Led by six goals from junior Jordan McBride (New Westminster, British Columbia), the #19/20 Stony Brook men’s lacrosse team began its march for an America East title by beating the UMBC Retrievers, 14-11, in Baltimore on Saturday.

It was the first time Stony Brook (6-3, 1-0) had defeated UMBC (1-6, 0-1) since 2005.

The Retrievers had beaten the Seawolves five straight times, including in last year’s America East championship game.

Stony Brook was opening conference play with a 5-3 record, its fourth consecutive season with a winning record in non-conference meetings, which this year included a match with perennial powerhouse Cornell and top-ranked Virginia.

The Retrievers were 1-5, having played a difficult non-conference schedule after being named preseason co-favorites, with Stony Brook, to win the America East crown.

The Seawolves controlled play for much of the first half, jumping out to a 3-0 lead courtesy of goals by junior Kevin Crowley (New Westminster, British Columbia), senior Tom Compitello (Hauppauge, N.Y.) and sophomore Kyle Belton (Langley, British Columbia).  Stony Brook finished the quarter with a 5-2 lead.