10:03 a.m., April 23, 2007--Cheered on by a season-high crowd of 1,400 fans, the University of Delaware men's lacrosse team clinched a berth in the Colonial Athletic Association championship tournament with a 12-9 victory over Sacred Heart University on Saturday night at Rullo Stadium.

The Fightin' Blue Hens were led by senior All-America Alex Smith, who won 19 of 24 face-offs, scored a career high three goals and added an assist.

UD freshman Curtis Dickson, last week's CAA rookie of the week, added two goals and two assists, while Vincent Giordano had two goals and an assist.

Also for the Hens, Dan Deckelbaum, Adam Zuder-Havens, Kyle Rotelli, Kevin Kaminski and Rob Smith each scored single goals. Jordan Hall had an assist to extend his consecutive point-scoring streak to 26 games, the eighth longest streak in the nation. Goalkeeper Tommy Scherr had seven saves.

UD jumped out to an 8-3 lead but Sacred Heart rallied and managed to keep the game close throughout.

With the victory, the Hens are now 8-5 overall and 3-2 in the conference. They have one regular season game remaining, and will travel to Robert Morris University near Pittsburgh for a game at 1 p.m., Saturday, April 28.

The four-team conference championship tournament will begin Wednesday, May 2, at the home fields of the higher seeds.