NORTHFIELD, Vt.—The top-seeded Norwich University men's lacrosse team will play host to the 2013 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship on Saturday, April 27 at 1:00 p.m.  The Cadets will battle No. 2 Mount Ida in a rematch of last season's championship game in which the Mustangs claimed the title with a 7-4 victory.

Norwich is on an 11-game winning streak dating back to their first GNAC matchup of the season on March 21.  The flawless 9-0 regular-season league record guided the team to their first regular-season title in program history. Mount Ida enters the title game with an 11-7 overall record.

Norwich and Mount Ida met once in the regular season and the Cadets posted a 9-6 win. Ian Mendoza (Mount Airy, Md.) led the team with three goals and an assist, while Seth Fuller (Wheaton, Ill.) and Zachary MacMillan () both netted two goals apiece.

Mount Ida was led by JT Hoyt with two goals and an assist, and Nick Yacuzzi with two goals.

The loss marked the only GNAC regular-season loss for the defending champions, and the Mustangs have won seven-straight since falling to the Cadets on April 6.

Norwich goaltender Mark Paradiso (Westford, Mass.) totaled 11 saves for the Cadets in the win earlier this season.  He is expected to start in net for the Cadets in the championship and has been a major player in the Cadets success this season. Paradiso leads the GNAC in three out of four goaltender categories and also has the second-lowest goals-against average in all of Division III.

Mount Ida will likely look to Craig Bray to make the start in net.  Bray holds a .551 save percentage on the season ands 9.01 goals-against average.  The nine goals he surrendered to the Cadets this season marked the largest number of goals surrendered to any GNAC opponent. He recorded 15 saves against Norwich as the Cadets outshot the Mustangs 43-23 on the day.

Norwich will also look to senior Nate Fortezzo (Branford, Conn.) to continue his success as a face-off specialist. Fortezzo has the third-best winning percentage in the nation and won 16 of 19 (84 percent) of the team's face-off attempts in Norwich's win against Mount Ida.

Fortezzo's wins feed the Norwich offense for more scoring opportunities. Mendoza will look for scoring opportunities against the Mustangs, as will Fuller and Ian Thomas (Barrington, R.I.).

The winner of Saturday's championship game will advance to the 2013 NCAA Tournament.  Seedings will be announced in early May and the first round game will be played on May 8 at the home of the higher seed.

The championship game will be video streamed live at the Norwich Athletics Ustream Channel.