Lacrosse fans are in for something special. It’s Pat Spencer vs. Grant Ament with a trip to the NCAA semifinals at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on the line.

“When you’ve got two players like those guys, it’s exciting,” Loyola (Md.) coach Charley Toomey said in a conference call on Wednesday. “You very rarely in the college game have two guys — Tewaaraton Award finalists — that have the opportunity to go at each other.”

The two best attackmen in the college game go toe-to-toe like two boxers in a heavyweight bout on Sunday in East Hartford, Connecticut, and although they won’t directly impact each other, be prepared for offensive fireworks on both ends of the field.

Spencer is third nationally with 6.44 points per game and is looking to avenge Loyola’s loss to Yale in last year’s quarterfinals. On the other hand, Ament leads the nation in assists (83) and points per game (7.27) and has Penn State dominating the competition in unchartered territory for the program.

“For the fans, they’ve seen it on SportsCenter and on TV,” Toomey said. “But to see it live and in-person and the speed and the size of these kids, it’s pretty impressive.”

LOYOLA VS. PENN STATE

WHEN: SUNDAY, NOON
WHERE: EAST HARTFORD, CONN.
WATCH: ESPNU

There’s so much more to this game than just Ament and Spencer, even if that is one of the key draws. Penn State’s offense has been on a torrid pace since the opening game, and Toomey said the Nittany Lions’ offense has been just as innovative as it has been explosive.

“Obviously, a lot of people point to Grant Ament and Mac O’Keefe, but I’m just so impressed with how they play offense,” he said. “They are bringing the box game to the field lacrosse game. They play in tight spaces. They share the ball. They move off of the ball, and they play faster than certainly any team than we’ve seen this year.”

To counteract Penn State, Toomey said his team needs to focus defensively but also not be careless in transition. Giving Penn State second chances is often not conducive to success. Plus, Kevin Lindley needs to continue his successful season alongside Spencer, giving Loyola two options to go shot-for-shot with Penn State.

Toomey recognized that the Greyhounds are viewed as somewhat of an underdog against the nation’s top-ranked team, and he’s cognizant of the task at hand.

But behind a leader like Spencer, Toomey is confident in his team’s approach.

“It’s always better to be the hunter than the hunted,” Toomey said. “I’ve always felt that way.”

Maryland vs. Virginia (Hempstead, N.Y.)
Saturday, noon, ESPNU

Maryland entered the tournament unseeded but took down sixth-seeded Towson by wiping out a four-goal deficit in a 14-13 overtime win. Louis Dubick scored the winner in the extra period, but goalie Danny Dolan deserves equal praise for stopping 15 shots.

There’s plenty of star power on the field at Hofstra’s James Shuart Stadium. Maryland’s Jared Bernhardt is a Tewaaraton Award finalist, while Virginia’s Dox Aitken, Michael Kraus, Matt Moore, Ian Laviano and Ryan Conrad can fill up the score sheet. The focus for Maryland needs to be on slowing down this group.

Each has scored at least 24 goals, while Moore has separated himself from the bunch with 77 points. Mikey Herring is a sneaky goal-scorer, too, evidenced by his 16 goals on a .727 shooting percentage. This puts increased emphasis on Maryland defenders Thomas O’Connell, Curtis Corley and Brett Makar, who need to focus on slides and keeping tabs on each of Virginia’s weapons, limiting high-percentage looks at Dolan.

Duke vs. Notre Dame (Hempstead, N.Y.)
Saturday, 2:30 p.m., ESPNU

The third team these teams meet this year will surely bring out the best in both squads. Notre Dame beat the Blue Devils in an ACC semifinal, 12-10, after losing to them on April 6, 14-8. In the ACC tournament, Duke trailed 8-4 at halftime but staged a furious comeback, cutting the deficit to 11-10 on CJ Carpenter’s unassisted man-up goal with 2:57 left. Notre Dame iced Duke on Bryan Costabile’s man-up goal two minutes later.

Prior to that game, Duke coach John Danowski told US Lacrosse Magazine that he thought Notre Dame was playing like the better team. Now, maybe that’s not as clear-cut. Duke earned the tournament’s No. 2 seed and took care of Richmond in the opening round, 12-11. Nakeie Montgomery and Brad Smith combined for 10 points, perhaps signaling that they’ll be the two guys to rely on for a Duke team that doesn’t have any superstars, in Danowski’s opinion.

Charles Leonard has gotten the better of Duke’s Brian Smyth twice at the faceoff X this spring. That familiarity should make for a spirited rivalry at the center of the field on Saturday. Leonard won 17 of 26 faceoffs in the ACC semifinal. If that’s the case again, then Duke will need to be nearly flawless on offense.

Penn vs. Yale (East Hartford, Conn.)
Sunday, 2:30 p.m., ESPNU

If recent history tells the story, then buckle in for another one-goal game.

Penn and Yale will meet for the third time this season on Sunday. On March 30, Penn needed three overtimes to outlast the Bulldogs, 13-12. The Quakers got the better of the defending national champions again in the Ivy League championship game, 12-11. Should Penn win a third time, it’ll move on to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia to play in front of what should be a raucous home crowd.

All eyes will be at the X. For as good as Kyle Gallagher has been for Penn, TD Ierlan has been better for Yale. Ierlan won just 15 of 29 faceoffs against Gallagher on March 30, then Gallagher won 15 of 26 in the rematch. He’s been one of the only specialists to give Ierlan any trouble, and if he does it again, Penn could be marching on to the Linc.