This Was Capital Region Lacrosse’s Best Weekend of All-Time, Here’s Why

Fans of lacrosse in the Capital Region won't forget this past weekend anytime soon.

It all began on Thursday, when the UAlbany Great Danes began their pursuit of their 10th America East title. UAlbany, the tournament's No. 1 seed, bested No. 4 Merrimack on Thursday night at Casey Stadium by a score of 18-7.

Two days later, they outlasted Vermont 12-11, winning the America East championship in dramatic fashion.

After the victory, they celebrated the victory the only way they know how:

The Danes will host Sacred Heart in an NCAA Tournament Play-In Game on Wednesday night at 7PM.

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Meanwhile, the RPI men's lacrosse team was looking to cap off one of its most successful seasons ever with a tournament championship this weekend. RPI edged St. Lawrence in the Liberty League semifinals on Friday, setting up a match-up with No. 1 RIT, who the Engineers had beaten in OT during the regular season.

It went down to the wire again, and on a goal from Tyler Ruffini with three seconds left, the Engineers went ahead for good:

With their tournament win, RPI was also awarded the opportunity to host the first three rounds of the NCAA DIII Men's Lacrosse Tournament. They play the winner of a play-in game between St. Mary's and Farmingdale State on Saturday at noon at ECAV Stadium in Troy.

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Last, but certainly not least, was the continuation of the Cinderella story that is the 2024 Albany FireWolves. Albany won three games all of last season, and none at MVP Arena. This season, they won 11 games, and after beating Halifax in the first round of the NLL Playoffs, got set for their series with San Diego in the semifinals.

They won Game 1 on the road on Friday night, and returned home to MVP Arena with a chance to advance to the NLL Finals for the first time in franchise history.

They did just that:

So, in the same four-day span, both UAlbany lacrosse teams played for America East championships, and the men's program won it. The RPI Engineers and Union Garnet Chargers played for a Liberty League championship, and RPI won that. Both Siena lacrosse programs also won games in the MAAC Tournament over the last week, as well.

It was one of the best, if not the best, weekends that Capital Region lacrosse fans will ever experience, and the action only gets better this upcoming week!