Tuesdays are for the underdogs.
After much of the first three weeks of the NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse season went according to script, Villanova and Marist delivered a shock to the system Tuesday, upsetting a pair of top-10 teams.
The Wildcats, who fell out of the Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20 after season-opening losses to No. 1 Penn State and No. 3 Yale, withstood another furious Maryland rally to defeat the fourth-ranked Terps 13-12 in Villanova, Pa.
Maryland (3-1) lived dangerously in wins over Richmond and Penn, going to double overtime against the Spiders after erasing a five-goal deficit and eking past the Quakers with a game-ending eight-goal run.
Which is why no one counted out the Terps when Villanova took a five-goal lead on Connor Kirst’s third goal with 8:38 remaining. Maryland climbed back to within one on a man-up tally by Logan Wisnauskas with 38 seconds left. The Terps had a chance to tie it on the last possession, but Bubba Fairman made an errant pass and the Wildcats (1-2) held on for their second-ever win over Maryland.
As it turned out, that might have only been the second-most surprising result Tuesday.
Army’s early-season ascent hit an unexpected snag in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., where the seventh-ranked Black Knights were blown out by unranked Marist 17-9.
Army (3-1) was the talk of college lacrosse after steamrolling its first three opponents by a combined score of 51-9, including lopsided wins over nationally ranked UMass (17-4) and Rutgers (15-4).
But the Red Foxes (2-1) shut out the Black Knights for nearly 30 minutes and stunned the previously impenetrable Army defense with an eight-goal run. The Black Knights never recovered.
Marist’s swagger was especially evident when Jake Weinman scored a behind-the-back goal early in the second quarter and his teammates on the bench swarmed him to celebrate.
14:18 2Q | Are you kidding, Jake Weinman?! #GoRedFoxes #NCAALAX #SCTop10 @ESPNAssignDesk
— Marist Lacrosse (@Marist_MensLax) February 18, 2020
: https://t.co/C2LmhMtfuq pic.twitter.com/JV0fM0vrol
The Red Foxes, reigning champions of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, never looked back and procured their first win over a nationally ranked opponent in three years. Army, also ranked No. 7 in the USILA coaches poll, is the highest-ranked opponent Marist has ever defeated. Its previous biggest upset was a 10-9 overtime triumph against then-No. 8 Stony Brook in 2016.
Jamison Embury led the onslaught with four goals and three assists. The Red Foxes also benefited from solid efforts at the faceoff dot by Peyton Smith (17-for-28) and in goal by Jake MacGregor (16 saves).
In other results Tuesday:
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Michael Sowers set the Princeton and Ivy League single-game record with 14 points, as the Tigers defeated visiting Colgate 20-11. Sowers’ special night included a Princeton single-game record 11 assists. The Tewaaraton Award finalist has 25 points in the Tigers’ first two games. Princeton (2-0) will look to keep up the offensive fireworks Saturday at No. 2 Virginia.
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Jack Rusbuldt made 14 saves and handed out his first career assist, and freshman Richie Connell scored four goals to lead Richmond to a 12-9 win over visiting Navy. The Spiders (3-1) scored the first three goals of the second half, part of a 7-2 run to put away the Midshipmen (2-1). Rusbuldt fed Connell with a 60-yard pass over the top of the Navy defense for the goal that iced the win.
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Saint Joseph’s (2-1) shut out Delaware (2-1) in the fourth quarter and scored five unanswered goals to defeat the Blue Hens 11-8. Mike Adler made 18 saves and Zach Cole won all six fourth-quarter faceoffs to spark the comeback.
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Fairfield denied Merrimack in its bid for its first Division I win, scoring the games final five goals to knock off the Warriors 14-11 at Rafferty Stadium. Brian Reda led the Stags (2-0) with six assists. Dylan Beckwith and Travis Ford scored four goals apiece. Merrimack, the two-time defending NCAA Division II champion, fell to 0-3 in its inaugural Division I campaign.
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Sean Mullaney scored as time expired in overtime to lift Holy Cross to a 13-12 victory over UMass Lowell. The River Hawks (1-2) rallied from a four-goal fourth-quarter deficit and forced overtime when Isaac Bot scored with 21 seconds remaining in regulation. Kevin Kodzis led the Crusaders (3-1) with three goals and two assists.
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Detroit Mercy (2-1) set a new school record with 20 goals, including a career-high five from Ryan Figueiras in a 20-13 victory over visiting Bellarmine (2-3).
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Luke McCaleb scored four goals to lead a balanced offensive effort for Brown, which defeated Sacred Heart 20-7. The Bears improved to 2-0.
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Marc O’Rourke had five goals and two assists to lead Bryant (1-2) to a 15-10 win over Boston University (1-3).
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Bryce Clay scored six goals and Kevin Mack added five, leading Michigan (2-1) to a 16-8 victory over visiting Canisius (0-3).
Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20
Villanova 13, No. 4 Maryland 12
Marist 17, No. 7 Army 9
Other Scores
Brown 20, Sacred Heart 7
Bryant 15, Boston University 10
Detroit Mercy 20, Bellarmine 13
Fairfield 14, Merrimack 11
Holy Cross 13, UMass Lowell 12 (OT)
Michigan 16, Canisius 8
Princeton 20, Colgate 11
Richmond 12, Navy 9
Saint Joseph’s 11, Delaware 8