WILLIMANTIC, Conn. - One year after failing to qualify for the Little East Conference men's lacrosse championship match for the only time, Eastern Connecticut State University returned to the top Saturday with a 12-8 victory over Keene State College at Thomas Nevers Field.

Top-seeded Eastern (14-3) won its sixth Little East Conference playoff championship in nine years by rolling to its eighth straight win and snapping the six-game streak of second-seeded Keene (9-4). The teams were meeting in the final sixth time in the last seven years, with the Warriors winning for the fourth time. For the first time ever, neither Eastern nor Keene advanced to the final last year, both being upset in the semifinals.

The LEC playoff title was the first for the Warriors under second-year head coach Justin Axel, who has directed the Warriors to the second-most overall wins in program history. All four head coaches in the program's history have now won at least one LEC playoff championship.

With the win, Eastern qualifies automatically for its sixth NCAA post-season tournament, first since downing Keene 14-12 in the 2006 championship game at Nevers Field.

Senior attack Matthew Savage (Southington, Conn.) was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, following up his four-goal effort in Thursday's semifinal win over Plymouth State with five more against Keene. En route to his MOP honor, Savage broke the program season record with his final goal of the match. Savage's 49th goal of the season came with 5:41 left and broke the Owls' back It was the team's third straight and lifted it into an insurmountable four-goal lead, 11-7.

Eastern's defense was able to shut down two of Keene's top two offensive threats. The Warriors limited Keene season goal leader Griffin Meehan to just one goal - that coming 18 minutes into the game - and prevented Keene assist leader Tony Santa Fe from chalking up even one helper.

Matthew Savage scored twice in 15 seconds to pull Eastern even at 3-all six minutes into the second quarter and late contributed one of the team's four straight goals that closed the second quarter and gave the Warriors a 7-4 halftime lead. The Owls got to within a goal twice thereafter before senior midfielder DJ Simmons (Mystic, Conn.) scored an unassisted goal with 16 seconds left in the third quarter, and Matthew Savage scored two straight unassisted goals to make it 11-7 with six minutes left.

Sophomore faceoff specialist Eric Vasil (Southington, Conn.) rebounded from his worst faceoff performance of the season in the team's regular-season win over Keene (6-of-21) by taking 11 of 21 faceoffs. The national leader in ground balls, Vasil commanded eight Saturday. Keene's Casey Broderson, who won 14 of 17 tries at the "X" in earlier this year, lost six of seven this time around.

Eastern senior goalie Kyle Savage (Southington, Conn.) - twin brother of Matthew -- made 12 saves to record his 44th career win and pull to within two stops of 800 in his 68-game career.

Eastern's 14 wins equal the third-most in a season for Eastern and are the most since 2001.