Lacrosse

[Vandy74]

What an amazing day in the NESCAC WLAX quarter finals.  All 4 games decided by one goal. 

#8 seed Williams led #1 seed Trinity 7-5 at halftime, and was up 10-6 with 22 minutes left in the second half.  Then the Bantams fired off 5 straight goals while holding the Ephs scoreless to win 11-10.

Meanwhile, #7 seed Amherst and #2 seed Middlebury swapped the lead back and forth 5 times.  With 19:10 to go, the Lady Jeffs were up 8-5 and appeared ready to end the Panthers' season.  But Midd fought back scoring 4 unanswered goals to preserve their #2 seed.

Things wee only slightly less crazy in Brunswick.  In the first half, #6 seed Colby held a one-goal lead over #3 seed Bowdoin five separate times, only to have the Polar Bears fight back and take an 8-6 lead into halftime.  Colby scored 5 times in the second half, and put extreme pressure on Bowdoin, with the Polar Bears turning the ball over 7 times.  But in the end, Colby killed their chances with penalties: When the two teams met during the regular season, the Mules had 2 goals called back for illegal pockets, and they had one called back today.  The Mules played 2 men down at one point, as their players drew back-to-back yellow cards.  They were also penalized for offsides, and for having 13 players on the field (which is pretty inexcusable at this point in the season).

Maybe the grittiest performance of the day came from the #5 seed Tufts Jumbo's.  Despite losing to #4 seed Hamilton during the regular season, despite their hard-fought defeat by Bowdoin on a cold, rain night this past Wednesday, and despite the grindingly long bus trip to Clinton, the Jumbos scored first and never relinquished the lead.

Next Saturday in Hartford, #1 Trinity faces Tufts and  #2 Middlebury faces #5 Bowdoin, in what should be an incredible afternoon of lacrosse.

Great coverage of the quarterfinal action PolarCat.  Do we pay you enough?   The mood was a bit glum in the group I was watching with when the Panthers trailed 8-5 and we knew the score in Hartford had Williams up by 4.  But even though Middlebury rallied home field advantage was not to be had next weekend as the Bantams also proved to be the better team in the end. 

Freshman midfielder Hollis Perticone was the offensive force behind today's Panther victory.  When she scored an unassisted goal to give Middlebury a 5-4 lead at 3:08 in the 1st half the home team had held the advantage for only a minute and forty seconds.  Her second goal tied the game 8-8 with 10:43 remaining at which point the LJs had led for all but seven minutes of play action.  At 7:56 her third tally, again unassisted, gave the Panthers the 9-8 lead that would become the final score.  Perticone also added an assist to her game totals and senior co-captain Katie Ritter scored two goals along and an assist as well.

The Middlebury men also survived a scare, largely of their own making with a few unforced turnovers, to hold on and defeat Williams this afternoon 14-13.  A Steve Kiesel goal with 4:16 remaining cut the Panther lead to 14-11 and just over 2 minutes later Kiesel scored again to make it a one tally deficit at 1:56.  His 7 goals led all scorers.  Sean Carroll scored 4 to lead the Panthers.  Middlebury FY John Jackson had a career game as he won 27 of 30 face-offs and had 20 ground balls. 

The Panthers will try to avenge a season opening loss to Tufts next Saturday while top seeded Amherst takes on red-hot Bates who is arguably playing the best lacrosse of any team in the conference lately.  The Bobcats too will be seeking payback for a season opening loss.  Since April 1 they have outscored 6 NESCAC opponents 93-54.  Lacrosse fans will get their money's worth in Amherst next weekend.

[PolarCat]

Trinity's Martha Griffin is one of 25 nominees for the Tewaaraton Award.  Amazing accomplishment for a D3 athlete, and so very well deserved.

http://laxmagazine.com/college_women/DIII/2014-15/news/042415_wd3_notes_small_college_makes_tewaaraton_impact

[PolarCat]

WHERE DID EVERYONE DISAPPEAR TO??  Conference Playoffs are around the corner, the Laxpower D3 board is hopping with discussion and speculation, and this place is as deserted as Camden Yards.

[MUC57]

Hi guys (or girls, as the case may be)

Thanks for welcoming me to your board! Although I won't be posting that much, I'll chime in from time to time.
Last night, the Mount Union women beat Otterbein in the OAC 1st round 11 to 4. Saturday they will play Baldwin-Wallace for the conference championship and the automatic bid to the playoffs. They are ranked 18 in the country and no. 1 in their region.
You'll have to excuse me for being so excited, but it's nice to see someone other than the football team doing so well
Although they are doing very well in just their 3rd season, I do keep everything in perspective. They're not quite ready for the likes of Salisbury, Cortland St. and the NESCAC teams, among others, but it's still a great sport.
Here's a question-I hope I ask it so it makes sense. Mount Union has most of it's players from out of state. I know that many of the local high schools play lacrosse. What's up? I guess there are several possible answers. Your thoughts!
Thanks again for the welcome. I know I can learn from all of you.
Now, about Wisconsin-Whitewater............

[PolarCat]

Congratulations to the Purple Raiders!  And good luck on Saturday!  Your success speaks volumes about the coach, who has done a great job, despite never having served as a college assistant, and only having one season as a HS head coach.  She's obviously a very talented young lady.

Regarding getting more "locals" on the team: Even in D3, recruiting is extremely important.  One factor is that there may not be many club teams in Ohio that take talented HS players to the important national recruiting tournaments: President's Cup, Capital Cup, Lax Inception, Northeast Challenge, Northern RISE, etc.  (When my daughter was going through the recruiting process, I don't recall seeing any Ohio teams at those venues).  If your coach is attending those tournaments, she may not be getting a chance to scout Ohio girls in top level competition.

Most competitive teams hold summer camps.  It's a great way to spot and romance local talent without a lot of travel costs.  Surprisingly, MUC has camps for football, MBB, Wrestling, Swimming, Volleyball, Soccer, Baseball, Softball and Cheerleading (?), but none for WLAX.  If your AD is serious about growing the program, he or she should consider starting one.

I poked around the MUC website a little, and I liked the "Lacrosse 101" section (which is certainly more politically correct than "Lacrosse for Dummies").  But I note your school is still referring to players as "First Home", "Point", "Cover Point", etc.  Those are OLD terms, which I haven't seen used in 7 or 8 years in the Northeast.  Sort of the lacrosse equivalent of "I Formation" or "Wishbone Offense".  It may be that the SID just copied the "Lacrosse 101" section from an old book.  But if MUC is actually using those offensive and defensive schemes, it could be a challenge playing against teams from other regions that have moved on to more dynamic approaches.

If you are enjoying the game, you may want to check out the Laxpower website.  There's a good D3 section, information on the tournament process, and more statistics and rankings than you can shake a stick (er, crosse) at.

[MUC57]

PolarCat

Thanks for the comments and your help. Being new to this great sport, I need all the help I can ge
In a bit of a rush now, but will get back to you later.
By the way, where are you from ? or who is your team?
Take care.

[PolarCat]

Boston area.  My daughter plays lacrosse for the Bowdoin Polar Bears, my son plays football for the Bates Bobcats, and my user name is what you get when the two mascots have a litter.

[Vandy74]

Hi guys (or girls, as the case may be)

Thanks for welcoming me to your board! Although I won't be posting that much, I'll chime in from time to time.
Last night, the Mount Union women beat Otterbein in the OAC 1st round 11 to 4. Saturday they will play Baldwin-Wallace for the conference championship and the automatic bid to the playoffs. They are ranked 18 in the country and no. 1 in their region.
You'll have to excuse me for being so excited, but it's nice to see someone other than the football team doing so well
Although they are doing very well in just their 3rd season, I do keep everything in perspective. They're not quite ready for the likes of Salisbury, Cortland St. and the NESCAC teams, among others, but it's still a great sport.
Here's a question-I hope I ask it so it makes sense. Mount Union has most of it's players from out of state. I know that many of the local high schools play lacrosse. What's up? I guess there are several possible answers. Your thoughts!
Thanks again for the welcome. I know I can learn from all of you.
Now, about Wisconsin-Whitewater............

MUC57,

Glad you got back to us.  Your comment on the rosters got me doing a bit of research since I had been discussing the same topic with someone last night  and see I was rather misinformed.  Mt. Union and the newly emerging programs that seem to take the sport seriously recruit much more heavily from outside their immediate areas than I had thought.  As for the number of players from Ohio on your roster, 10 if I'm correct, that's quite high.  I had assumed being new to the game Mt. Union would face significant competition recruiting the in-state athlete with the NCAC which is probably the most established women's lacrosse conference outside the northeastern region.  Men's lacrosse even more so.  I've mentioned on the board a few times a friend I have who graduated from Denison in '61 who considered playing there.  While Wittenberg includes 11 Ohioans on their relatively small roster they seem to be the exception to the rule.  I also checked out Wooster, Denison, Oberlin and Kenyon and none have more than 3.  Of more interest, however, is where the other players come from.  Of the small sampling I studied it runs close to 50/50 in terms of recruits from the NE/Mid-Atlantic Coastal area and the rest of the country where lacrosse is only now gaining popularity.   It will be interesting to see over the next decade how much this trend changes as the growth of lacrosse at the youth level expands the local talent pool.  As for Wis-Whitewater have you considered quintupling your enrollment while, as I believe they phrase it, continuing to compete in the spirit of D3?

[PolarCat]

Vandy, will we see you in Hartford Saturday?  (I'm hoping to be there Sunday, too.    )

[amh63]

PolarCat.....see you are on top of the news!   Me, going to watch the NFL draft...don't you know football is America's sport these days?....not the First American sport of lacrosse....just kidding here.
Actually doing the Spring chores of planting, weeding, buying plants, etc.  Need to contract these things out but cannot figure out the new government regs .
Anyway, lacrosse is a perplexing game these days in the conference and I'm avoiding stress...one reason I'm playing in the dirt/sand. 
Congrats to all the conference picks for awards....Amherst does get the men's POY and head coach shares the conference Coach of the Year with the Bates' coach.  Leave the women side particulars to you and others.
May 1 is arriving and the new class of students must make their decisions.  Hope all the CAC schools get their Lax picks.  Heard on the Soccer board that Colby had a 50 percent increase in applicants and got the go ahead by the new administration to build up their sports' program!
Been busy doing a little fund raising and recruiting...as required...another Spring chore.

[Vandy74]

Vandy, will we see you in Hartford Saturday?  (I'm hoping to be there Sunday, too.    )

PolarCat,

I'll be watching via the computer stream this weekend.  I can't honestly wish you luck on Saturday but all the best should Bowdoin move on to Sunday's contest.   

[MUC57]

PolarCat, Vandy74 et.al.

Really good chatting with all of you. As I said before, being new to this sport, I need all the help I can get! I'm pretty much flying blind but hopefully I'll learn something.
By the way, you may have noticed I have only talked about the Mount Union women's team. The men ended the season at 5-9. I enjoy watching them, certainly more physical but just not as good.
Also, I forgot to mention that the women are 17-0, the only undefeated team in the country. Of course, the competition probably has a lot to do with that. Their record would be considerably different if they played some of the East coast teams-wouldn't it?
I'll be at Mount Union Stadium tomorrow at 1:00 PM to watch them play Baldwin-Wallace and hoping for a win.
Please excuse the ramblings of an old alum who has really taken a fancy to this "new" sport of lacrosse.
Good luck to all teams, although I guess someone has to lose.

[PolarCat]

Keep us posted MUC57!  We NESCAC guys havent taken over the board on purpose; we'd love getting reports from other conferences, especially as we head toward the big dance in Philly the end of this month.

Speaking of other conferences: I just checked on Dennison, as a girl my daughter used to play club soccer with is a first year with them this year.  Looks like the NCAC is having an interesting tournament: last week #3 seed Dennison upset #2 seed Wooster, while #4 seed Oberlin upset #1 seed Wittenburg.  Dennison plays Oberlin tomorrow for the Championship, and the AQ to the NCAA's.

By the way, the two NCAC finalists are both teams that Mount Union beat - handily - this season.  And Mount Union also beat Fredonia, the team that just WALLOPED Geneseo in the SUNYAC Tournament, almost certainly ruining Geneseo's chances of getting a bid to the NCAA's.  The only other team Fredonia lost to this year was powerhouse Cortland, and the two of them face off tomorrow in the SUNYAC Championship game.

So MUC57, don't be so humble about the Purple Raiders!  You have a legitimate contender on your hands, and should start making your reservations for Philly!

[Vandy74]

Keep us posted MUC57!  We NESCAC guys havent taken over the board on purpose; we'd love getting reports from other conferences, especially as we head toward the big dance in Philly the end of this month.

Speaking of other conferences: I just checked on Dennison, as a girl my daughter used to play club soccer with is a first year with them this year.  Looks like the NCAC is having an interesting tournament: last week #3 seed Dennison upset #2 seed Wooster, while #4 seed Oberlin upset #1 seed Wittenburg.  Dennison plays Oberlin tomorrow for the Championship, and the AQ to the NCAA's.

By the way, the two NCAC finalists are both teams that Mount Union beat - handily - this season.  And Mount Union also beat Fredonia, the team that just WALLOPED Geneseo in the SUNYAC Tournament, almost certainly ruining Geneseo's chances of getting a bid to the NCAA's.  The only other team Fredonia lost to this year was powerhouse Cortland, and the two of them face off tomorrow in the SUNYAC Championship game.

So MUC57, don't be so humble about the Purple Raiders!  You have a legitimate contender on your hands, and should start making your reservations for Philly!

The NCAC is an established lacrosse conference.  The game is played very seriously at the men's level.  Denison and Ohio Wesleyan in particular.  The women's programs have represented the best regionally.  The SCIAC in Southern California does likewise.  How quickly Augustana and Mt. Union have become teams that give them trouble with should serve as a wake up call.  It's time to get better instead of just being happy to get a 1st round game at the Big Party.  Nothing shabby about either team's schedule.  Each handled some of the stiffest competition the region had to offer.  And Mt. Union's victory over Fredonia is very impressive.  It's that next step up and makes an upset in the NCAA quite plausible.  It isn't just that Mt. Union beat #17 Fredonia by 2.  #2 Cortland only beat them by 4.  Btw MUC57, I use the LWICA coaches poll.  They rank you at #21 but to be a team outside the northeast/mid-Atlantic lax belt  and receiving such recognition is impressive, period.  Only Augustana was there as well most of this season.  Augie has what Mt Union doesn't.  They have two very legitimate conference opponents in North Central and Carthage.  Both programs are for real.  I mention this because there was another game on the Raiders' schedule and Augustana's as well that was assumed to be another strength of schedule booster.  Adrian.  Adrian progressed just ahead of the three CCIW teams I mentioned while they competed in the MWLC.  Two seasons ago the MIAA sponsored the sport and Adrian was forced to schedule accordingly.  The problem is there were no serious in-conference adversaries.  Adrian owned it last season as they continued to excel.  This year, however, they failed to win a single game.  In out of conference play Augustana, Wittenberg, Mt. Union and Denison beat them by a combined score of 82-9.  I have no information as to why one of the best new programs in the Midwest region collapsed so quickly but recruits are lured by the level of competition promised and Adrian could not offer that.   Two years back Augie beat Redlands in the 1st round of the NCAA.  During the season Carthage, NCC and Augustana played one another 5 times.  All games were won by a single goal.  Hopefully next season some OAC teams will test the Raiders more.   

Lots of lacrosse to follow in the NESCAC tomorrow.  Middlebury-Bowdoin.  #3 vs #5.  It doesn't get much better than that.  On the men's side of things I expect Amherst would love a rematch with Middlebury in the championship game on Sunday.  That is the only blemish on the LJs record.  First they need to beat Bates.  The Panthers will have to avenge a season opening loss at the hands of Tufts to make it happen.  Two very tough tasks.

[amh63]

I'm hoping for a rematch with the Panthers on Sunday too! . First things first...two matches today.  May even watch both if the stress level is normal??....Lax players are so unpredictable.  In any case it should be a good weather day for the teams to play on Pratt field.