Mercy Field. Mercy returns to the ECC championship game for just the second time in school history, appearing most recently during LIU Post's only hiatus in 2017. The Mavericks are looking for their first conference title.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES

LIU Post leads the 12-game series, 10-2. The Mavericks earned a 13-10 victory earlier this season at Mercy Field by a 13-10 margin and earned their only other victory during the 2017 season, the last time they advanced to the ECC Championship. The Pioneers average just over 12 goals per game, while holding Mercy to just 8.25 goals. LIU Post opened the series with an 8-0 mark from 2010-2016.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET


The Pioneers and Mavericks met two short weeks ago on April 20 in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. The Mavericks were triumphant in the matchup of top-10 squads, earning a 13-10 victory.
 
Sophomore William Snelders led LIU Post with three goals, while freshman Jake Gillis and junior Mike Kadnar found the back of the net twice. Senior Connor Farrell finished 20-for-25 on faceoffs, collecting a game-high 15 ground balls. Defensively, senior Bryan Ochs made nine saves, but it was not enough to slow down the Maverick attack.
 
The Green and Gold outshot Mercy by a 45-32 margin and held a 40-29 edge in ground balls.

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS

LIU Post will look for a balanced attack against Mercy as it showed against NYIT during the semifinal round. The Pioneer offense has been tested and proven itself time and time again this season and will look to generate consistent looks on the attack. While Snelders and Gillis hold the main focus offensively, senior Thomas Liantonio and junior Alex Russell will look to be catalysts both in distribution and scoring.
 
Defensively, Ochs had one of his better performances against NYIT, making 11 saves on 15 shots on goal. This season Ochs has allowed an average of 8.94 goals per game behind a .543 save percentage.
 
SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
 
Mercy is led by two attackmen on the offensive end, with Ryan Macspayden and Bobby Chillianis tallying over 35 goals this season. Macspayden boasts an even 38 goals and a league-best 38 assists. Macspayden's 76 points also leads the ECC, six points higher than Snelders in second place. As a unit Mercy is averaging 13.6 goals per game while holding its opponents to just 6.8 goals.
 
Max Littleton, Kyle Gardner, Jack Kipnes, and Anthony DeCeglia lead the impressive Maverick defense, each tallying over 20 caused turnovers during the team's 17 games. Littleton, who has only appeared in 15 games, ranks second in the conference with 30 caused turnovers, while the group holds four of the top five spots in the ECC in the same category. Ryan Gibbons is the goalie of record for all 17 games for Mercy, allowing just 6.62 goals per game behind a .602 save percentage.

TICKET INFORMATION

Admission will be charged for all fans in attendance for the ECC Championship. Tickets for adults will be $8 and students with valid ID, senior citizens, and children ages 5-12 will be admitted for $4. Children under the age of five will not be charged admission. Fans that cannot make it to President's Stadium can follow along with live video available on the ECC Network online, on mobile devices, and other streaming devices through the ECC Network app free of charge. The championship game will also be a part of the NCAA Division II showcase and will be broadcasted on all Division II social media accounts. Fans can also follow along with live stats at www.liupostpioneers.com.