College lacrosse: Mercy getting national exposure in NCAA title game
Talk about having a moment.
After surviving high-stakes drama in a double-overtime and beating a national powerhouse in an NCAA Division II men’s lacrosse semifinal, Mercy College is playing for a national title in the national spotlight.
It’s a big deal for a program founded just 12 years ago.
“This is huge for us,” said Mercy coach Jordan Levine, who’s been on the sideline from the beginning and was promoted to head coach in 2012. “I’ve gotten messages from more recruits and transfers than ever in just these last couple of days. Some may not have originally considered Mercy, but you build a reputation and that goes a long way.”
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Exposure helps the program stay competitive with traditional powers like LeMoyne and Adelphi off the field, too.
Mercy went 16-1 this season and will take on the University of Tampa at 4 p.m. Sunday at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. The Mavericks advanced when Dom Scorcia delivered a double-overtime game-winner against LeMoyne.
The intensity was off the charts.
“I felt like I was going to throw up the entire fourth quarter and both of the overtimes,” said fifth-year senior Sean Makar, a former All-American at Lakeland High School who came home to complete his extra season of eligibility after four seasons at Binghamton. “My heart was beating out of my chest. It was pretty intense the whole time, but those last 20 minutes were pretty legit.”
The celebration following the 12-11 semifinal victory was epic.
“I just noticed a sense of calm with the team,” Levine said. “They were really dialed in. They felt like they belonged and could win a game like that and they did. After the game, that pure joy set in and we had alumni storming the field and guys throwing stuff in the air, it was such a great win and in dramatic fashion against the defending national champions and the gold standard in Division II lacrosse.”
Livestream: Watch the Division II national championship game
There isn’t a lot of local talent on the roster, but it's not for a lack of trying.
It’s not easy to get Westchester standouts to stay home and play in college, so Levine, who played under Scott Marr at Albany, brings in most of his talent from the Long Island hotbed.
“When I first got here, I was going to recruit anywhere and anyone that could help our program,” he said. “I still try to do that, but I understand what butters our bread. We’ve got a real good niche on Long Island. It’s where I’m from originally and we’ve gotten a few good Section 1 guys the second time around. I recruited Sean Makar out of high school and got him after Binghamton. The same thing a couple years ago with Kevin McNally, who played at Suffern and then Albany. The big thing is building those relationships.”
Clarkstown South graduate James DiStefano and Mahopac graduate Brett Crecco are on the roster, as well.
Associate head coach Joe Corace won a state title in 1996 while coaching at Mahopac.
“It’s really nice to be able to come home and play with a team that recruited me out of high school,” said Makar, a midfielder who had an assist in the semifinal game and is pursuing an MBA. “Living at home is nice and being able to commute is good. Coming in with this team, everyone was very accepting of me. That can be difficult when you have a fifth-year senior, so it was nice to have a full fall with them. I probably knew we had something special the first couple of weeks.”
There will be plenty of support on hand for the championship game.
Brett Makar, a cousin and former All-American at Yorktown, is playing with Maryland. The undefeated Terrapins go against Princeton at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday in an NCAA Division I semifinal. A win puts him in the title game at 1 p.m. on Monday against Rutgers or Cornell.
“There’s going to be a lot of Makars there, a lot of family and a lot of family friends so it should be an exciting time,” Sean Makar added.
NCAA men’s lacrosse finals
Pratt and Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field, East Hartford, Conn
Division I
Semifinals
Saturday
Rutgers vs. Cornell, 12 p.m., ESPN2
Maryland vs. Princeton, 2:30 p.m., ESPN2
Final
Monday, 1 p.m., ESPN
Locals
Maryland: Brett Makar, Sr., D, Yorktown.
Princeton: Griffin Rakower, Jr., G, Byram Hills; Liam Fairback, Fr., MF, Pelham/Brunswick; Coulter Mackesy, Fr., A, Bronxville/Brunswick.
Cornell: Billy Chabot, Sr., MF, Rye.
Division II
Championship
Mercy College vs. University of Tampa, 4 p.m.
Division III
Championship
Union College vs. Rochester Institute of Technology, 1 p.m.
Locals
Union: Shane Smith, Jr., MF, Mamaroneck; Chris Connolly, Fr., D, Hen Hud; Keaton McCann, Sr., A, Briarcliff; Jason Koch, Fr., MF, Scarsdale.
RIT: Miles Tillman, So., MF, White Plains.
Mike Dougherty covers boys soccer, boys lacrosse, girls basketball and golf for The Journal News/lohud.com. He can be reached at mdougher@lohud.com, or on Twitter @hoopsmbd, @lohudlacrosse, @lohudhoopsmbd and @lohudgolf.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mercy College men's lacrosse plays for NCAA Division II title
