DANBURY, Conn. - Five different players registered two goals apiece as the top-seeded Western Connecticut State University men's lacrosse team advanced to the Little East Conference Championship game following an 11-9 victory over visiting fourth-seeded Keene State College on Thursday evening at the Westside Athletic Complex. 

With the win, the Wolves improved to 13-4 overall. They will host third-seeded Plymouth State University in the title matchup on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Panthers downed second-seeded UMass Boston in the other semifinal matchup. 

Junior attackman Julian Duque (Mastic, N.Y.) paced WestConn with two goals and two assists, while rookie attackman Cody Suhr (Holbrook, N.Y.) added a pair of goals and one helper. Junior midfielder Matt Sweeney (Rocky Point, N.Y.) also put forth a solid effort and handed out a trio of assists. 

Junior midfielder Giacomo Tedone (Southington, Conn.) led the Owls with a pair of scoring strikes, while senior midfielder Colby Quiet (Hopkinton, N.H) chipped in with a goal and two assists.

It seemed like the rout was underway in the first half as the Wolves jumped out to an 8-0 lead. Suhr broke the ice when he took a feed from junior midfielder Nathan Caldwell (Cheshire, Conn.) and scorched the net. Duque netted both of his goals during the flurry. He took a pass from Sweeney and tickled the twine for his team-leading 56th marker of the campaign with 1:05 left before the break.

It was a different Owls team in the third quarter. The visitors rallied with five unanswered third quarter goals, slicing the advantage to 8-5. Tedone got things started with his 12th goal of the season before Quiet canned his 22nd to round out the run. 

The Wolves countered with a trio of goals to begin the fourth. Suhr found the back of the net before graduate student midfielder Tyler Starrett (Redding, Conn.) sank his 40th of the slate. Junior middie Peter Traina (East Moriches, N.Y.) wrapped up the spurt when he ripped a shot top-shelf off a nifty pass from Suhr. The Wolves appeared to be running away with it. However, Keene State retaliated with three straight midway thru the quarter to shrink the margin to 11-9 with 4:43 left to play. WestConn managed to play keep-away and draw a handful of penalties to escape with the victory.

Senior netminder Brendan Grove (Cheshire, Conn.) was his usual stellar self, recording nine stops to earn the win for the Wolves. Senior goalie Charlie Giuliotti (Reading, Mass.) notched 11 stops and took the loss for the Owls.