Finally, some relief for the Bearcats.

The Binghamton men’s lacrosse team (1-3) continues its short home-stand tomorrow by hosting Sacred Heart (1-2), one of the few unranked teams on its schedule.

Last year’s matchup was a thrilling affair for the Bearcats, who capped a four-game winning streak with a win against the Pioneers. Binghamton trailed by one heading into the fourth quarter, but scored three goals in the period to come away with a 10-8 victory.

That four-game win streak was part of a strong start that helped propel Binghamton in 2006, a season that saw BU soar to a No. 16 national ranking. But this year, the Bearcats have limped to a 1-3 record in the early season. Still, head coach Ed Stephenson likes the progress his team has made.

‘We’re getting better defensively and the offense is doing a great job of starting to control the ball and get better looks. I like our progress,’ Stephenson said.

One of the keys to success will be how well the Bearcats shoot the ball. Stephenson likes his team to take a small number of high-percentage shots, as opposed to a large quantity of quick shots.

The Bearcats will have to stop senior Pioneer Peter Greco, who has scored four goals and has six assists in the last two games. Sacred Heart is a quick, athletic team that likes to run and shoot on offense and press the ball on defense. Binghamton will need to make extra passes to disrupt the press, according to Stephenson.

Binghamton, as usual, will have an advantage in the faceoff circle, where sophomore J.P Wioncek has won 52 percent of his draws. Wioncek won an astounding 19 of 22 against Sacred Heart in 2006.

Sophomore Chris Mulheron, BU’s leading scorer last year, has worked through minor injuries in the first few games.

‘We’re trying to get him into positions on the field where he can be successful,’ Stephenson said. ‘We expect him to come on strong.’

Face off is set for 1 p.m. at the Alumni Stadium of Binghamton East Middle School.

‘We’ve got a young team, but they’re coming around,’ Stephenson said.