Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. No. 1 Boston College built a 6-1 first-half lead at home against No. 4 Notre Dame, withstood a Fighting Irish rally and cemented late its 13th win of the season yesterday, 13-9, in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup that featured two of the best in the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20. The first-half hat trick by Cara Urbank provided enough of a cushion to ultimately help the Eagles take control of the ACC with a 4-0 mark, though Samantha Lynch scored two of her team-high three goals during a 4-1 spurt that brought Notre Dame within 11-9 with 8:47 remaining. Sam Apuzzo, who controlled eight draws, and Sheila Reitano salted the game away for BC in the closing minutes.
Thanks in part to a 20-minute shutout to open its game at No. 8 Virginia, No. 2 Maryland made coach Cathy Reese its all-time winningest coach with a 16-6 defeat of the Cavaliers. The Terrapins got four goals apiece from Caroline Steele and Brindi Griffin, jumping out to leads of 6-0 and 11-1. With the victory, Reese passed her coach at Maryland and National Lacrosse Hall of Famer Cindy Timchal for career wins at the school.
Freshman Megan Carney’s milestone four goals and five assists provided No. 3 Syracuse with enough fuel to hold off Virginia Tech, 14-13, as the Orange improved to 5-1 in one-goal games this season. Carney’s nine points marked the most for a Syracuse player in a game since Alyssa Murray did so in 2014. Carney scored a hat trick in the first half, then contributed the score or the assist during each tally of a 4-1 Orange run that put the hosts ahead, 12-6.
Taylor Caskey and Paige Petty (five goals) each scored twice in the second half to power Hokie scoring runs, but only on Caskey’s unassisted goal with 30 seconds left did Virginia Tech pull within one. Emily Hawryschuk won her fifth draw of the game to seal it for the Orange.
NCAA Division I Women’s Scores
No. 1 Boston College 13, No. 4 Notre Dame 9
No. 2 Maryland 16, No. 8 Virginia 6
No. 3 Syracuse 14, Virginia Tech 13
No. 19 Stony Brook 21, Hartford 4
Albany 14, Vermont 9
Fairfield 14, Manhattan 6
High Point 24, Gardner-Webb 4
Marist 19, Canisius 14
New Hampshire 11, Mass.-Lowell 4
Quinnipiac 17, Iona 14
Radford 25, Presbyterian 3
Siena 12, Niagara 8
UMBC 10, Binghamton 9 (ot)
Winthrop 13, Campbell 12 (ot)
2. The small-college schedules featured significant upsets, likely to shake up the top of Monday’s Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20s in Divisions II and III.
No. 9 Florida Southern knocked No. 3 Rollins from the ranks of the unbeaten with a degree of ease last night, taking a 10-4 lead in the second half and never allowing the Tars closer than two during the 16-11 win. Riley Bannatyne scored five goals for an impressive third consecutive game to power the Moccasins, who largely controlled play by winning 21 of 29 draws. Two of her goals answered Rollins’ 5-1 run that had made the score 11-9.
Nike/US Lacrosse Division II Women’s Top 20 Scores
No. 9 Fla. Southern 16, No. 3 Rollins 11
No. 2 Lindenwood 13, McKendree 9
No. 6 Tampa 11, Florida Tech 6
No. 7 Limestone 17, Belmont Abbey 12
No. 18 Queens 17, Catawba 8
Three Diplomats scored in the final seven minutes to break a 6-6 tie and help Division III No. 9 Franklin and Marshall knock off No. 1 and two-time defending national champion Gettysburg, 9-6, in a Centennial Conference grinder yesterday. F&M got three goals from freshman Tabitha Rodriguez and two from classmate Ally Marino, outshooting the Bullets, 31-20. Another freshman, Marissa McGarrey, scored what proved to be the game winner on a free-position shot with 6:58 to play.
The loss could prove to be a blessing down the road for the Bullets. These titans have met in the regular season and in the conference tournament in each of the last three seasons — the initial loser has gotten revenge each time.
Nike/US Lacrosse Division III Women’s Top 20 Scores
No. 9 Franklin and Marshall 9, No. 1 Gettysburg 6
No. 2 Tufts 21, Williams 13
No. 4 Wesleyan 11, No. 8 Amherst 10 (ot)
No. 5 Washington and Lee 17, Randolph-Macon 5
No. 13 York 12, No. 11 Catholic 9
No. 14 Trinity 14, Connecticut College 10
Bowdoin 14, No. 20 Bates 2
3. The Division I men took the night off, perhaps opting to play a game on the first Saturday of February instead of midweek in April. Plenty of small-college teams ranked in their respective Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20 enjoyed a pleasant evening in many areas of the country.
Ryan Dunn scored the game-winning goal with 15 seconds left to lift Rollins to an 11-10 upset over No. 16 Saint Leo in Division II. The Tars took an 8-4 lead into the final quarter before the Lions rallied, thanks in part to a hat trick by Philip Buque. After Dunn’s winner on a dodge, Saint Leo won the ensuing faceoff but turned the ball over, sealing Rollins’ fourth win in 17 tries against the Lions.
Nike/US Lacrosse Division II Men’s Top 20 Scores
No. 1 Adelphi 16, NYIT 12
No. 10 Indianapolis 15, Lake Erie 11
Rollins 11, No. 16 Saint Leo 10
No. 19 Tampa 17, Florida Southern 11
No. 3 Tufts jumped out to an 8-2 lead and hung on for a 15-14 win over No. 11 Williams in the closest game among ranked teams in Division III. The Jumbos won 22 of 33 faceoffs and held a commanding shot advantage, but they couldn’t put the Ephs away until goalie Mason Pollack stopped a Jared Strauss shot with 15 seconds to play.
Elsewhere, host Stevenson likewise controlled faceoff play against No. 19 Christopher Newport (18-7), got a balanced scoring effort and surrendered just two goals after halftime to dispatch the Captains, 14-8.
Nike/US Lacrosse Division III Men’s Top 20 Scores
No. 2 Amherst 14, No. 6 Wesleyan 9
No. 3 Tufts 15, No. 11 Williams 14
No. 4 RIT 14, Cortland 10
No. 8 Cabrini 11, Marywood 2
No. 15 Bates 14, Bowdoin 12
Stevenson 14, No. 19 Christopher Newport 8
No. 20 Union 11, Montclair State 7
4. What does it mean to be Native in this sport? The April edition of US Lacrosse Magazine sought insight from several Native players, publishing a series of “as told to” first-person commentaries:
5. The US Lacrosse Women’s Collegiate Lacrosse Associates (WCLA) released their coaches polls.