Andrew Vitelli, The Examiner
2008-05-03 07:00:00.0
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Baltimore County -

UMBC coach Don Zimmerman has a simple philosophy regarding his team’s game tonight in relation to it earning its third consecutive berth in the NCAA Tournament.

“If you win the game and get the automatic bid, then you don’t have to worry and guess and leave it up to the [tournament’s selection] committee,” he said. “We have a chance to control our own destiny, and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

UMBC (11-3) hosts Albany (8-7) tonight at 7:30 in the America East Tournament final in a lacrosse match in which the winner receives one of seven automatic berths in the next week’s 16-team NCAA Tournament. If UMBC loses, it will be squarely on the tournament’s bubble along with many teams hoping to earn one of nine at-large spots.

Last season, UMBC qualified as an at-large team after falling to the Great Danes in the final, 15-14, after defeating them in the 2006 conference final.

The Retrievers also defeated Albany last month in the regular season, as junior attacker Ryan Smith scored five times in a 14-10 victory in Catonsville.

Both teams advanced to tonight’s meeting at UMBC Stadium after close semifinal victories. The Retrievers needed Smith’s game-winner 53 seconds into overtime to pull out a 6-5 victory over Binghamton in a game in which they trailed, 5-2, in the fourth quarter.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Zimmerman said. “Our kids showed a lot of grit to come back and win it in overtime.”

Albany won, 12-9, at Stone Brook in its semifinal, as junior attacker Corey Small’s five goals powered his team to its seventh straight conference final.

The Great Danes are led by Small (33 goals, nine assists) and freshman attacker Brian Caufield (24 goals, 20 assists) and have won their past three games.

But the Retrievers, who opened the season 1-3, are playing even better. UMBC, which is riding a school-record 10-game winning streak, is led by senior midfielder Terry Kimener (25 goals, 19 assists) and Smith (29 goals, 14 assists).

But Zimmerman said what has happened in the past doesn’t impact tonight’s game.

“With only one day to prepare, you have to just make sure your game is where it needs to be,” he said. “It really is a players’ game, which is probably the way it should be.”

avitelli@baltimoreexaminer.com