Elmira, NY -- It was another light week of action for Elmira College Athletics with just four programs in action over the weekend. Elmira's two nationally-ranked programs had difficult weekends, as women's ice hockey got an early exit in the semifinal round of the ECAC West Tournament, while men's volleyball went 1-2 on a swing downstate. The EC men's lacrosse team also hit the road when it opened the season on Saturday at Keuka College. The cheerleading team rounded out the action, as the game team went north to Syracuse, NY, for the JAMfest competition. Get caught up in all the happenings in EC Athletics in this latest edition of Soaring Eagles Weekly!
 
Headlines for the Week Ahead
 
Registration Now Open For Purple & Gold Golf Outing
The registration page is now live for the Elmira College Athletic Department's annual Purple & Gold Golf Outing, which is set to take place at Mark Twain Golf Course on Saturday, May 21st. For all the details on how to participate as a player or as a sponsor, please visit the following link: CLICK HERE.

Women's Ice Hockey Set for NCAA Tournament Quarterfinal at Adrian College
Despite getting bounced in the semifinal round of the ECAC West Tournament in a 5-1 loss to ninth-ranked Utica College, the Elmira College women's ice hockey team received good news that its season is going to continue on Monday morning. The Soaring Eagles received one of the three fiercely contested at-large berths to the NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Tournament from the selection committee. EC is going on the road to take on Adrian College in a quarterfinal round matchup at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 12^th. The Elmira women will be looking to avenge a 4-1 neutral site loss to the Bulldogs, which came in the season opener for the two programs back on Halloween. Stay tuned to the EC Athletics website for more details on the upcoming matchup.
 
Men's Lacrosse Set for Home Opener Against Lebanon Valley College on Saturday
The Elmira College men's lacrosse team will look to bounce back from a season opening road loss to Keuka College when it returns home to kick off a season-long four-game homestand with the home opener against Lebanon Valley College. The contest is slated for 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 12^th, at Notre Dame High School's turf field complex.
 
Women's Lacrosse Opens Season at Home Against Lycoming College on Sunday
The Elmira College women's lacrosse team is ready to open the 2016 campaign on Sunday, March 13^th, when it welcomes Lycoming College for a 1:00 p.m. showdown. The contest will be played at the turf field complex at Corning Community College.
 
Men's Tennis Hosts D'Youville College and Oswego State at the MAC This Weekend
After a two-week hiatus, the Elmira College men's tennis team returns to action with a pair of contests at the Murray Athletic Center Tennis Dome this weekend. The Soaring Eagles are set to face D'Youville College at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, March 11^th, while they welcome Oswego State to the domes for a 1:00 p.m. clash the following afternoon. EC will also face the Rochester Institute of Technology in a road match earlier in the week on Tuesday, March 8^th, at 4:00 p.m.
 
Baseball Back in Action With Keystone State Road Trip
Following a two-week break, the Elmira College baseball team is set for its first taste of competition above the Mason-Dixon Line this weekend when it makes a two-day swing through the Keystone State. First, the Soaring Eagles will take on Eastern University in a doubleheader on Saturday, March 12^th. EC will face the University of Valley Forge in a single game the following afternoon. First pitch is slated for 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, while start time is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.
 
A Look Back at the Week That Was…
 
Women's Ice Hockey Falls to Utica in Semifinal Round of ECAC West Tournament
The Elmira College women's ice hockey team had its aspirations for an ECAC West Tournament title cut short this past Saturday, falling to third-seeded Utica College 5-1 in the first of two semifinal round games at Plattsburgh State's Stafford Arena.  
 
The Purple and Gold dominated the opening period in every facet of the game except on the scoreboard. EC outshot the Pioneers 17-to-6 through the first 20 minutes; however, it was Utica that took an early 2-0 lead to the intermission. UC capitalized on a pair of semi-breakaway goals by Emily Coope and Victoria Pelton, with the latter coming shorthanded.
 
The Pioneers built on the lead with two more goals in the second period to blow things open at 4-0. Johanna Eidensten '17 stretched her goal scoring streak to five consecutive games with a tally just over five minutes into the final period, but a dramatic comeback was not in the cards for the Soaring Eagles. Utica responded with a goal just 1:37 later to stymie any Elmira run.
 
Although the loss dashed any hopes of Elmira hosting an opening round game of the NCAA Tournament, it did not completely eliminate the Soaring Eagles from the postseason. EC was selected as an at-large bid from Pool C by the NCAA selection committee, as the tournament field was unveiled on Monday morning. The Soaring Eagles will head to Adrian College for a rematch with the Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 12^th.
 
For more information on EC Women's Ice Hockey, please visit the following link: CLICK HERE.
 
Men's Volleyball Posts 1-2 Record on Downstate Road Swing
The No. 8 Elmira College men's volleyball team looked to continue its surge when it headed down state for a trio of matches on the weekend. Unfortunately, after a solid start in the opening match of the weekend, the Soaring Eagles dropped the next two to close out the road swing.
 
EC opened the two-day road swing on Saturday when it took on its second United Volleyball Conference tri-match of the season. The Soaring Eagles opened the day against tri-match host Bard College, dispatching the Raptors in four sets. The victory was Elmira's ninth win in a row, equaling the program's high-water mark. However, Elmira's hitting was stymied by No. 5 Stevens Institute of Technology in the second match of the day. The Ducks limited Elmira to a .193 hitting percentage in besting the Soaring Eagles in four sets.
 
The Purple and Gold returned to action the following morning with a neutral site match against eighth-ranked UC Santa Cruz. The Soaring Eagles bested the Banana Slugs in straight sets earlier this season, but UC Santa Cruz avenged that loss with a four set victory on Sunday. EC won the opening set in extra points, but the West Coast squad took the next three sets to deal Elmira its second defeat against a nationally-ranked opponent on the weekend.
 
Although the results were not what Elmira was hoping for, EC continued to get strong performances from some of its emerging underclassmen. Adam Dake '19 did an excellent job setting, racking up 78 assists, including a career-high 41 helpers in the four-set victory over Bard. He was named UVC Rookie of the Week by the league office on Monday afternoon.
 
For more information on EC Men's Volleyball, please visit the following link: CLICK HERE.
 
Men's Lacrosse Falls to Keuka College in Season Opener
The Elmira College men's lacrosse team opened the 2016 campaign this past Saturday when it hit the road to face regional power Keuka College. While the final result was not what EC was hoping for, there were several positives to take from the 13-3 loss to the Wolfpack.
 
The Soaring Eagles actually snagged an early 2-1 lead in the opening quarter of the contest, as Nevin Olney '18 and TJ Leach '16 netted goals 1:26 apart midway through the quarter. The Green and Gold responded with two goals to take a slim 3-2 lead through one quarter of play. The Elmira defense continued to hold strong in the second frame, limiting the powerful Keuka offense to just one additional goal.
 
Ollie Heitkamp '18 added a goal for Elmira in the third quarter, but it would not be enough to keep EC close. Although Cameron Prior '17 played strong in net for the Soaring Eagles, finishing with 11 saves, the Keuka offense wore down EC during the second half. The Green and Gold tallied four goals in the third and five unanswered in the fourth.
 
For more information on EC Men's Lacrosse, please visit the following link: CLICK HERE.
 
Cheerleading Game-Team Takes Fourth at Cool Jam Competition
Although the Elmira College cheerleading competition team was off this weekend, the cheerleading game team was in action when it traveled to the Oncenter Complex in Syracuse, NY, for the JAMfest Cool Jam competition.
 
The Soaring Eagles finished fourth out of seven teams in the college all-girl division with a team score of 81.32. SUNY Cortland won the competition with a final team score of 86.69.
 
For more information on EC Cheerleading, please visit the following link: CLICK HERE.
 
A Look Ahead…
 
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Men's Tennis at Rochester Institute of Technology, 4:30 p.m.
 
Friday, March 11, 2016
Men's Tennis vs. D'Youville College, 4:30 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Baseball at Eastern University (DH), 12:00 p.m.
Men's Lacrosse vs. Lebanon Valley College, 1:00 p.m.
Men's Tennis vs. Oswego State, 1:00 p.m.
Women's Ice Hockey at Adrian College (NCAA Quarterfinal), 7:00 p.m.
 
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Women's Lacrosse vs. Lycoming College, 1:00 p.m.
Baseball at University of Valley Forge, 2:00 p.m.
 
Bold Indicates Home Contest