Even though it is still cold outside, Eastern’s spring sports teams are preparing for their respective seasons. Fields are cleared after each snowfall so teams can continue practicing, running plays and preparing for competition. Eastern Men’s Lacrosse is trying to improve on their 9-9 season in 2025. The Eagles ended the season ranked third in the MAC Commonwealth Conference behind athletics powerhouse Stevenson University. Nationally-ranked York College won the conference. Despite falling short of a championship, the Eagles closed the regular season on a strong note, winning their final four games. After ending the 2025 regular season with four straight wins, the Eagles are looking to keep that momentum going. The Eagles are looking to surpass Stevenson this season and go for that MAC Championship.
The side of the ball to watch for this year is the defensive side. Senior captain and defenseman Sean Dendall is very excited for this team and for the defensive unit. “I am most excited about the defensive unit this year. It is a lot of guys returning that I have been playing with since my freshman year. It’s a tight-knit group with a lot of athletes top to bottom. I am very excited to see how we can shut opponents down this year,” Dendall said.
Eastern starts its MAC Commonwealth slate on April 1 at Widener University. The Eagles play Stevenson on April 11 and Messiah University on April 18 . Those two matchups are expected to play a significant role in shaping the conference standings. These two matchups remain key in the Eagles’ schedule as they continue to get back to the top of the conference.
Senior captain and defenseman Zach Puckett says he is most excited for how the team looks this year and the new freshmen that have come on board. “The team looks solid. Even though we lost some key offensive personnel, I have faith in this freshman class, and they are working hard and learning quickly. We have so much more chemistry than I have ever seen before that I think putting it all together is going to look really good. We have a fun and exciting schedule with new teams the senior class has never played against before, so we’re all excited for the freshness,” Puckett said.
Some players are excited to go out and show what they can do. Eastern has not seen programs such as Muhlenberg University in a long time. Senior captain and midfielder Dominic Marangoni says that he is excited to show teams what Eastern has to offer. “This season I am most excited to just play. We have a great group of guys and a competitive team. We have a lot of opportunities to have some upsets and to make some noise in the conference, so I am ready to go out and show what we can do,” Marangoni said.
With experienced leadership, returning defensive depth and late-season momentum, it is going to be a very fascinating and exciting season for Eastern Men’s Lacrosse, as the Eagles look to translate preparation into results this spring.
