Montclair, NJ – The Montclair State University men's lacrosse team looks to bounce back as it hosts Western Connecticut for a Thursday slate.
 
GAME INFO
The matchup on Sprague Field is set to start at 4:00 p.m. Live coverage links can be found at montclairathletics.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Montclair suffered its first loss of the season last season on Saturday with a 16-12 defeat against Penn College. The Red Hawks (8-1) struck within the opening 65 seconds, as HENRY NORDSTROM slotted a feed to RYAN VIERBUCHEN for the day's first goal. Penn College equalized two minutes later and would retake the lead at the 9:18 mark after Vierbuchen had another attempt stopped by the Wildcats. After killing a penalty, the home side doubled their advantage with seven minutes on the clock after forcing a turnover on the other end. Penn College went up 4-1 shortly after, with the Red Hawks registering a trio of shots over the remainder of the stanza before the Wildcats struck with six seconds on the clock to go up four. Penn College continued its run into the second stanza, collecting three goals over the first four-plus minutes to force a Montclair timeout. Coming out of the break, the Wildcats generated a turnover, leading to their ninth marker of the day to make the difference eight. The Red Hawks cut into the deficit right after, as BRIAN KELLY registered an unassisted tally on the next possession. Following a save from NICHOLI HALSE, JONATHAN SLUSSER found Vierbuchen for his second strike of the afternoon to trim the difference to six. The Wildcats increased their total to double-digits with seven minutes on the clock, as the Red Hawks totaled the game's next four shots, leading to another goal from Kelly, which would prove to be the final tally of the half to make the score 10-4 at the break. Montclair recorded a pair of shots on goal during the first four minutes of the third period before Vierbuchen found the back of the net off a pass from JACK NORBERTO. As the quarter passed the ten-minute mark, Vierbuchen added another to bring the visitors within four. Nordstrom and Kelly saw shots stopped in front of the goal, but following a turnover from the Wildcats, MAX MOROSOFF cut the gap to three on an unassisted marker with 7:45 on the clock. The Wildcats countered with a pair of markers to rebuild a five-goal advantage, with a flurry of goals coming within the final 70 seconds of the quarter. Nordstrom found Kelly for a tally, with Vierbuchen ripping an unassisted marker with 20 seconds on the clock to help Montclair climb within three. The home side scored in the waning moments to make the score 13-9 going into the final quarter. Vierbuchen assisted Slusser for a goal in what would be a back-and-forth stanza, with Penn College answering right back at the 13-minute mark. Morosoff found the back of the net four minutes later, with Kelly having a shot stopped with under six minutes remaining that would have cut the gap to two goals. Shortly after, the Wildcats tallied a pair of goals to reopen a five-goal gap. Kelly scored with 2:26 on the clock, as the Red Hawks notched another pair of shots on goal over the remainder of the day, but could not get any closer.
 
 
MONTCLAIR STATE (8-1): 2026 Statistics
 
WESTERN CONNECTICUT (6-3): 2026 Statistics


SCOUTING WESTERN CONNECTICUT  
The Wolves enter this showdown with a 6-3 record and are coming off their first conference win of the season with an 11-9 triumph against Massachusetts Maritime on Sunday. Last season, they went 13-7, but were unbeaten in Little East Conference play at 8-0. In the LEC Tournament, they rode wins of 17-7 against Keene State and 22-7 against UMass Boston to secure the conference title. In the NCAA Tournament, they were bested in the first round by Babson, 24-4. According to the 2026 LEC Preseason Poll, West Conn is slated to win the conference title again.

SERIES HISTORY
The Red Hawks and the Wolves will face each other for just the fourth time ever. Montclair has the slight edge in the series at 2-1.  

LAST MEETINGS
These two teams met last season in Danbury, Conn., on February 26. Western Connecticut outlasted Montclair by a score of 14-9.

UP NEXT
Men's lacrosse will honor its 12 seniors before matching up with Maritime on Saturday, March 28, at 12:00 p.m.