COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 14/15 Fairfield University men's lacrosse team had their postseason hopes dashed as third-seeded Air Force upset the Stags, 9-8, in the ECAC Lacrosse League Championship final at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The Stags, who tied the program record for wins, finish the year with a 12-4 overall record.

Juniors Colin McLinden and Tristan Sperry had three-point days, each finishing with two goals and an assist. Senior Eric Warden had a pair of goals in his final game as a Stag.

Keith Dreyer scored just 1:10 into the game with a top shelf tally. The Stags answered nine seconds later as Fairfield won the faceoff and junior Bryan Barry shoveled a ball to tie the game with his first goal of the year.

Mike Crampton put Air Force on top, 2-1, at 6:42 tucking in a shot into the top corner from the short side. Air Force pushed its lead to 4-1 on goals by Kyle Cassady and Dreyer which came in a two-minute span. Fairfield answered seven seconds after Dreyer's goal. Senior Michael Roe won the faceoff, scooped up the ground ball, and netted a back-of-the-stick bouncer to pull the Stags within 4-2. It was the first point of the year for Roe.

Just 47 seconds into the second quarter, McLinden set up Warden for his 32nd goal of the year to cut the deficit to 4-3. Erik Smith scored at 8:29 to push the Air Force lead back to two goals. With just under seven minutes remaining, Sperry fought through the defense, spun off a long stick, and found a wide open McLinden for an easy goal to make it 5-4. Sperry then tied it up 5-5 with 57.6 seconds remaining in the half. The score would remain knotted at 5-5 at halftime.

Air Force (10-5) scored three unanswered goals over the first 13 minutes of the third quarter. The Falcons regained the lead at 13:37 on a blast by Christopher Allen. Austin Smith followed at 9:17 while Allen struck once more at 6:57. Air Force would take the 8-5 lead into the fourth quarter.

After being held scoreless in the third quarter, Warden put the Stags on the board at 10:23 in the fourth quarter with a man-up goal on an overhand bouncer, pulling Fairfield within 8-6. Dreyer returned the lead to three goals at 8:31 but Sperry rolled through a double team and stuffed in his second goal of the game at 7:08 to cut it to 9-7.

McLinden made it a one goal game, 9-8, at 5:25, driving to the cage and putting a shot in as he fell to the ground. The Stags had their chances late but Air Force thwarted Fairfield comeback to win the 2014 ECAC Lacrosse League Championship.

Roe went 11-for-19 from the faceoff X and had seven ground balls against the Falcons. For the season, Roe went 121-for-246 from the X with 61 ground balls. Roe finishes his career as a Stag ranked second all-time at Fairfield in faceoff wins (417), faceoffs attempted (771), and winning percentage (.541).

Senior Jack Murphy made seven saves for the Stags in his final game. Murphy finishes his career with 321 saves, which ranks fifth all-time at Fairfield, a 9.01 GAA, and 103 ground balls.

McLinden finishes the year with 22 goals and 29 assists, which ties him with J.T. Groarke for the fifth-most assists in single-season program history. McLinden's 51 points are the most by any Stag in 15 seasons. The last Stag to record 50+ points in a single season was Spencer Steele who tallied 75 points in 1999. 

Warden scored a career-best 33 goals this season with three assists for 36 points. For his career, he appeared in 60 games, recording 69 goals and 16 assists for 85 points.

Senior Greg Perraut played in his 63rd career game which sets the new program standard. 

ECAC Championship All-Tournament Team
Mike Crampton, Sr., United States Air Force Academy
Keith Dreyer, Jr., United States Air Force Academy (MVP)
Doug Gouchoe, So., United States Air Force Academy
Erik Smith, Sr., United States Air Force Academy
Toby Armour, Sr., Fairfield University
Colin McLinden, Jr., Fairfield University
Michael Roe, Sr., Fairfield University
Tristan Sperry, Jr., Fairfield University

Jesse King, Jr., Ohio State University