BEAR LAX TRAX FAX by John Nichols

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D-I

And then there was one—undefeated team in NCAA D-I men’s lacrosse (Ohio State) that is.  Charlotte, North Carolina was where undefeated records went to die this week—first Penn State knocked Cornell from the ranks of the unbeaten then Cornell did that favor to Towson at the Crown Classic which could have been renamed the Knock Off the Crown Classic.  So, but for the Buckeyes’ hopes, it looks likely that there won’t be an undefeated NCAA champion for the now the thirteenth straight year.

As the days tick by the schedule becomes denser with intra-league play.  Five of the six Big Ten teams, four of the seven Ivy League squads and all five ACC teams are ranked in the top 20 of the polls.  Head-to-head matches will likely shuffle the deck.

Special congratulations got out to Jacksonville’s Andrew Mitchell who scored his first collegiate goal.

BEARS vs. BEARS:

#2 Duke (Jack Falk) 12

#9 Loyola (Cam James) 7

The Blue Devil defense held Loyola’s offensive leader Pat Spencer to his lowest point total for the year.  Duke’s run of six straight goals across the second and third quarters put the game out of reach.  The Greyhounds posted four straight in the final period but that only served to narrow the final margin.  Jack saw playing time for Duke.

Crown Classic in Charlotte, NC

#1 Penn State (Nate Buller) 19

#4 Cornell (Colton Rupp) 13

Penn State started the first period with the game’s first four goals and then closed out the period with another run of four.  From there on out, the game was a bit more even, but Big Red could not get the gap below three goals.  Colton scored his first goal for the season during a Cornell third quarter man-up opportunity.

#5 Towson (Mo Sillah) 15

Jacksonville (Hunter Sells, Andrew Mitchell) 13

Jacksonville’s fourth quarter offensive barrage of six goals pulled the Dolphins within two of the then top-ranked Tigers, but, with the last of those six coming with just 26 seconds left, time ran out before Jacksonville could draw any closer.

After Jacksonville scored the first of their six fourth quarter goals, Andrew won the ground ball off the ensuing faceoff and scored his first collegiate goal.  Coach John Galloway on Andrew’s effort and results in the game:

“Andrew Mitchell has worked tirelessly to make improvements in his game, and today that work showed; I thought he was one of the best players on the field tonight.”

Hunter made six saves for Jacksonville and scooped up two ground balls.

#4 Cornell (Colton Rupp) 18

#5 Towson (Mo Sillah) 11

Big Red closed out the scoring in the first period then put eight in a row past the Tiger’s goalie to hand Towson their first loss of the season.  Colton had one ground ball for Cornell.

#5 Penn State (Nate Buller) 24

Jacksonville (Hunter Sells, Andrew Mitchell) 11

The Nittany Lions’ six goal runs in the first and second quarters staked Penn State to a 17-6 halftime advantage.  Hunter had seven saves while allowing sixteen before handing the crease over to a substitute in the second period.  Andrew took five faceoffs for Jacksonville, winning one.

Other Games

#17 Army (Drennan Greene) 8

Lehigh 11

After Lehigh jumped out ahead on the strength of four straight first period goals, Army battled back to tie the game twice before Lehigh launched another four-goal salvo.  Army pulled within two midway through the fourth but could get no closer.

Bucknell (Jarett Witzal, Colin O’Brien, Drew Wellington) 10

Holy Cross 7

Holy Cross rallied in the fourth quarter to tie the game up at 6 early in the period.  The teams traded goals after that, then Bucknell closed out that game with three unanswered goals in game’s closing minutes.  Jarett won 11 of 21 faceoffs and had game high 8 ground balls and Drew had a ground ball and a caused turnover.

Cleveland State (Justin Conner) 7

Marquette 5

Marquette scored first then Cleveland State put up five in a row.  Scoring became scarce after that.  The Golden Eagles pulled within one late in the third quarter and again early in the fourth, but the Vikings were able to hold them off.

#19 Colgate (Griffin Brown) 9

Boston U. 7

After spotting BU a three goal lead out of the box, Colgate put up six consecutive goals to turn that three goal deficit into a three goal lead.  In that six-goal run, Griffin scored a pair of goals which gave Colgate a lead which held up through the final buzzer.

Dartmouth (Landon McKenzie) 8

UMass-Lowell 13

Dartmouth could only answer River Hawks occasional two and three goal sets with single goals.

Fairfield (Alex Hagerup) 21

Siena 15

The Stags’ ten consecutive goals in the middle of the first half decided this game.

Fairfield (Alex Hagerup) 6

Georgetown 19

Georgetown started hot and finished hot while the Stags had few answers for the Hoyas’ salvos.

Hobart (Koko Avedisian) 17

Vermont 11

Hobart and Vermont met in the middle at New Canaan High School’s Dunning Field for a neutral site match.  After the game was tied at 7 midway through the second period, Hobart went on a five-goal run that proved to be decisive.  Koko scored one goal on five shots and gathered up three ground balls.

#18 Johns Hopkins (Joey Epstein) 10

Syracuse 14

Syracuse pressured the Blue Jays’ goalie with a day of accurate shooting.  While he managed to save over half of the Oranges’ shots, the sheer volume of shots on goal tipped the contest to Syracuse.  Joey had two goals on eight shots along with four ground balls.

#2 Maryland (Justin Shockey, John Geppert) 14

Albany 9

Maryland started fast and finished fast to down the Great Danes.  Justin won 12 of 20 faceoffs and his 8 ground balls were the game high.

Michigan (Zach Johnson) 11

Yale 17

But for an eye-popping 23 saves by Michigan’s goalie, this game could have been a disaster for Big Blue.  Yale shot often and accurately, benefiting from steep advantages in faceoffs and ground balls.  Zach saw playing time for Michigan.

Navy (Thomas Evans, Shane Corcoran) 11

Princeton 19

Thomas Evans (#35)

The Tigers put together five separate three-goal runs.  Princeton was ruthlessly efficient, putting 75% of their shots on goal.  Thomas continues to start on defense for Navy and had three ground balls in the game.

Navy (Thomas Evans, Shane Corcoran) 12

Lafayette 7

Navy’s advantage stretched across all statistically categories with their ride proving particularly disruptive as Lafayette failed to successfully clear the ball a third of the time.  Thomas picked up an assist off of a Lafayette turnover, running ahead on transition and quickly collecting a pass then relaying onto his attack.

St. Josephs (Thomas Halm) 7

Drexel 10

Over the first three quarters of this game, part of the four game Philly 4 Lacrosse Classic (St. Joes, Penn Drexel and Villanova), the game was tied on five separate occasions.  St. Joes scored first in the final quarter but Drexel closed out the game with a four-goal run to get the win.

St. Josephs (Thomas Halm) 6

Penn 13

The Quakers scored the first seven goals and never looked back in St. Joe’s second game in the Philly 4 Lacrosse Classic.

#10 Virginia (Ryan Pride) 14 OT

Brown 13

UVA won its third straight overtime contest and for the third straight time had to come from behind in the fourth quarter in order to force overtime.  This contest was more exciting than well played with the teams combining for 101 ground balls, 45 turnovers and 12 failed clears.  After scoring five of the game’s last six goals, the ‘Hoos were able to dominate possession in overtime with Brown’s two possessions ending up in failed clearing attempts.  After that second Brown turnover, UVA was able to get the game winner into the net.

This Coming Week:

This week’s Bears vs. Bears matches:

#2 Duke (Jack Falk) vs. #5 Towson (Mo Sillah)

#9 Loyola (Cam James) vs. Navy (Thomas Evans, Shane Corcoran)

D-III

Catholic (Tommy Minkler-Grad Assistant, Sean Feldman) 11 OT

Mary Washington 12

The Cardinals were in catch-up mode throughout the game and able to tie the game up on three occasions, but could not get past that to take a lead.  Catholic needed a three-goal run in the fourth period to forge the third tie and force overtime.  Unfortunately, Catholic was called for a slash with 19 seconds left in regulation.  Consequently, Mary Washington started overtime a man up and with possession and were able to quickly put the deciding goal home.

#1 Salisbury (Brian Menendez, Jace Menendez) 14

#20 Stevenson 9

The Seagulls ran off six goals from late in the second period into the later stages of the third to pull away from Stevenson.

Trinity (Spud Dunn) 21

Curry 8

After a weather delay, the Bantams were finally able to get their 2019 season underway.  Trinity scored ten straight goals from the closing seconds of the second period into the early moments of the fourth (including a 7-0 advantage in the third period) to get win #1 in game #1.  Spud had one goal on four shots.

Trinity (Spud Dunn) 12

Williams 18

Williams raced out to a 6-1 lead in the first quarter and a 13-5 advantage at the half.  Play was more even after that with Trinity closing out the game with a three-goal run.  Spud took one shot in the game.

#3 Tufts (Luke Kurtz, Kyle Amitay) 19

Keene State 6

Tufts scored eight and six goals in the first and second quarters respectively while Keene managed just two in each of those first two periods.  Scoring was much more tepid in the second half.  Luke was in the starting lineup for the Jumbos.

#3 Tufts (Luke Kurtz, Kyle Amitay) 19

#12 Stevens 17

Stevens’ three-goal run to close out the first period put the Ducks up one after the first 15 minutes of the contest.  Over the next two quarters, Stevens ran their lead out to as many as four goals.  The Jumbos rallied to tie the game up in the third, only to see Stevens get their lead back to three goals.  Tufts’ 5-0 scoring advantage in the fourth quarter turned the game in their favor.  Luke had two ground balls for Tufts

Washington College (Will Oliver) 11

Stockton 16

Washington College led in every statistical category except saves as Stockton’s goalie was a stone wall against the Shoremen’s shooters, stopping 21 of the 32 shots on goal.

USILA Coaches’ Poll:

#1 Salisbury (unanimous)

#3Tufts

Inside Lacrosse Media Poll:

#1 Salisbury (9 of 14 first place votes)

#4 Tufts