Lacrosse

[Vandy74]

Was watching a bunch of games today.....lacrosse, softball, and baseball.  It was a big Amherst vs Williams weekend!
Yes, the women's lacrosse game in Willytown was a strange game, IMO, and one that proved Vandy74 to be a sort of prophet.  Amherst had a three goal lead in the second half when Williams ties the game at 8-8! With less than tree minutes to go. The lady Ephs goes ahead 9-8 with 21 seconds to go and Amherst calls time out...I switched to the men's game.  When Amherst goes up by five, I turn back to see that Amherst has forced the game into OT.  Amherst scores in the sudden death situation to win 10-9.
The men's game ends up 11-8 as Amherst runs out the clock on Seniors day....Amherst said thank you to 12 seniors!

Meanwhile Amherst wins the first game of a double header softball game against Williams at Amherst.
At Midd, the Amherst baseball team comes back from a 7-1 deficit in the 2nd to win 8-7 in a seven inning game.  It was a big weekend for the Panthers' HC who is retiring after this season...32 years at the job.....250 in attendance at the dinner on Friday, including the Amherst's HC, a former player at Midd.
Windy but a cool sunny day in Vermont and Western Ma.

Williams scored four unanswered goals to take a 8-7 lead over Amherst with 21 seconds remaining.  Amherst tied the score 17 seconds later.  Then they went on to win in OT.  So next Wednesday the Ehs will be playing for their NESCAC tournament lives AND probably will be in a very bad mood.  The Panthers were surprisingly easy winners today beating Colby 12-2. 

I was at the Middlebury-Amherst doubleheader the afternoon amh63.  I missed the first few innings of game 1 because of the women's lax.  Amherst had a big 5-run 6th inning coming from 6 runs down to win 8-7.  The second game looked to be the same scenario when the Purple and White scored two in the 6th to tie it up at 5 apiece.  The Panthers regained the lead with a run in their half of the inning and held on for the victory.  Amherst had won on Friday 5-0.

[polbear73]

If form holds for the men on Tuesday and considering tie-breakers, the NESCAC tournament seeding projects as follows: 1. Tufts, 2. Middlebury, 3. Amherst, 4. Bowdoin, 5. Bates, 6. Wesleyan, 7. Williams, and 8. Conn College.  First round games:  Conn College at Tufts, Williams at Middlebury, Wesleyan at Amherst, and Bates at Bowdoin. 

Of course, an upset on Tuesday could change this and anything is possible in NESCAC, but it's interesting to note Middlebury's rebound from their tough early season losses, and Bowdoin's turnaround from last year.  The playoffs will be fun!

[Vandy74]

If form holds for the men on Tuesday and considering tie-breakers, the NESCAC tournament seeding projects as follows: 1. Tufts, 2. Middlebury, 3. Amherst, 4. Bowdoin, 5. Bates, 6. Wesleyan, 7. Williams, and 8. Conn College.  First round games:  Conn College at Tufts, Williams at Middlebury, Wesleyan at Amherst, and Bates at Bowdoin. 

Of course, an upset on Tuesday could change this and anything is possible in NESCAC, but it's interesting to note Middlebury's rebound from their tough early season losses, and Bowdoin's turnaround from last year.  The playoffs will be fun!

I haven't checked anyone elses schedule but the Middlebury-Williams regular season finale is on Wednesday, not Tuesday.  That said, the anticipated Panther win along with Tufts' besting of Bowdoin does make the tournament seeding play out as you say.  That will also mean the Ephs get another shot at the Panthers in the quarterfinal round.  Beating any NESCAC team in back to back games is no picnic.

Note to Bombers798891....I notice Ithaca suffered no letdown against Alfred following the impressive win over RIT.  22-11, 'nuff said.  While not a formidable opponent, Alfred was the most credible foe remaining on the Bombers schedule.  Ithaca has been playing like a Top 5 team, not merely a Top 20 mention.  It might be a while before they fade from national interest allowing you to part company with us.  (Only until next season begins, I trust.)  Your opinions are always well reasoned and welcome and your part in focusing the board's attention on the men's side of things is most appreciated.

[AndOne]

The North Central women lost to Illinois Wesleyan today by the score of 7-10. That's the second conference loss for the Cardinals after losing to conference favorite, Augustana on Wednesday.

Things in the CCIW are shaking out pretty much as expected. Augie was picked to win and occupies the top position. Carthage, the preseason #2 pick sits in that spot. NCC, picked 3rd, and IWU, the 4th pick, are tied for 3rd with IWU having the head to head tie breaker.
Wonder how Augie will do against the elite teams, most of which are in the eastern portion of the country, with some in the far west.
I would guess college lacrosse is in its relative infancy in the Midwest compared to the eastern teams.

[amh63]

Been AWOL  wrt to posting on results.  Oh well, the big battles on Wednesday have happened and the Nescac website  has the " lineups" for the upcoming tournaments. Do not know how they line up with earlier posted expectations. 
I watched a bit of the Amherst vs Trinity women's game in Hartford.  Amherst fell into a deep hole and came back to make the matchup a little more respectful.  On the other hand, the men's game with Trinity at Pratt field was a blowout of sorts...a 22-11 win for Amherst.  Both teams showed offense, but Trinity showed no defense for long periods during the game.  It is surprising to me that the Trinity men's lax team has NOT risen up to the level of their women's team.  Is it a matter of coaches?? ....or Talent?
A sort of naive question on my part, I realize in the lax world.

[amh63]

AndOne.....only relatively of late, IMO.  It is true that the Indian game of Lax was born in the East, was nurtured in the multitude of private prep schools in NE and in Md and on Long Island.  However, it has grown by leaps and bound through out the country in public schools in the last several decades. Its rise in the D.C. Area suburbs is reflected in the growth of business that specialize in lax gear, etc.  Holding national championships in NFL facilities in recent years reflect the growth of the game and the fan base.  It will not be too long before there maybe a shift of the power base elsewhere...as the talent base expands.

[AndOne]

In its 4/19/16 meeting, the Illinois High School Association Board Of Directors voted to begin sponsoring state championships in boys and girls lacrosse beginning in spring 2018. In October 2009, the Board mandated a threshold of 65 boys teams, and 40 girls teams in order to begin state championship series preparation. As of Fall 2015, there were 42 girls teams, but the number of boys teams fell somewhere short of the required minimum of 65. Programs were evaluated every January since 2009 but the numbers for both boys and girls never reached the thresholds. However, there was an explosion of participation in the sport recently, and in its Jan 2016 review/evaluation, it was found there are now 83 boys teams and 59 girls teams entered in what is referred to as the State Series. The 2 year lag was established to allow schools time to fully integrate, budget, and build their programs, and to allow IHSA officials time to facilitate the tournament details, hire more officials, and select a state finals host site.
As the sport grows on the HS level, it seems there will be more numbers to feed into the college level where we will continue to see additional schools add lacrosse to their officially sponsored athletic teams lineup.

[Vandy74]

Hoping for the warm weather to continue tomorrow in Middlebury as both men's and women's teams host quarterfinal action.  The men face a Bates team they defeated 15-12 in regular season play.  The women won the prize of facing Tufts.  Tufts is hard to figure.  How does a team that loses to Connecticut College be the only conference loss for Trinity.  Middlebury beat them 17-9 in conference play but since then, other than losing to ConnColl, the Jumbos have beaten Trinity and Bates while losing to both Hamilton and Amherst by only one goal.  The women play at noon and the men at 1:00.  Anyone not interested in lacrosse can watch the Panther baseball team play a doubleheader with Trinity starting at noon.

[amh63]

Great game at Gooding field as Williams upset Amherst 11-10!   It was 6-4, Amherst at the half.
Williams dominated the face offs and built a 3 goal lead, 10-7 in the forth quarter will less than 7 minutes to go.  Amherst ties the game with under 3-4 minutes to go, only to lose the lead.  Amherst has the ball with 18.4 seconds but cannot score.  Amherst had the ball with a man-up with a minute and half and could not score!
Great defense by Williams...as Williams was very physical with Amherst's top scorers.  IMO, Williams wanted the win more.

[NCF]

With today's OT victory (10-9) over Carthage, North Central secured the #3 spot in the CCIW tournament. They travel to Illinois Wesleyan, on Wedneday,  for a rematch with the Titans in the semi's. Game time  is 7 pm. Regular season champion Augustana will host Carthage. The winner's will face off on Saturday, May 7th.

[Vandy74]

Both Middlebury teams won their quarterfinal games on Saturday.  The women's team got off to a slow start as Tufts lead 2-0 nine minutes in. Middlebury tied it up 2 apiece at 14:58 but it wasn't until a goal by Hollis Perticone with an assist from Mary O'Connell making the score 5-4 that the Panthers took a lead they wouldn't relinquish again.  Middlebury led 14-7 with 9:08 left to play before 3 Tufts goals made the final score 14-10.

I was able to watch the second half of the Panther men's battle with Bates.  When I arrived Middlebury led 6-3 but except for some short spurts of action the Bobcats looked like the better team in the second half.  Middlebury scored when they had to.  The goal that made it 6-3 at the half was scored at 00:10.  The tally that tied the score at 8 apiece to end the 3rd quarter happened at the 00:03 mark.  With Bates leading 10-9 late in the final quarter Kyle Soroka scored unassisted goals at 1:10 to tie and the game winner at 00:14.

The Middlebury women take on Amherst next Saturday.  The Purple and White will be looking to avenge an OT loss earlier this season.

The men play Bowdoin.  Women's game at 2:30.  Men's at 3:00  The NESCAC  scheduling gods must be very angry at Middlebury fans.   Trust me, the feeling is mutual.

[AndOne]

With today's OT victory (10-9) over Carthage, North Central secured the #3 spot in the CCIW tournament. They travel to Illinois Wesleyan, on Wedneday,  for a rematch with the Titans in the semi's. Game time  is 7 pm. Regular season champion Augustana will host Carthage. The winner's will face off on Saturday, May 7th.

With North Central's win yesterday they finish 13-4 which establishes a new school season record for wins.
NCC was the first D3 school in Illinois to sponsor women's lacrosse as a varsity sport when they began the program in 2007.
Men's lacrosse will become NCC's 25th varsity sport when they enter into varsity competition in spring 2017.

[PolarCat]

I had a fun day yesterday, watching FOUR different NESCAC contests due to the magic of the internet (and the borderline competence of Northeast Sports Network); Amherst-Williams and Bowdoin-Wes MLAX games, and Bates-Colby and Tufts-Middlebury WLAX.

In my mind, the secret to the Eph men's victory was dominating the draw in the second half.  You can't score if you don't have the ball, and the Lord Jeffs came up empty, time and again.  When the LJ's did have possession, they often squandered it by taking really low percentage shots, either long distance or literally from the end lines.  Their GK Thomas Gilligan played well (17 saves), but the Amherst attack just didn't get it done.  It was Amherst's first loss to the Ephs since 2009, and it had to sting.

The Cardinals and the Polar Bears had a nail-biter in Brunswick, marked by great play from both sides.  Bowdoin's Peter Mumford was spectacular between the pipes, stopping numerous point blank rockets, completely stymieing Wes in the 4th quarter, despite the Cardinals taking 9 shots in the period.  As in the Amherst-Williams game, draw controls played a huge role, with Bowdoin's Sam Carlin snagging 17 of 22, leading to a 52-37 shot advantage for the hosts.

Up in Middlebury, the crisp passing and insane stick skills that helped the Lady Jumbos dismantle Bowdoin in the regular season finale seem to have missed the bus to Vermont.  The Jumbos jumped out to a quick lead, and played well (with Brigid Bowser scoring maybe the most beautiful unassisted, coast-to-coast goal of the season in the waning moments), but the Panthers ground the Jumbos down with a balanced attack and a stalwart D.  Midd's GK Katy Mandigo had the best game I've seen her play, with 8 saves and some aggressive play out of the net.

Meanwhile at Mayflower Hill, the Bobcats had a relatively easy time in their rematch with the Mules.  Unlike their meeting last week at Lewiston, the Bates players seemed to control their emotions, while the Mules (maybe egged on by their rowdy fans?) lost their composure, racking up 4 yellow cards on the afternoon.  Hannah Jeffrey was once again magical in goal.  With their lackluster performance, I think the Mules may be lucky to get an at-large bid to the big dance.

My predictions for next weekend:

• Trinity 12, Bates 8.  The Bants have been here before, and they are just too good for the Bobcats, especially at home.
• Midd 10, Amherst 9 in OT.  Mandigo is shaky in the first half, then settles down and thwarts a spirited Amherst attack.


• Midd slips past Trinity 8-7 in the final.  Kate Livesay gets her revenge on her former team, and Mandigo has a career-best game

And the Emmy for best announcing goes to Amherst.  Unlike many of the rubes who work these games, he actually knew something about lacrosse, and his accent (Kiwi?) was a pleasure to listen to.

[polbear73]

Great post and summary, PolarCat.  Thanks. 

[amh63]

I second polbear73's comment.  Nice post PolarCat on Lacrosse....as I have been somewhat distracted a bit on Lax watching.  I agreed on the " draw" dominance of Williams....which I refer to as face off.  Lax is a preppie and suburban sport and I am a city boy wrt sports...though I did dabble a bit with tennis.
Amherst has used a number of players to get some control of draws with no clear cut winner.  How does a player develope the skill other than pure strength and wrist control of sorts? 
It is a much different sort on the women's side.