Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell

NEWARK, Del. -- The University of Delaware men’s lacrosse team, backed by a big 16-9 victory over Albany Saturday afternoon at Delaware Stadium, moved up in all three national polls announced Monday afternoon.

The Hens, who improved to 4-1 with two straight victories, moved up to No. 14 in the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association coaches poll and moved up to No. 15 in both the Nike/Inside Lacrosse and the Rock-it-Pocket LAXNews rankings. The No. 14 USILA ranking is Delaware’s highest since March 24, 2008.

Delaware faces another stern test this Saturday when the Hens host Stony Brook, ranked No. 15 by the USILA, in a 1 p.m. start at Delaware Stadium. Tickets to the game are available at the gate the day of the game, group tickets are available by calling 302-831-2257, and the game can be viewed via a live webstream at www.bluehens.com.

Delaware, which got a career-high eight goals and two assists from Curtis Dickson in the win over Albany, three more from Martin Cahill, and a goal and an assist by John Austin (at right) moved up two spots to No. 14 in the USILA poll and three spots to No. 15 in both the Inside Lacrosse and LAXNews media polls.

Virginia took over the top spot in all three polls with Syracuse dropping to No. 2. In the USILA poll, Notre Dame was third followed by North Carolina, Maryland, Princeton, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, Loyola, Duke, and Hofstra in the top 10. Georgetown was at No. 12 followed by Harvard, Delaware, Stony Brook, Lafayette, Yale, Navy, Massachusetts, and Bucknell.

AGATE:

United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Division I Men’s Lacrosse Top 20 Poll: 1. Virginia (4-0), 12 first place votes, 240 points; 2. Syracuse (2-1), 219; 3. Notre Dame (3-0), 217; 4. North Carolina (5-0), 205; 5. Maryland (3-0), 191; 6. Princeton (2-0), 186; 7. Johns Hopkins (3-1), 160; 8. Cornell (3-0), 158; 9. Loyola (2-1), 124; 10. Duke (2-2) & Hofstra (1-1), 117; 12. Georgetown (2-1), 110; 13. Harvard (2-1), 71; 14. Delaware (4-1), 70; 15. Stony Brook (2-1), 62; 16. Lafayette (4-0), 53; 17. Yale (2-0), 50; 18. Navy (3-2), 34; 19. Massachusetts (2-1), 33; 20. Bucknell (2-2), 32; Others receiving votes: Drexel, Robert Morris, Brown, UMBC, Sacred Heart, Villanova, Ohio State, Marist.

LAXNews Top 20 Poll: 1. Virginia; 2. Syracuse; 3. North Carolina; 4. Notre Dame; 5. Princeton; 6. Maryland; 7. Cornell; 8. John Hopkins; 9. Hofstra; 10. Duke; 11. Loyola; 12. Georgetown; 13. Navy; 14. Harvard; 15. Delaware; 16. Bucknell; 17. Lafayette; 18. Yale; 19. Massachusetts; 20. Stony Brook.

Inside Lacrosse Top 20 Poll: 1. Virginia; 2. Syracuse; 3. North Carolina; 4. Notre Dame; 5. Princeton; 6. Maryland; 7. Johns Hopkins; 8. Cornell; 9. Duke; 10. Hofstra; 11. Georgetown; 12. Loyola; 13. Navy; 14. Delaware; 15. Harvard; 16. Bucknell 17. Brown; 18. Stony Brook; 19. UMBC; 20. Yale; Others Receiving Votes: Ohio State, Drexel, Massachusetts, Robert Morris.