Galloway, N.J. – Stockton University (12-6) was eliminated from the Coastal Lacrosse Conference Tournament with a slim 15-14 setback to Kean University (11-7) in a first-round game that was close from start to finish. The Ospreys were the No. 3 seed for the CLC Tournament and Kean was the No. 6 seed.
 
Dante Poli (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks South) tallied four goals and dished two assists for a game-high six points in his final college contest. Poli scored his 200th career goal in the first quarter, joining teammate Luc Swedlund (Randolph/Randolph) as the only Ospreys ever to reach that milestone.
 
Reegan Capozzoli (Wayne/Wayne Valley) netted three markers to reach 97 career goals at the end of his junior year. Swedlund and Brendan McHale (Montville/Montville) contributed two counters apiece for the Ospreys.
 
The teams exchanged goals throughout a 5-5 first quarter that was tied five times, with Poli scoring twice along with one each by Capozzoli, Swedlund and Sean Haddock (East Windsor/Hightstown). After Kean scored two minutes into the second period, Stockton reeled off four straight.
 
Markers by Capozzoli, Hayden Smallwood (Margate/Ocean City), Swedlund and Capozzoli again allowed the Ospreys to build a three-goal cushion at 9-6. After Kean halted the run, McHale scored the last goal of the first half for a 10-7 advantage.
 
When Noam Levy-Smith (Margate/Ocean City) opened the second-half scoring, the Ospreys had the largest lead of the game at 11-7. Kean responded with a four-goal run of their own for the seventh tie of the night. Poli broke the deadlock just over a minute later and Stockton went to the fourth quarter with a 12-11 edge.
 
McHale made it 13-11 with 12:55 remaining but the Cougars refused to fold. They rallied with two markers 1:18 apart for another tie at 13-13. The teams then went scoreless for over five minutes before Poli struck again to put Stockton back on top 14-13 with 4:47 on the clock.
 
Kean's Nick Thorne tied it for the ninth and final time at 14-14 with 3:37 to play and then scored the eventual game-winner 41 seconds later. The Ospreys fired one shot to tie in the final minute but the attempt sailed wide and Stockton was ousted from the first-ever CLC Tournament 15-14.
 
Tyler Horvath (Chalfont, Pa./Central Bucks South) won 19 of 33 faceoffs and grabbed 11 ground balls to finish with a school-record 190 for the season. Stockton goalkeeper Colin Bernstein (Warrington, Pa./Central Bucks South) made 10 saves.
 
Thorne paced Kean with a game-high five goals while Connor Batjer contributed two goals and three assists. Kean goalie Devin Reppert earned the win with 12 saves.
 
With 12 victories on the year, Stockton reached double digits for the eighth consecutive full season (excluding COVID-shortened 2020 and 2021) under head coach Kevin Zulauf.