Here is a weekly wrap-up of University of Scranton athletic events. To see the full Royal Review release, visit http://matrix.scranton.edu/athletics/gnfeb282011.shtml.

Men’s Basketball (20-5 Overall/11-3 Landmark Conference)
The Royals won their third Landmark Conference championship in four years and their 20th conference title in the program’s history with a pair of dramatic victories this past week.

On Wednesday, Feb. 23, Scranton held off the Merchant Marine Academy, 74-71 in overtime, in a Landmark Conference tournament semifinal game at the Long Center. The Royals led by six points with 49 seconds remaining in regulation before the Mariners came storming back to tie the game and send it into overtime.

Senior forward Luke Hawk (Audubon, Pa./Methacton) scored a game-high 26 points on 11 of 15 shooting from the field and finished with eight rebounds and senior guard Zach Ashworth (Doylestown/Central Bucks West) had 17 points and nine rebounds as the Royals overcame a shaky 15-for-27 effort at the free throw line to move into the championship game for the fourth consecutive year.  Scranton also received 16 points from sophomore point-guard Travis Farrell (Middletown, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy) and 11 points from sophomore guard Tim Lavelle (Clarks Green/Scranton Preparatory).

On Saturday, February 26, Ashworth scored 24 of his career-high tying 31 points in the second half as the Royals broke away from a one-point halftime lead to defeat Catholic University, 82-71, before 2000 fans at the Long Center.  Hawk chipped in 18 points and Lavelle 12 as Scranton shot over 53 percent from the field (14 of 26) and nearly 90 percent from the free throw line (17 of 19) in the second half.  Junior forward Matt Swaback (Kingston/Wyoming Seminary) finished with nine points, seven rebounds and four assists and Farrell had eight points, four rebounds and four assists.

The Royals will now advance to the NCAA Division III championships for the 23rd time in school history and for the fifth time under current head coach Carl Danzig (2003, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011).

On Thursday afternoon, Ashworth was named the Landmark Conference Player of the Year for the second straight season and was selected first-team all-conference for the third consecutive year. His 48 points this past week gives him 1,768, which is fourth on the Royals’ all-time list.

Women’s Basketball (19-7 Overall/12-2 Landmark Conference)
The Lady Royals entered the Landmark Conference tournament as the number two seed for the second straight year and hosted third-seeded Moravian College on Wednesday, Feb. 23, at the Long Center.

First-year guard Alison Sweeney (Wall, N.J./Saint Rose) came off the bench to pace four players in double figures with 15 points as Scranton jumped out to a 15-point halftime lead en route to a 64-49 victory.  Senior guard Jennifer King (Taylor/Riverside) finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, sophomore forward Tayler Pallotta (Dunmore/Dunmore) tossed in a season-high 14 points, and senior guard Megan Kopecki (Millington, N.J./Watchung Hills Regional) finished with 11 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.

In the championship game against Juniata College on Saturday, Feb. 26, at the Kennedy Sports and Recreation Center in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, the Lady Royals came unglued in the second half and dropped a 67-49 decision, losing in the title game for the second straight year.

Kopecki once again came through for Scranton, finishing with 15 points on 7 of 11 shooting from the field and eight rebounds, two steals and a block.  The Lady Royals, who shot only 2-for-18 from beyond the 3-point arc (11.1 percent), also received seven points from sophomore guard Katherine Torto (Binghamton, N.Y./Seton Catholic Central).

Men’s Lacrosse (1-0/0-0 Landmark Conference)
The Royals made Jim Rogalski’s head coaching debut a memorable one against DeSales University on Saturday, Feb. 26, at Fitzpatrick Field.

The Royals dominated the Bulldogs in all phases of the game en route to a 10-3 victory.  Scranton out-shot DeSales, 42-15, and won 14 of 17 face-offs to post their second straight season-opening victory.

Senior attacker Robert Pantages (Roseland, N.J./West Essex) scored all of his game-high four goals in the first half as the Royals jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the first period and settled for a 7-1 advantage by intermission. Scranton also received two goals from sophomore midfielder Dillon McInerney (Hawthorne, N.J./Bergen Catholic) and junior midfielder Mike Rufo (Broomall/Haverford School), a goal and two assists from sophomore attacker Taylor Nelson (Chester Springs/Downingtown East) and a goal and an assist from junior attacker Daniel Slade (Doylestown/Central Bucks South).

Senior midfielder and honorable mention preseason all-American Pat Cefalu (East Islip, N.Y./East Islip) won 13 of his 14 face-off attempts, including all four in the first period, and finished with a game-high 13 ground balls.

Wrestling (4-8)
Freshman Chris Silakoski (Trenton, N.J./Notre Dame) was the Royals’ top place-finisher at the 2011 Metropolitan Wrestling Conference championships on Sunday, Feb. 27, at King’s College.

Silakoski finish fourth in the 184-pound weight class, winning three of his five matches. 

Silakoski, now 14-11 on the season, was pinned by top-seeded and eventual runner-up Mike Denver of The College of New Jersey in his opening-round match at the 4:50 mark of the second period.  He came back to pin Ryan Baxter of Hunter College at 2:59 mark of the first period and then pulled out a 6-5 decision Joshua Cook of Elizabethtown College.  Silakoski moved into the consolation final by pinning Raymond Dungee of Wilkes University at the 4:32 mark of the second period before dropping an 11-3 major decision to third-seeded Sabino Galassi of New York University.

Sophomore Vinny Signoriello (Manalapan, N.J./Manalapan) went 2-2 in the 133-pound weight class.  He was pinned by second-seeded Dan Herr of The College of New Jersey in his opening round match at the 3:13 mark of the second period.  He pinned his next two opponents—Ramin Ahdoot of Yeshiva at the 1:16 mark and Griffin Panicucci of Wilkes at the 1:45 mark—before ending his day with a 4-1 loss to fourth-seeded Chris Gogatz of Hunter College in a consolation semifinal match.

Here is the upcoming schedule for The University of Scranton's athletic teams: 

This Week in Royal Athletics

Tuesday, March 1
Men’s Lacrosse – FARMINGDALE ST. (4 P.M., FITZPATRICK FIELD)

Wednesday, March 2
Women’s Lacrosse – HAVERFORD (4 P.M., FITZPATRICK FIELD)

Friday, March 4
Men’s Basketball – NCAA Division III Tournament (Opening Round Game)
vs. Becker College (Mass.) at Williams College in Williamstown, Mass. (5:30 p.m.)

Saturday, March 5
Men’s Lacrosse – MUHLENBERG (1 P.M., FITZPATRICK FIELD)

Sunday, March 6
Baseball - vs. Albright (DH, Diamond Nation) (noon)