|
US Lacrosse College Notebook
March 26, 2004
Surpising Unbeatens
It's not a major surprise that the men's teams at Johns Hopkins and Maryland are both unbeaten at this point in the season. Hopkins was picked No.1 in Lacrosse Magazine's preseason poll and Maryland was picked third. But the other two remaining unbeatens are a little bit of a surprise.
Both teams come from the Ivy League and its not the programs you'd expect. Yale, under first-year head coach Andy Shay, and Brown are both 4-0 and coming off their most impressive victories of the season.
Brown knocked off Massachusetts 10-5 last weekend and hosts 11th-ranked Loyola this weekend. The Bears are ranked 18th in this week's USILA poll.
Yale is not ranked, even after handling Penn 15-11 last weekend. The Bulldogs play at 12th-ranked Cornell this weekend. That game will be Cornell's first since the tragic death of senior George Boardi during the Big Red's game with Binghamton on March 17.
Around the Country
Championship Preview?
Georgetown and Princeton played for the 2002 NCAA Division I women's championship with Princeton coming out on top. Princeton is ranked first in the nation right now and the Hoyas are right behind in second. The two schools renew their competitive rivalry on Friday at Georgetown. Princeton has already beaten three Top 10 teams this season -- Duke, Loyola and Virginia.
Cavaliers on Fire
Virginia might be struggling, but the Cabrini Cavaliers men's team is not. Cabrini is ranked 11th in this week's USILA poll after beating Ohio Wesleyan and Wooster last weekend. That's Cabrini's highest national ranking ever. Cabrini plays winless Alvernia on Saturday but a Monday home game with third-ranked Washington College is looming. Cabrini has averaged over 12 wins over the last three years and played in last year's NCAA tournament.
Another NESCAC Challenger
It's not unusual for unbeaten and nationally-ranked women's teams to battle in the NESCAC, but Wesleyan is not normally the school you expect to be involved in one of these games. The Cardinals are 5-0, including a win over Ithaca, and ranked 12th in the IWLCA Division III poll. They will be at top-ranked Middlebury this weekend. The Panthers held off fifth-ranked Salisbury for a 7-5 win on Tuesday and then blew out fourth-ranked Gettysburg 14-5 on Thursday.
Colorado State and Navy Still Cruising
This week's intercollegiate associates polls feature the Colorado State men and the Navy women on top for the third straight time. Colorado State is a perfect 12-0. In the women's poll, three-time defending champion Cal Poly moved ahead of Florida for the No. 2 position behind Navy.
Stick Checks
Drexel's women's team, coached by former Rutgers mentor Anna Marie Vesco, is one of five unbeaten teams in Division I lacrosse. The Dragons are allowing just 5.6 goals per game on their way to a 5-0 start...Delaware men's coach Bob Shillinglaw picked up his 200th career victory when the Blue Hens beat Air Force 7-6 last Saturday. Delaware is 20th in this week's USILA poll, its first national ranking since the 2000 season.
US Lacrosse College Notebook is a weekly feature on the US Lacrosse web site. For information about supporting the sport through membership in US Lacrosse, visit our membership page.
|
