The last game of the season for the Binghamton University men’s lacrosse team was a do-or-die match. Arriving at the finish line, the 2010 Bearcats became the highest-scoring team in the history of the school’s program and were looking to clinch a spot in the American East championships to extend their season. Albany and Binghamton duked it out for a playoff berth, but in the end, the Bearcats were eliminated from playoff contention.

The Bearcats fell to University at Albany 11-6 in the final game of the regular season on Saturday, marking the first time in seven seasons that they did not make the conference championships. Subsequently, Vermont and Albany clinched the last two playoff spots and will advance to the semifinals.

The loss was heartbreaking for the Bearcats, a high-scoring team that shattered numerous offensive records this year. Leading the pack with a new school record of 29 goals, freshman attack Matt Springer ended the season by accumulating the second-highest point total in program history with 42 points. But head coach Ed Stephenson suggested that there are two sides to every story.

‘We are the highest-scoring team in school history, but the numbers don’t show the whole picture,’ Stephenson said. ‘Defensively, we let up more goals than ever. It was disappointing to see us come unraveled. We were so fired up that we lost track of productivity.’

Fighting for survival, the Bearcats quickly jumped to an early 2-0 lead, with junior midfielder Frank Donlon and senior midfielder Steve Carlson scoring a goal apiece. Albany answered with seven consecutive goals to pull ahead, shutting out the Bearcats in the second quarter. In an attempt to fend off Albany’s offense, sophomore goalie Jordan Marra made 11 saves in the first half alone.

‘They shut us down and kept the ball out of our hands,’ Stephenson said. ‘We ended up playing so much defense. They put the pressure on the other end and had the ball most of the time.’

The Bearcats then turned the game around, holding the Great Danes scoreless in the third quarter and pulling the score to 7-6 by the beginning of the fourth.

Contributing to the fray was Springer, fellow freshman attack Tyler Perrelle, sophomore faceoff Jeff Donigan and sophomore defender Ben Waldron. But Albany sealed its victory with four insurance goals and went ahead to clinch one of the remaining America East playoff berths, ending the Bearcats’ season.

The Bearcats were outshot 40-36 and lost in groundballs 40-30 in their final game.

Eight seniors ‘ Carlson, attack Jeff Rurey, attack Andy Cook, defender Griffin McLoughlin, attack Drew Wichmann, defender Aaron Kennedy, midfielder Chris Welch and defender Ben Watkins ‘ will depart from the team.

‘We got a group of seniors that really represented the program well and contributed a lot this year,’ Stephenson said. ‘They have been dominant every year academically. I really would have liked to see them finish the season on a different note, but I think they’ll be proud of the future.’

Despite all this, Stephenson looks ahead to 2011 with high hopes. ‘I think we will continue to get better on both ends. We have some defenders coming in that will help tremendously. I’m definitely optimistic, looking forward to next year.’

Albany will proceed to the America East semifinals this Wednesday, playing UMBC. The four-team playoff will determine the team that will advance to the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championship.

The Bearcats completed the 2010 season with a 4-10 overall record and a 1-4 conference record.