Championship Week is here for college lacrosse Don’t get my poll confused with bracketology Who can play both offense and defense at a high level Ten AQs are earned across the D1 landscape Champ Week is an extension of the 18-team NCAA bracket Seventy-four D1 teams get paired down to 18 by May 4 Let’s celebrate these moments and put these programs on a pedestal The NCAA tournament selection show is on Sunday 20) Sacred HeartThe Pioneers (11-2) pulled off a dramatic second-half comeback to secure an 11-7 victory over Manhattan in their MAAC finale They’ve won seven straight and are the number one seed in the MAAC Championships and Michael Moreschi had three points apiece The Pioneers host the MAAC Championships (ESPN+) Coach Jon Basti was my guest on the Quintessential Podcast this week. The Sacred Heart success story is layered with an intense compete level in practice and a culture based on communication and relationships 19) FairfieldFairfield (12-2) — Coach Andy Baxter has done an amazing job winning a dozen games in Connecticut A 14-8 win over Monmouth featured a defensive lockdown holding their opponent scoreless for a span of 28:49 the Stags caused seven turnovers and goalkeeper Owen Hirsch made seven of his 11 saves as Fairfield built an insurmountable 10-3 lead 18) TowsonThe Tigers (9-5) are winners of eight straight games after a 9-7 win over Hofstra on Long Island The Pride’s Ben Niesman won 12 of 17 face-offs The Tigers used a five-goal third quarter to capture the win Goalie Matt Nilan made 14 saves and only gave up three goals in the second half Shawn Nadelen’s team faces Hofstra (8-6) again on Thursday at 4 p.m while Fairfield (12-2) and Drexel (7-7) take the field later that evening at 7 p.m The winners of Thursday’s semifinal contests will face off for the CAA title on Saturday afternoon at Towson 16) RutgersWith their backs against the wall the Scarlet Knights (7-8) found a way to defeat Michigan in an elimination game Led by four goals and two assists from Colin Kurdyla the Scarlet Knights earned an 11-8 win to stay alive The defense held its ninth opponent to single digits Rutgers will return to Ann Arbor for a semifinals matchup against Ohio State at 5 p.m 15) VirginiaForgettable 2025 season is officially over The Cavaliers had their season ended by Duke in overtime on Saturday afternoon The Wahoos finished #43 in scoring offense and #42 in scoring defense Midfield production was lacking all season Their shooting percentage was rated at #51 at 27% Virginia may have player defections into the portal and staff changes 14) Boston UniversityThe Terriers (10-4) are the #2 seed in the Patriot League after a come-from-behind 14-12 win over Colgate The Patriot League tournament can be seen on CBS Sports on Friday 13) GeorgetownI watched the Swamp Dogs (8-4) dispose of Villanova on Friday night in the rain Fulton Bayman was terrific for the Hoyas and Jack Ransom couldn’t miss the net Villanova was their own worst enemy with countless careless turnovers plays Georgetown in the semifinals while Providence takes on Villanova 12) RichmondThe Spiders (11-3) sit at #9 in the RPI with quality wins over Virginia and St their victories over Lehigh and Georgetown are currently outside the Top 20 Close losses to Duke and Cornell are viewed as just losses So I don’t see Richmond landing an at-large bid if they lose in the conference tournament they will be somebody’s first-round nightmare They could potentially land the #8 seed and a home game Richmond will open the A10 Championship against fourth-seeded Massachusetts in the first semifinal High Point plays Saint Joseph’s at 2:00 p.m 11) SyracuseThe Orange (9-5) were outplayed by North Carolina in the Dome and now find themselves living in the danger zone on the bubble The Syracuse offense was stagnant for much of the UNC loss Patterns rely on high wing dodges from Luke Rhoa They have more Canadian personnel than anybody but eschew the pick-and-roll game They don’t have an attackman who can win a matchup The biggest issue is the lack of separation speed on offense But smart opponents just back in and pack it in Dodging success by midfielders was sold separately Goalie Jimmy McCool kept his team in the game as UNC peppered him SSDM Nate Levine is done for the season with a lower-body injury Syracuse allowed Dom Pietramala to take 20 shots How many times this season has Syracuse taken dumb penalties at critical moments The Orange drop into the #4 spot in the ACC and play Notre Dame on Friday in Charlotte 10) HarvardThe Crimson (10-3) squeezed past Brown on Saturday A gritty 11-10 comeback win was essential for at-large survival Holding a head-to-head win over Syracuse may be critical on Selection Sunday Harvard plays Princeton on Friday in Ithaca 9) Ohio StateThe Buckeyes (12-2) had a bye week They needed it after only being able to manufacture five goals through 55 minutes against Michigan Those who prefer final-score-based analysis will complain about their placement in this poll I was impressed with the comeback at Michigan but I can’t just dismiss what went on for the majority of that rivalry game And if Ohio State played Notre Dame tomorrow on a neutral field I just don’t see Ohio State as the fifth-best lacrosse team in the country I’m becoming a little skeptical about the Big Ten as a league in 2025 Ohio State plays Rutgers in the Big Ten semis The Scarlet Knights rank #61 in scoring offense 8) DukeThe Devils (11-4) moved a step closer to the NCAA tournament with a 10-9 overtime win at Virginia He made a flopping save in overtime when the ball bounced up his shorts When you bend your knees and sit down on bouncers They have a Top 5 defense in my estimation but their attack production lags behind the serious title contenders Hard to believe that Denver beat Duke just a few weeks ago by a large margin The Pios’ season ended abruptly on April 25 Along with fellow 2024 quarterfinalists Virginia and Johns Hopkins the premature endings in 2025 will require reflection and adaptation Things change quickly these days in college sports and I expect to see major overhauls at Denver 7) North CarolinaJust when you thought the Heels (10-3) were ready to fold up camp and hike into the woods they delivered a gutsy and energetic road win in the Dome I would estimate that the win and current resume are worthy of a Top 8 seed and home game in the NCAA tournament regardless of what happens on Friday against Duke Dave Pietramala is the national assistant coach of the year The work he’s doing with an inexperienced Carolina close defense has been remarkable The lefty took a whopping 20 shots himself scoring six times with a stunning variety of releases but Carolina got production from James Matan Syracuse finished the game with a 4-0 run to make it tense 6) ArmyThe Black Knights (12-1) dusted Loyola and will now host the Patriot League semis and final Jackson Eicher was once again lethal with his right-handed shot Army has dropped six RPI spots since the committee reveal Colgate is at Lehigh on Tuesday and Navy is at Lafayette in the Patriot League quarterfinals Army and Boston University await the winners An Army loss would drop them into bubble territory They may get bypassed as an at-large team because of a low RPI The Cadets are clinging to a win over North Carolina 5) Penn StateThe Nittany Lions (10-3) held off a late run by Johns Hopkins advancing 13-12 to the league semis and likely locking up a home game in the NCAA tournament JHU took seven of eight faceoffs in the fourth quarter while closing ground late Hopkins started (6-2) and then lost all six Big Ten games The last time JHU did not play a lacrosse game in May was 2020 with the Covid shutdown Penn State will take on Maryland in the semifinals on Thursday at 7:30 p.m 4) Notre DameThe Irish (7-3) repeated scoreless streaks have to be a concern They had a drought of 29:00 minutes against UNC only scored one goal over 32:00 minutes on April 12 versus Virginia and went without a goal for 40:00 in the Dome It happened again on Saturday against Penn trailing 6-1 through the first 28:00 minutes before unleashing a quarter of excellence on their way to a closer-than-expected home win on Senior Day 10-8 final highlighted by Devon McClane and Chris Kavanagh But these types of dry spells forecast doom Give Penn credit for their defensive effort and intensity I expect Quaker defenseman Brendan LaVelle to get selected early in the PLL draft on May 6 (ESPN+) jumping up 4-0 in the first five minutes on their way to a dominating 18-7 home victory and senior Coulter Mackesy now has 160 goals Princeton plays Harvard in the Ivy League semis on Friday night at 6:30 p.m They’ve sewn up a home game in the NCAA tournament first round 2) Maryland‘Be the Best’ (10-2) has losses to Michigan and Rutgers John Tillman’s track record during standard prep weeks (five practice days) is without peer He’s (10-1) in the NCAA quarterfinals and (8-2) in the NCAA semis the Terps have been more vulnerable — they are (2-6) on Memorial Day and (4-2) in the Big Ten final Maryland faces Penn State in Ann Arbor in the Big Ten semis 1) CornellThe Big Red (12-1) got a record-setting day from CJ Kirst and strong outings from their specialists — goalie Wyatt Knust and FOGO Jack Cascadden — in a bland home win over Dartmouth The Big Red host Yale on Friday in the Ivy semis (ESPN+) I’m not sure how Yale will defend CJ Kirst and company Championship Week features 10 automatic qualifiers in leagues all around the nation America EastThe tournament kicks off on Thursday with semifinal action Host Bryant takes on Binghamton in the first matchup at 4 p.m. while UMBC and UAlbany face off in the nightcap at 7 p.m The semifinal winners will go head-to-head for the 2025 conference championship on Saturday at 1 p.m ASUNUtah faces BellarmineJacksonville plays Air Force Semifinals on May 2 and the final on May 4 Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllstars Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Recent guests include players Ryan Goldstein (Cornell) Copyright at Laxallstars.com Grow the Game® The Nashville-based band is currently here in Charlottesville to perform at the Southern Wednesday With a recently released single and a slew of tour dates this spring, Arts Fishing Club has been busy. The Nashville-based band — composed of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Christopher Kessenich, guitarist Chris Dunkley, drummer Jody Lee Oliver and bassist Matthew Chansey —  is currently here in Charlottesville and will perform Feb. 26 at the Southern Café and Music Hall.  Known for songs like “Tupelo Honey” and recent track “Supernatural Groove,” Arts Fishing Club brings a unique indie folk/rock balancing act to exciting live shows honed by years of touring The Cavalier Daily sat down with Kessenich in advance of their upcoming show discussing everything from touring and creative processes to the effect one’s hometown can have on their art.  what did the path to forming Arts Fishing Club look like?  It was the first kind of band that I’d ever really been in and wrote an EP and recorded it in Nashville I started just meeting other artists around Nashville and just kind of pushing and just pushing and pushing — there’s been different iterations of the band.  How long have you guys been this iteration We’ve been together for three years now.  we played a brewery outside of town and one person showed up There's a song that we released recently called Blue Ridge Skyline that's all about that experience I talk about how I got a funny feeling [that] we'll look back at all these empty rooms and we'll laugh —  because there's nothing sweeter than doing this.  and has that had any kind of influence on you musically and people in Wisconsin are insanely friendly It's a very open and giving the shirt off the back and I think people feel very comfortable with us pretty quickly And that is the type of writing that I'm interested in What does the songwriting process look like for you guys?  So I would say the way that I write is I start on guitar and I just and that's where we'll arrange and mix and match Are other band members bringing their own influences to the table?  He's brought a lot of soul and groove elements to the band that him and I really connect on as well as spicing things up and making chords more interesting as opposed to just being straightforward.  “Supernatural Groove,” signify any shift in creative direction Or is it a continuation of a consistent artistic period?  “Rothko Sky,” is very cohesive in its sound I think it's just a bit more mature of a sound Which are the types of shows that I like to see live.  Just the fact that a van becomes your apartment that you share with four guys essentially for a month on or two months on end and every day you have to wake up and rinse and repeat and just drive in brand new markets that we had never played But those have kind of been few and far between The more and more shows that we're playing Are there any silver linings you take from those unexpected experiences?  the music industry is the single most humbling entity that I've ever experienced in my entire life And there's a part of me that actually really loves that — I think it forces you to stay grounded There is an element when it is really tough those are the moments that I'm most proud of What can audience members expect out of an Arts Fishing Club live show We do a great job of also bringing a depth to the show You get a lot of flavors when you come to our shows where are you hoping to take the band this year and in the future?  We're just trying to really lay the groundwork on a national level I set a big goal for us to headline Red Rocks in three years It is a big goal — but it's also attainable and that's been one of the most fun things about music I have this undying belief that anyone can kind of do whatever they want and that the biggest thing in their life holding them back is probably themselves but ultimately it's buying into the doubts that other people have there are things that are out of people's control at times — but it just seems like people from every way Indieheads is one of many Contracted Independent Organizations at the University dedicated to music though it stands out to students for many reasons Indieheads President Brian Tafazoli describes his experience and involvement in Indieheads over the years as well as the impact that the organization has had on his personal and musical development Robust lacrosse crowds showed up at Maryland There was no shortage of drama and upsets this weekend A theme will emerge in the 2025 conference and NCAA tournaments I used to identify the senior class of contending teams because I felt like you could follow the seniors to championship weekend Goaltending makes the difference in championship games Or face-offs may prove to be the tipping point in the tournament as the group of title contenders looks to be ten deep 20) Sacred HeartThe Pioneers (10-2) have gone to overtime four times this season finding a way to win three of those nail-biters They are riding a six-game winning streak after beating Mount St MAACtion is always a highlight of champ week coach Jon Basti recommends Capone’s Pizza in Branford or North Branford 19) Saint Joseph’sThe Hawks (9-4) dropped a shocker to High Point Hawk Hill will be buzzing as the Spiders travel to Philadelphia on Friday at 4pm Richie LaCalandra has 24 of the Hawks’ 90 assists Ben Dutton has scored 41 goals and Mark Watters is (24,0) 18) UMassThe Minutemen (9-4) lost to Richmond in a one-sided 14-5 affair Hobart comes to Amherst on Friday in an elimination game 17) TowsonThe Tigers are (8-5) after starting the season (0-4) They have OT wins over Delaware and Stony Brook Towson took care of Fairfield on Saturday and will host the CAA tournament Ronan Fitzpatrick has scored 30 goals and Mikey Weisshaar has 53 points Towson goalies have combined for a 45% save percentage while opponents are shooting 31% 16) GeorgetownA week after scoring just three goals in a loss to Denver Jack Ransom scored six times and Aidan Carroll added five goals The Big East feels wide open after Providence defeated Denver for the first time in program history Big East StandingsVillanova 4-0Georgetown 3-1Providence 2-2Denver 2-2Marquette 1-3St Upcoming games this week include Villanova vs The Big East tournament during champ week is hosted by Denver Somebody will emerge with the AQ and advance into the bracket of 18 15) VirginiaThe Cavaliers must run the table to secure an NCAA bid and that starts with defeating Duke on Saturday The winner of Duke–UVA gets an invite to the ACC tournament Virginia handled Lafayette by five on Senior Day Noah Chizmar is a great story for the Cavaliers Paul’s in north Baltimore chose to walk on at UVA after getting accepted to the school without help from the lacrosse coaches he’s become a mainstay in the lineup and is now a senior captain and he competes with a spirit of gratitude 14) Boston UniversityThe Terriers (9-4) earned a 12-7 victory over Lehigh highlighted by 23 saves from Will Barnes and four goals from Jimmy Kohr and a victory over Colgate on Friday night would lock up the #2 seed in the Patriot League tournament Patriot League StandingsArmy 6-1Boston University 5-2Lehigh 4-3Colgate 4-3Lafayette 4-3Loyola 3-4Navy 3-4Bucknell 2-5Holy Cross 1-7 The Wolverines (7-6) were up 8-5 with 5:40 to play and lost 10-8 Michigan blew a fourth-quarter lead at home to their archrival and instead of winning the Big Ten and earning a bye in the league tournament Any chance of an at-large NCAA tournament bid was likely squandered during the collapse 12) RichmondThe Spiders (10-3) have won five straight Their 14-5 win against UMass was a defensive flex holding the Minutemen to just 22 total shots and 13 on goal Richmond travels to Saint Joseph’s on Friday The Spider defense ranks #5 in scoring defense nationally the Crimson (9-3) got dusted by Cornell 20-12 Harvard drops to the NCAA tournament bubble and will need more wins to feel comfortable The Crimson face Brown to close out their regular season Their offense has been ranked in the top five in scoring for most of the spring Holding head-to-head wins over Syracuse and Michigan may prove critical on Selection Sunday 10) Ohio StateThe Bucks (12-2) started the season with no preseason All-Americans and no Top 50 players Goalie Caleb Fyock and defenseman Bobby Van Buren are now part of the Tewaaraton Top 25 group They trailed Michigan 8-5 with less than six minutes to play and somehow left Ann Arbor with a 10-8 victory It’s their first Big Ten regular season title The Big Ten semifinals and final will be played at Michigan 9) North CarolinaThe Heels (9-3) won four of the first five draws and scored four times while holding Notre Dame to zero shots on goal in the first quarter at Dorrance Field That dominance quickly evaporated into a 12-6 loss Dom Pietramala and Owen Duffy shot a combined 1 for 15 Carolina plays at Syracuse on Saturday at 5pm (ACCN) Defensive coordinator David Pietramala has his young close defense ranked #4 in scoring defense—quite an accomplishment considering the inexperience down low The offense has struggled to hit double digits in their last two outings 8) SyracuseThe Orange (9-4) fell behind 4-0 in Durham on their way to a sobering 11-7 road defeat Syracuse just isn’t the same team outdoors—they’ve lost three of four this spring outside Lack of offensive depth was evident as Owen Hiltz looked less than 100% healthy Finn Thomson returned and ran a few shifts Two offsides calls in the first half were buzz kills but they also scored in transition—something Syracuse couldn’t duplicate North Carolina visits the Dome on Saturday at 5pm (ACCN) 7) DukeThe Devils (10-4) changed the trajectory of their season with an 11-7 home win over Syracuse Sunny skies and warmer temperatures greeted a packed house at Koskinen as the Devils jumped out to a 4-0 lead Eric Malever had a monster day with five goals but Duke rattled off six straight to take control from Episcopal in Virginia—the same school as Army’s Jackson Eicher—made 13 saves and Mac Christmas rifled one from 15 yards as the rope unit contributed This was a giant step in the right direction and St Joe’s offer legitimate value on Selection Sunday Duke has struggled in clearing and on man-down but those issues disappeared against Syracuse Duke challenges Virginia on Saturday at 3pm on ACC Network 6) ArmyThe Black Knights (11-1) saw their RPI drop to #11 and their street cred take a hit as UNC lost to Notre Dame The #1 ranked scoring defense is slow to slide and leaves personnel on the island What will the committee do with Army if they don’t win the Patriot League AQ 5) Penn StateThe Nittany Lions (9-3) abused the Rutgers ten-man ride jumping out to a 10-3 halftime lead on Friday night Goalie Jack Fracyon hit the empty net from 62 yards out—a one-hopper—and scored the first goalie goal for Penn State since 2008 The senior finished with 13 saves and is trending in the right direction having eclipsed the 600-save mark on Saturday Penn State’s 12-4 win further illustrated just how much Rutgers struggles to score Big Ten teams by scoring offense:Ohio State – 13Michigan – 42Maryland – 37Penn State – 14Rutgers – 57Johns Hopkins – 54 Penn State has had an incredibly successful 2024-25 athletics year with the wrestling team and women’s volleyball both capturing NCAA titles The men’s hockey team made the Frozen Four and the football team was a playoff semifinalist after beating SMU and Boise State in the first two rounds 4) Notre DameThe Irish (7-3) turned a 4-0 deficit into a 12-6 win on Tobacco Road alerting the nation that Notre Dame may be on an upward swing Chris Kavanagh’s compete level was on full display Jordan Faison is inching back to being 100% Kavanagh now has 140 career goals and Jake Taylor is at 124—both ranking top five all-time in South Bend Penn travels to Arlotta on Saturday at 2pm (ESPNU) 3) PrincetonThe Tigers (10-2) were down three at halftime to Penn but went on a 5-0 run to defeat the Quakers 12-8 Penn shot 1-for-14 in the second half and committed 11 turnovers Peter Buonanno had four points for Princeton and Mackesy combined to shoot just 2-for-17 Yale visits Princeton this Saturday at noon on ESPNU The Tigers are ranked #62 in face-off percentage which will be worth watching in both the Ivy League and NCAA tournaments 2) MarylandI was not overly impressed with ‘Be the Best’ (10-2) on Friday night as they disposed of Johns Hopkins 11-8 in front of a raucous crowd The Terps weren’t bad—just not exceptional The Jays won the majority of the face-offs Terp Braden Erksa finished with five points Maryland ranks #63 in ground balls per game—not stellar—yet out-ground balled Hopkins by plus 11 that’s dominance of non face-off ground balls Hopkins won 14 draws and had only 16 ground balls for the game I’ve never seen such a low total—that had to be a mistake in the stats Blue Jays didn’t emerge from any piles with the ball 1) CornellThe Big Red (11-1) torched Harvard scoring 20 goals in Cambridge and clinching the host spot in the Ivy League tournament CJ Kirst tied Payton Cormier for the most career goals all-time at 224 Cornell used a 5-1 first quarter and a 5-1 run in the fourth to ice the Crimson They were plus-15 in face-offs and shot 20-for-41 Willem Firth scored four times and Ryan Goldstein had six points Jack Cascadden had 14 ground balls and went 23-for-29 at the face-off dot Big Green at Big Red on Saturday—a tricky game for the color blind he NCAA Tournament Selection Show is on Sunday Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Jeri Kessenich has made her mark on Helen DeVos Children's Hospital and the number of kids that she's taking care of is in the tens of thousands," explained Dr president of Helen DeVos Children's Hospital "There's a lot of leaders here that are in their position and leading because Jeri was here." As much praise as everyone here would heap on her "I am loyal to the end to Helen DeVos Children's Hospital." thousands of patients and hundreds of colleagues her work isn't limited to the walls of the building in downtown Grand Rapids She has partnered with others in the hospital for two different nonprofits benefiting children in Haiti They tackle the challenges of providing healthcare in a resource-limited country "My goal was to help physicians and nurses in the country of Haiti learn to take care of children so that they wouldn't need help from other countries." She helped found the "Power of Education Foundation" in 2010 'Do not start a school unless I can put a clinic there because kids are not going to learn if they don't have food and they don't have health care,'" she shared "What we found is the pass rate for those kids is about 99% And the average pass rate in Haiti is about 50% So the school has done amazing work educationally and a lot of it has to do with the fact that the kids were just healthier." Kessenich's twice-a-year visits to Haiti have been put on hold because of both COVID and the civil unrest Her pride for both her work in Haiti and the hospital is evident So that's really how Haiti has been for me." it is a lot of work and she's being recognized for it Kessenich was nominated and selected as FOX 17's Pay it Forward Spotlight Award winner for July "She has amazing commitment to the patients she cares for her colleagues that she works with and the families of the patients that she works with." Next month's Spotlight category is First Responders Know someone who should be our next Pay it Forward Spotlight Award winner? Nominate them here Follow FOX 17: Facebook - X (formerly Twitter) - Instagram - YouTube Rivalry lacrosse games dot the menu this week and next Eleven teams are in the hunt for an NCAA tournament seed The questions are simple—who can keep improving Who can find that extra gear when the calendar flips to May eleven teams appear to be in the mix (in my opinion) PrincetonMarylandPenn StateCornellNorth CarolinaArmyHarvardSyracuseNotre DameOhio StateDuke Perhaps Michigan can leapfrog into the conversation with two more wins Duke holding head-to-head wins over Saint Joe’s and Richmond is critical three of the above will fall out of the top eight and end up with road games in the first round someone on this list may be bumped entirely from the at-large picture 20) Sacred HeartPioneers (9-2) have won five straight Canisius and Siena are front and center for the league AQ Graduate goalie Alex Pazienza has made over 500 career saves The bouncy righty is stopping shots at a rate north of 57% and Dartmouth have Yale and coach Andy Shay in the Ivy League tournament mix A 21-12 win over the Big Green marked a step in the right direction in a season filled with injuries Don’t forget about Chris Lyons and Leo Johnson The Bulldogs finish the regular season with Hofstra 18) RutgersScarlet Knights (6-7) missed the net 13 times in the first 30 minutes It’s hard to believe this squad beat Maryland but the 24 turnovers and lack of separation quickness on offense prove fatal 17) UMassMinutemen are on the verge of a ten-win season (9-3) for coach Greg Cannella the televised 7-3 win at Georgetown was tough on the eyes Pios (6-5) mixed zone and man-to-man defense Noah Manning had four goals for coach Matt Brown It’s hard to trust anybody in the Big East this year 15) FairfieldStags (11-1) picked up a giant win at Delaware as Will Consoli had seven points and goalie Owen Hirsch made 16 saves Fairfield heads on the road to face Towson this week 14) Saint Joseph’sHawks (9-3) have won nine of their last ten games Richie LaCalandra put up eight points and Ben Dutton scored five times 13) RichmondSpiders (9-3) stung High Point 11-6 on Senior Day to improve to (3-0) in the A10 A critical game with UMass is next on the calendar and Richmond are all having stellar seasons The A10 winner is a nasty draw in the round of 16 12) MichiganWolverines (7-5) were tied 3-3 at halftime in a defensive battle and went over 23 minutes without a goal Ryan Cohen pumped one past the wide-stanced RU goalie Cardin Stoller for an 8-6 lead with 8:00 to play Not impressed with Big Ten offenses right now Michigan (3-1) in conference currently sits in first place with OSU The rivalry game in Ann Arbor with Ohio State is always theatre 11) DukeDevils (9-4) couldn’t find the net in an 8-7 loss to UNC When the starting attack combines for three points and scoring just two goals over the final 30 minutes is a recipe for disaster The defense was excellent—holding Carolina to eight goals is a winning effort Junior FOGO Luke Engelke has exceeded expectations in Durham Close defender Charlie Johnson has helped lessen the blow of losing Kenny Brower Johnson covered Brennan O’Neill daily on the scout team last spring Devils entertain Syracuse on Saturday at 2pm (ACCN) Duke could use another quality win to elevate off the bubble 10) Penn StatePenn State (8-3) dominated Hopkins 10-4 as Matt Traynor poured in seven goals with the Jays having now lost four straight in Big Ten play The Nittany Lions rank #3 in both RPI and strength of schedule Rutgers and Penn State meet on Good Friday 9) HarvardCrimson (9-2) had too much firepower for Penn as Jack Speidell continued his magical ways with five goals and lines up on the wing when they double pole face-offs Ray Dearth and Owen Guest are two underrated SSDMs for coach Gerry Byrne Harvard plays a lot of defense because they win under 40% of their draws but they create possessions with a relentless ride A Big Red win means they host the Ivy Tournament A Harvard victory could trigger a party in the North End and a three-way tie with Princeton and Cornell 8) Notre DameA must-win against Virginia gives the Irish a 6-3 record and an RPI of #9 A third-quarter surge and a seven-goal run made the difference Ten different players recorded a point in the much-needed 12-7 win that bolstered their otherwise mediocre resume Four players are flying under the radar this season Defender Nate Schwitzenberg has been rock solid in his first year as a starter Freshman midfielder Matt Jeffery looks like a future star Short-stick Christian Alacqua has made major strides in 2025 and LSM Will Donovan is winning his matchup every week Golden Domers travel to North Carolina on April 19 (ESPNU) 7) Ohio StateThe Buckeyes’ 11-game win streak came to an end in a 13-8 loss to Maryland Ohio State’s first midfield was underwhelming and a strength of schedule of #19 shows some weak spots in their slate The Buckeyes play Michigan next in Ann Arbor or they’ll be sweating it out on Selection Sunday 6) North CarolinaHeels (9-2) took a gritty 8-7 win over Duke in a defensive battle Painting Durham Carolina blue is always a special moment Injury concerns around Owen Daly and Dom Pietramala do temper the optimism North Carolina faces Notre Dame on Saturday at noon on ESPNU Anish Shroff and Paul Carcaterra will be on the call from Dorrance Field 5) ArmyBlack Knights tied it up 4-4 at the buzzer before halftime on a soft That momentum carried into the third quarter Navy started to take on water after giving up five in a row but they righted the ship and were down just 8-6 to begin the fourth Army leaves defenders on an island with slow-to-slide mechanics then took a 9-8 lead on a sneak by Mac Haley after a late Army defensive rotation This game always delivers epic ground ball battles Navy led 10-9 with 6:00 remaining after midfielder Jack Flaherty scored while falling down the right alley Army midfielder Evan Plunkett scored on a rollback to make it 11-10 then struck again off the invert to tie the game at 11 with 1:23 remaining and Army scored on a fast break just as the clock hit zero but Dan Daly made a point-blank save on a high-to-high sneak attempt from Plunkett but their drawn-up play fizzled into a weak-angle shot Jackson Eicher won it by bulldozing his way right-handed up the hash Saluting all the men who stepped into the arena and battled Army’s (10-1) hopes for the Patriot League AQ and an at-large bid both remain intact 4) SyracuseSyracuse (9-3) held Notre Dame scoreless for 39:53 last week RIT transfer Michael Grace effectively covered Jake Taylor in that game so surrendering 17 goals to Cornell a week later was a massive step in the wrong direction Shot selection on offense wasn’t up to par Syracuse takes the first available shot instead of hunting the best one Coverage of CJ Kirst and Ryan Goldstein struggled with a slide-happy scheme The Orange seemed to unravel in the cold rain and continue to struggle outside the cozy Dome Syracuse is at Duke on Saturday at 2pm (ACCN) I’ll be in Durham with Chris Cotter for this one 3) Maryland‘Be the Best’ (9-2) silenced Ohio State in Columbus Maryland trailed 2-1 midway through the first quarter then sparked an 8-1 run to take a 9-3 halftime lead Maryland bench scoring remains non-existent Maryland hosts Johns Hopkins on Friday night at 8pm on BTN with Joe Beninati and Mark Dixon six floors above the action LSM Michael Bath jumps off the screen for his impact in the middle of the field a Princeton legacy whose dad Kit played hoops for PU in 1991 Coach Matt Madalon and staff continue to produce winning results 1) CornellBig Red (10-1) hit the ten-win mark after putting up 17 goals against Syracuse on Long Island CJ Kirst and Ryan Goldstein ran circles around the Orange defense with patience and precision Goalie Wyatt Knust was razor sharp early while building an 8-2 lead Cornell has nine Long Island public school players on the roster You have to respect the 16 goals per game this offense is averaging Sophomore Ryan Goldstein is averaging three assists per game. The X attackman and Cornell legacy joined me on the podcast this week. Cornell did not qualify for the NCAA tournament in 2024 They’ve made champ weekend appearances in 2009 This senior class played in that 2022 title game The 160-year-old program owns NCAA titles in 1971 The men’s and women’s NCAA lacrosse championships will be held at Gillette Stadium on Memorial Day weekend Men’s Quarterfinals are set for Hofstra and Navy on May 17 and 18 and it looks like those matchups will be can’t-miss games in 2025 The bracket will feature ten automatic qualifiers and eight at-large selections The top eight seeds will host first-round games in the round of sixteen Recent guests include current players Dom Pietramala (UNC) Quint Kessenich breaks down the latest Top 20 rankings as the 2025 college lacrosse season takes shape With early-season results shaking up the landscape this week’s list highlights key performances Hens beat Utah 13-12 in dramatic fashion in Salt Lake City including the game-winner with under a minute to play It was the first ranked win for Delaware since May 5 at #2 Georgetown in the NCAA Tournament first round An 11-10 loss to neighbor Johns Hopkins at home on a Tuesday night was a missed opportunity Towson played like a team in its first game—with six failed clears and 21 turnovers I was impressed with their grit and willingness to play for 60 minutes after trailing 8-4 who went (4,2) in a scrimmage against Bucknell Mikey Weishaar (shot 2 of 8) was easy to pick out on the streaming feed Towson will have to come up with creative ways to free up the talented playmaker The Tigers are in Syracuse on February 10 for some Monday Madness The Friars (2-0) used a 6-2 fourth quarter to top Rhode Island rival Bryant 15-12 on Saturday Ryan Bell (1,6) and Parker Kennedy (3,0) paced the offense Bell moved into second place on the Friars’ all-time scoring list with 185 points (52 goals Big game alert as the Friars host Harvard on Saturday in the Chowder Pot The Hoyas dominated possession early against Hopkins yet trailed 6-3 at halftime An 11-6 setback should yield upgrades to the transition defense the Swamp Dogs lack dodgers and lefties and will have to find solutions to win a seventh consecutive Big East title Hoyas turn their attention to Penn this week in what has been a terrific series The Big Ten is having a February to forget A lopsided defeat in Chapel Hill was a wake-up call for Big Blue UM didn’t handle defensive pressure well and was sloppy with the ball (unforced or weak turnovers) Michigan’s defense never looked comfortable chasing Owen Daly and his UNC teammates around Developing an identity on both sides of the ball will take time in Ann Arbor Crimson debut on February 15 at Providence The only time you speak when playing chess is to say checkmate The Pios took care of business at Air Force in Colorado Springs winning 14-8 to extend their series lead to (26-3) all-time against the Falcons Pios shot 9 of 16 in the first half as AF didn’t make a save until the third quarter and Mic Kelly—very much a PLL prospect—was once again impactful Mountain powerhouses Utah and Denver play Saturday in Peter Barton Stadium A 6-0 first quarter silenced UMass in the Cadets’ 16-9 road win in Amherst Jack Pappendick and Luke Grayum had three goals apiece Goalie Buck Cunningham relieved Patrick Jameison at halftime A 15-6 dominating win over Michigan is a step in the right direction for a Carolina team looking to win its way into the Top Ten Owen Duffy and Dom Pietramala had four goals apiece Transfer goalie Michael Gianforcaro (Princeton) made 12 saves and transfer SSDM Andrew O’Berry (Harvard) had four ground balls and three caused turnovers UNC and Stony Brook play on Friday night at 6 p.m Football coach Bill Belichick has been recruiting two-sport athletes similar to the model he witnessed growing up at the Naval Academy when the Midshipmen were dominant on the lacrosse field using football players in the late 1960s Belichick is a positive development for Tar Heel lacrosse playing the nation’s most challenging non-conference schedule They fell in the Ivy League final to Princeton in Ithaca and did not make the NCAA Tournament The Terps needed OT to take down a pesky Loyola squad on Cold Spring Lane in Baltimore who effectively zoned the first midfield line and harassed the second group with a man-to-man scheme An 8-7 ugly final featured just two Terp goals through 45 minutes Eric Spanos scored four of the eight goals was (7-8) in 2024 and graduated 80% of its offense The Nittany Lions’ defense has been stingy in wins against Colgate and in Sunday’s 15-5 road victory at Villanova Matt Traynor and Kyle Lehman form a very potent 1-2 punch Goalie Jack Fracyon was 67% on the icy surface Princeton and Penn State meet on Saturday in a good one The Jays avoided Tuesday turmoil by hanging on to win 11-10 at Towson they couldn’t easily escape into the night and Hunter Chauvette continues to dazzle with his sidewinding lefty release The biggest goal of the game was put in by FOGO Logan Callahan But JHU shot 6 for 11 in the first 30 minutes while Georgetown only connected on 3 of 24 was a positive outing for goalie Luke Staudt and midfielder Matt Collison Snow drifts with pellets sat in the west end zone as ice skaters circled endlessly on the temporary rink in the parking lot Hopkins is riding more aggressively in 2025 After the clearing meltdown in the 2024 quarterfinal loss to Virginia The settled offensive sets feature wicked two-man games so Towson elected to back off and play zone defense The Blue Jay zone offense will ultimately improve—they have high-IQ players with sharp sticks and enough outside bombers to open up the crease when playing legit Top 10 defenses like Virginia and Notre Dame—can the Jays draw slides This is why they’ll rely heavily on two-man games I also wonder if they have a true X attackman And will JHU get any real production from the third attack spot how long can they continue to switch on all picks and show little care for matchups “We Want More” visits Loyola on Saturday (ESPN+) How’s Loyola going to score against Johns Hopkins Jury is out on what these three wins will mean come May Hopkins has a full week of practice beginning on Monday to clean up the mistakes of three games Improvement is most critical in February and March FOGO Andrew McMeekin may be one of the most important players in the country because he can create scoring chances and also protect the defense McMeekin went 55% at the dot last spring with eight goals—the second-most for a FOGO nationally The Ivy champs are coming off an (11-5) season with losses to Maryland (twice) in which the Tiger defense gave up an average of 14.8 goals per loss That defense parted with defender Pace Billings and goalie Michael Gianforcaro to the grad transfer portal Tigers begin with Penn State in a critical Ivy-Big Ten showdown A 19-9 opening day win over Colgate featured six goals from Truit Sunderland Thirty-nine degrees and raining didn’t deter 1,923 fans from banging on the Klöckner aluminum bleachers Griffin Schutz and Jack Walshe recorded hat tricks LSM Ben Wayer went (2,1) on seven shots with nine ground balls and two caused turnovers The relentless tempo was sparked by 56 UVA ground balls Goalies Kyle Morris and Matt Nunes split halves The Ivies don’t get started until February 15 and Denver before Ivy League lacrosse action The goalie position is critical for Cornell this spring Cornell tangles with Lehigh (0-2) to kick off its season #HHH led 10-1 at halftime in a 13-5 win over Vermont on Friday night Orange shooting was muffled by Catamount goalie Ryan Daly Looks like both Joey Spallina and Owen Hiltz lost about 15 pounds SU appears to be stronger at close defense with transfer Michael Grace and a healthy Riley Figuerias Spots #4 through #12 are interchangeable until we have more data and tape SU defender Billy Dwan III was my guest last week on the Quintessential Podcast. Syracuse squares off with Towson on Monday at 5 p.m Rudy’s lacrosse opener is against Cleveland State on Wednesday Congrats to UMass-Lowell for their first win in over 1,014 calendar days High Point coach John Crawley picks up his first D1 victory And a salute to Iona for logging their first D1 win against Hampton on Sunday Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars Please support our sponsors and share the poll with your friends and UMass are all leaning heavily on their back line Cornell’s win over Princeton was the most significant result of the week Spring break is a time to put in extra work Find an hour each day outside of practice to sharpen your skills My MAAC favorite is (5-2) with wins over St An inexplicable league loss to Canisius was sobering but head coach Jon Basti is doing great work in Connecticut The Pioneers never seem unhinged in one-goal games and will travel to Merrimack next The Hawks (5-2) are riding a five-game win streak and UMass all looking like serious contenders defender Levi Verch has racked up (1,4) with 48 ground balls and 16 caused turnovers—wow He’s going to be a first-round pick in the PLL Draft The Big Green (6-1) are one of the most improved programs in Division I under head coach Sean Kirwan give Dartmouth its longest winning streak in 20 years Colin McGill led the charge with five goals The Minutemen lost their opener against Army but have since held six straight opponents to under 10 goals while the starting defense of Matt Petitto and Kyle Swanson has positioned UMass as a legitimate NCAA tournament contender Two games this week—UMass-Lowell and Brown The Quakers (4-3) held off Brown 9-8 in a game they had to have but big goalie and PLL prospect Emmett Carroll made 15 saves to secure the win Ben Smith led the scoring effort with three goals Joe’s on Tuesday and Dartmouth on March 21 The Stags (8-0) steamrolled Hampton and continue to impress Their progression from (2-9) in 2021 to (7-7) in 2022 and (8-7) in 2024 shows steady improvement LSM Julian Radossich is a menace with the pole Head coach Andy Baxter was my guest this week on the Quintessential Podcast. The Spiders (5-3) have played an insane non-conference schedule with their three losses coming against Duke in double overtime The double OT loss at home to Duke stings because Richmond had chances to win and we were watching on ESPN+ in the Klöckner booth prior to UVA and Maryland Joe Sheridan had a strong day for Richmond The Swamp Dogs (5-2) looked sluggish in a 17-10 win over High Point after a bye weekend as the Hoyas pulled away by winning the fourth quarter 6-0 Kevin Miller and Aidan Carroll both had five-point days Richmond and Georgetown play this week in what could be considered an NCAA at-large survival game and Villanova all have current RPIs outside the Top 20 Georgetown’s wins have come against teams with a combined record of (11-24) The Crimson are rolling at (5-1) after defeating Yale 14-11 Harvard jumped out to a 7-2 lead after 15 minutes beating its rival for the first time since 2017 Sam King must be considered a Tewaaraton top-five caliber player so it’s impressive they’re still averaging 15 goals per game I’ve caught portions of their games on ESPN+ and they’re playing with their hair on fire A big test is up next as Harvard travels to Princeton on Saturday The Devils survived in sudden death overtime at Richmond to improve to (8-1) Aidan McGuire took a nifty flip off an overtime faceoff ground ball and went coast to coast for the victory—a crucial win for Duke The Devils also banked a win earlier in the week against Providence Great to see Eric Malever healthy and back in career form with 42 points while Max Sloat has contributed 27 points from the midfield The Devils could play 17 games prior to Selection Sunday which is four more than Notre Dame is likely to play Shouldn’t all teams have a similar number of games for proper tournament selection A methodical Saturday night win at Navy puts the Jays at (6-2) concluding the non-league portion of their schedule Navy is dealing with multiple injuries to its FOGO unit and the possession advantage was too much to overcome including a costly late offsides call with the game in the balance but the JHU on-ball defense got exposed on a few ISOs The leading storyline from Saturday night was that Hopkins made a goalie change The righty made 14 saves while wearing #87 The Irish (4-2) played 46 minutes of defense against Ohio State The Buckeyes had 38 possessions and put 30 shots on goal while Notre Dame’s offense has averaged just 10 goals per game over the last three contests (Georgetown All three of those teams play first-class defense—honestly it’s hard to find three better schematic defenses the Irish are averaging just 4.3 assists per game compared to 9.4 per game in 2024 They’re still searching for the right personnel on attack with the third attack spot continuing to underdeliver The Irish must learn to play complementary lacrosse understanding when to push tempo and when to slow it down to give their defense a breather Bad shot selection early in the shot clock has been a theme Back-to-back losses had folks in South Bend a little feisty this week but a 19-7 emphatic win over Michigan was the largest margin of victory in series history Chris Kavanagh delivered a seven-point performance and Will Maheras each finished with two goals Veteran FOGO Will Lynch won 13-of-16 face-offs and athletic freshman Matt Jeffrey scored his first career goal and I really struggle with this—playing fewer games was costly for the program in 2022 the Buckeyes have banked wins over Virginia A Sunday matinee in the Mile High City was tied 2-2 after the first quarter but a 6-1 Buckeye run before halftime proved to be the difference They nursed the lead the rest of the way in a game that was chippy Defender Cullen Brown is quietly stockpiling caused turnovers and righty shooter Alex Marinier had another big day The 15-11 road win was Ohio State’s first in Denver in 16 years The Buckeyes travel to Penn State on Sunday night for a Big Ten matchup on BTN #HHH (5-2) plays Manhattan on Tuesday and Colgate this weekend Last year’s game against Colgate featured 18 penalties and was completely out of control—expect tempo and scoring in this one the Heels (5-1) jumped out to a 7-3 lead on Jacksonville after the first quarter as was Owen Duffy’s shot-making ability—he had five goals before intermission and finished with eight points UNC kept Dom Pietramala in the game up 13 goals with 4:00 to play Anybody else remember Dylan Molloy at Brown in the NCAA quarters Jacksonville is now banished to chasing the ASUN AQ after the 20-7 setback FOGO Brady Wambach (68%) has been a weapon for head coach Joe Breschi UNC plays High Point on the road on Friday The Heels still have dates with Army and the ACC quartet of Duke Carolina may be the beneficiary of Virginia’s off year The Cadets (7-0) throttled Lehigh 13-4 despite missing FOGO Will Colletti Army won just 4-of-17 draws yet still outshot Lehigh by a wide margin while defenseman AJ Pilate added a left-handed wraparound goal Boston University visits Michie Stadium on Saturday Army has the #1 ranked scoring defense but an SOS of #37 The only top-ten test left on the schedule is against North Carolina The Nittany Lions (6-1) defeated Robert Morris 22-8 on Wednesday using a 6-0 second-quarter run to pull away FOGO Colby Baldwin (63%) has been a bright spot and Penn State is nearly +10 per game in ground balls Matt Traynor has 23 points through five games but hasn’t dressed in the last two Ohio State travels to Happy Valley on Sunday for a Big Ten showdown on BTN spending most of the game playing catch-up as the defense struggled to get stops Princeton is facing off at just 35% on the season leading to a significant disadvantage in shots but their shooting efficiency has helped offset the pain of fewer possessions This is a ticking time bomb—Princeton is vulnerable at the face-off dot I do enjoy watching them play offense with Coulter Mackesy Harvard faces Princeton in New Jersey on Saturday in what could be a 30-goal game The Big Red (5-1) win over Princeton is the first step toward hosting the Ivy League Tournament and Penn State are an interchangeable trio in the rankings CJ Kirst became the all-time leading goal scorer in school history but his production speaks for itself—he had five goals on 12 shots in the 15-10 victory Cornell was +5 on face-offs and took 51 shots applying constant pressure and getting quality looks Willem Firth continues to find space on the EMO Big Red turns their attention to Yale this week The Terps (7-0) used a 5-0 start and a 5-0 finish to capture the 99th meeting with rival Virginia A 7-6 lead ballooned into the final margin Maryland has delivered a 4-0 run in nearly every game this spring The second quarter and early third were concerning but midfield production and goaltender Logan McNaney were the stars many of them clean catches that triggered transition Maryland has a top-five rated scoring defense and is exceptional at the LSM spot with AJ Larkin and Jack McDonald This team is the king of restarts—they win the whistle They are tops in clearing percentage and near the bottom in riding you must run from defense to offense and pin their midfield personnel on defense Scoring in transition or early offense is the key The Cavs are (5-8) dating back to last year Having called their games against Richmond I’ve seen subtle improvements in their clearing Midfield production in settled sets has been sporadic their portal pickups have been non-factors and their freshman class is ravaged with injuries Sitting at (3-4) before ACC play is scary territory Drama in Charlottesville will test their “Cultural Thursdays.” The Terps have lost three straight to the Wolverines Recent guests include current players Alex Marinier (Ohio State) This week’s catalog is similar to a Long Island diner menu—abundant D1 has four unbeaten teams at the conclusion of the winter portion of the schedule: Maryland it’s fair to say that the squads of 2025 have work to do Most are building a foundation that can yield growth They are playing faster in the middle of the field with a 10-man ride Freshman William Goers has been a revelation Injuries to FOGOs were the theme in the BU victory Joey Bucci won 6 of his first 11 face-offs They are a valuable and rare breed for sure Giving Navy the slight nod here over UMass (4-1) Coach Greg Cannella’s squad has beaten Dartmouth (3-1) The Minutemen lost their opener to Army but have wins over Quinnipiac The Big Green are no longer a free square in the Ivy League Feels like Dartmouth and Harvard may displace Yale and Penn in the standings Down 6-1 after the first quarter and losing the third quarter 4-1 told the tale of domination Injuries to multiple FOGOs set the table for an uphill climb they led 4-2 at Duke on the grass before losing 11-6 Penn is offensively challenged and not winning face-offs The Quakers have wins over Albany and Delaware with losses to GT The Stags’ (5-0) start is one of the biggest storylines of 2025 and goalie Owen Hirsch (74%) have driven Andy Baxter’s team into the limelight Clearly on a roll after crushing Virginia on home soil Ohio State regressed a bit in a 7-5 win over Bryant The Bucks have risen from the ashes after an opening-day loss to Utah What would their record be if they played Penn’s schedule The Bucks are in South Bend on Saturday (ESPN+) for a classic Midwest rivalry game Wolverines (3-2) hammered Canisius on Tuesday in Ann Arbor Goalie Hunter Taylor falls through the cracks when people discuss top goalies He makes the saves he’s supposed to and steals one or two a game The Big Ten has six quality stoppers: Jack Fracyon Michigan struggled at the faceoff dot but used its 10-man ride to flip possessions back UMich has a pair of losses to Duke and UNC Big Blue faces off with Harvard this weekend A 6-5 halftime lead against Marist on Friday night ballooned into an 18-5 win Freshman goalie Grayson Manning made his first start The British Columbia native made 10 first-half stops Kelly is an elite goal-scoring midfielder who will be on every PLL draft board Pioneers and Yale make for a meaningful non-league game and tied the score 8-8 in the third quarter Richmond once again forged ahead 10-8 but was outscored 4-1 late Aidan O’Neil is the centerpiece of the offense they’ll be a total nightmare to play in the first round A bounce-back win in Utah with an extended road trip may have been what the doctor ordered after a forgettable loss to Harvard Wyatt Hottle filled in for Jackson Birtwhistle who’s out for the remainder of the spring with an injury Fourteen different members of the roster scored and FOGO John Mullen is doing his job at an elite pace—he had 18 ground balls in the loss to Harvard Tricky to rank the Orange with losses to Maryland and Harvard those won’t carry weight on Selection Sunday where their passing offense should give the Blue Jays’ slide-happy defense fits A 20-16 victory over Marquette—a ho-hum effort after the Dome triumph a week ago Not sure coach Gerry Byrne can keep the “Minister of Defense” moniker the way Harvard is defending Teddy Malone and Sam King remain one of the top duos in the nation is an exceptional goalie for RPI who scored two goals in a game last week The big righty can move and deserves PLL attention Harvard has lost to Colgate and now has a critical game with Michigan up next Raiders crushed Loyola a week after blasting Villanova 16-5 and have pocketed wins over Harvard and Albany The Raiders are a swarming team of banshees on loose balls Non-league games with High Point and Richmond remain before Big East play The Devils dropped a thrilling Friday night scramble with Princeton The Tigers’ bench contributed seven goals and two assists Duke got just (1,2) from non-starters and lost the ground ball war by five and Aidan Maguire was active with three CTs and five grounders Duke fell behind 4-2 before grabbing control for the win over Penn Benn Johnston and Eric Malever were effective With offensive leader Russell Melendez hobbled on the bench and Dylan Bauer starred in the Jays’ 13-12 win over Virginia It was the 99th meeting in a series that dates back to 1904 named after former JHU student and longtime Virginia sports information director Doyle Smith A decent-sized crowd at Homewood soaked in the sun while fending off stiff winds from the west end zone Attendance in Baltimore ain’t what it used to be UVA did improve a tad from ugly losses to Richmond and Ohio State but misplaced its poise when it mattered Inconsistent slides on defense and sloppy turnovers have the Cavs outside the Top 20 at (2-3) before ACC play the Blue Jays play Syracuse in the Dome on Sunday at 2 p.m Jay Alter and Paul Carcaterra have the TV call on ESPNU and I love the Sunday standalone placement Let’s see if Hopkins’ slide-first mentality gets exposed by SU’s slick sticks with Owen Duffy and Dom Pietramala doing all the heavy lifting Friday’s 16-8 win over Penn included contributions from Ryan Levy Carolina took a step forward after the Hopkins win The 16-8 drubbing of the Quakers was thorough They owned the middle of the field (19-9 FO) and had a 43-24 ground ball advantage This was eye-opening domination in Chapel Hill with Coach Belichick hovering in the end zone in approval Owen Duffy didn’t look like himself early on Sunday If you want to win a national championship you have to train your body to be able to play on one day’s rest kickoff led to a sluggish first quarter—sloppiness apparent Dom Pietramala is playing with more passion than I’ve ever seen from him A 10-10 tie with Princeton on Sunday in the ACC-Ivy Challenge with eight minutes to go Off-ball defense and ball-watching were the issues as Princeton got out of Chapel Hill with the W Carolina doesn’t lose any shine with the loss A resounding win over Yale keeps the Lions (4-1) in the hunt Matt Traynor is stockpiling points at an impressive clip but had only one on Saturday Freshman Hunter Aquino and sophomore Kyle Lehman gave PSU a 7-3 first-quarter lead that swelled to 11-4 at halftime A 22-9 win at Hobart on Tuesday featured an electric performance from CJ Kirst Big Red passing and extra-man offense are poetry Kirst is pushing for national leadership in goals scored Willem Firth is shooting at an insanely high percentage Staub had 10 ground balls against the Statesmen Cornell fell behind 6-1 on Sunday at Richmond They shook off the poor start and made it 8-7 at half CU tied the score at 11 before winning 12-11 CU welcomes PSU and former Big Red boss Jeff Tambroni back to campus on Saturday A 15-14 win on Friday night in Durham keeps the Tigers in the upper echelon The Tigers took punches and kept answering Bench production from non-starters was critical (7,2) Depth of contribution is a championship trait Jackson Green, an SSDM and walk-on wide receiver on the football team, had a huge goal in transition and was a beast between the lines. Princeton’s sophomore class is stacked. Coulter Mackesy was my guest last week on the Quintessential Podcast. Princeton didn’t look as sharp on Sunday coming off short rest They’ve won two Ivy titles in the same calendar year A slow start at UNC on Sunday perked up in the third quarter The teams combined for 10 goals in the frame Mackesy’s playmaking and a Chad Palumbo 360-spin goal from the crease gave the Tigers a 12-10 lead with 6:50 to play Tigers’ clearing and face-off failures impacted possession time capitalizing on UNC ball-watching to make it 13-12 with 2:40 on the clock Goalie Ryan Croddick stood tall with a stick-side high save Shooting without deception is risky business A 14-12 win gives Princeton the Research Triangle sweep New Jersey rivalry game with Rutgers is up next Goalie Sean Byrne’s save percentage is sky-high and Navy are the remaining top-caliber teams on the agenda Midfield defense (SSDM) was not up to standard The third attack spot isn’t providing juice and the transition defense needs to be tightened is the oldest on-campus stadium in FBS football and holds 55,000 About 10,000 fans watched the title-game rematch in Atlanta Chris Kavanagh took some monster hits from Maryland defenders and will need an ice bath All-American defender Shawn Lyght was my guest on the Quintessential Podcast. Notre Dame hosts Ohio State on Saturday at 2 p.m The Irish were shooting north of 40% prior to Maryland I will be covering this game with Chris Cotter at 2 p.m only giving up 8.2 goals per game while scoring 11 against a solid strength of schedule but Maryland won’t be an easy out with its defense Terp D-men jarred the ball out of ND’s sticks but didn’t convert them to turnovers That was alleviated by a stellar effort from goalie Logan McNaney (16 saves) whose kick save in the closing minute punctuated the win He was one of the last early verbal commits before the recruiting rules changed Spanos was my guest this week on the Quintessential Podcast. He spoke about the standards at Maryland and the addition of portal pickups Matthew Keegan I’ve become a big fan of the BYU Cougars after spending a morning with them this fall The Cougs are (6-0) after beating Chapman 16-7 in Vegas over the weekend and Texas appear to be the top teams in 2025 Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Recent guests include current players Eric Spanos Just three undefeated D1 lacrosse teams survived the weekend—Maryland and Ohio State were the big winners this week 20) JacksonvilleDolphins are (5-2) with wins over Marist Losses to Syracuse and Duke can be excused Slotting Duval into the last spot for the moment because they play in Chapel Hill on Sunday having lost to UMass but picking up wins over Bucknell Second-year coach Sean Kirwan is flipping the script in New Hampshire and opponents are clearing at just 80% against Dartmouth The EMO is clicking at 47% with Thomas Power and Colin McGill leading the way 18) UMassThe Minutemen dropped their opener to Army but have reeled off five straight wins over Quinnipiac Trace Hogan and Robbie Granara are leading the Gorillas while goalie Owen Salanger is (4-0) with a stellar 64% save percentage 17) PennThe Quakers scored on a 90-yard shot into an empty net during a Villanova 10-man ride you have a responsibility to protect the goal and split the attackman—half each—so if a shot is taken you’re in position to catch the long-range bomb I don’t understand how goalies are vacating the crease without any care for incoming long-range missiles If the goal responsibility gets passed off to the nearest defender he too has to give defending the goal more respect and show me that goalies have no feel for balancing their role in a 10-man ride And teams that deploy a 10-man ride without ball pressure will get what they deserve 16) FairfieldThe Stags (7-0) scored the first 14 goals in a clash with UMass Lowell The (7-0) start matches the best in program history and ties the longest overall winning streak Fairfield has limited six of its seven opponents to eight goals or fewer FOGO Daniel Davis is one of the nation’s best The Stags travel to Hampton (0-6) on March 15 15) RichmondThe Spiders (5-2) handled UMBC this week as Max Marklinger put up six points in a 14-8 win Losses to Maryland and Cornell are high quality and the win over Virginia keeps an at-large bid within reach as they still get to play Georgetown and Duke Lucas Littlejohn and Aidan O’Neil are both playing well while goalie Zach Vigue has been rock solid between the pipes in 2025 Richmond takes on the Blue Devils this weekend 14) HarvardA home win over Michigan further validates Harvard The 14-11 victory was secured in the fourth quarter as Sam King exploded for six goals The Crimson (4-1) host rival Yale on Saturday averaging 15.2 goals per game while giving up 14 but their negative ground ball ratio and 34% faceoff win rate are ticking time bombs The loss to Colgate remains an anchor on their résumé 13) ColgateThe Raiders trailed 12-8 in the third quarter before going on an 11-2 run including scoring the final eight goals of the game and Liam Connor continues stockpiling assists Colgate (5-2) lost to Penn State and Virginia to begin 2025 but has collected wins over Albany The Patriot League regular season and tournament should be captivating 12) GeorgetownThe Swamp Dogs handled Albany on Wednesday 12-7 and were off this weekend while their losses have come against Notre Dame and Johns Hopkins and the team is averaging only 10 goals per game Graduate transfer attackman Fulton Bayman (11,8) has been impactful 11) Notre DameA 10-9 loss at home to Ohio State exposed some shortcomings of the two-time defending champs ND isn’t generating goals outside of settled 6v6 play The once-lethal extra-man unit isn’t as dominant They’re not scoring off face-offs or in transition The pieces are there—they’re just not fitting together properly yet Running last year’s offense with new personnel may have to be re-evaluated and goalie Thomas Ricciardelli (20 saves) had a great game apparently playing without Tyler Buchner and Christian Alacqua 10) DukeWith a close loss to Princeton and wins over Bellarmine I still can’t get a feel for where Duke belongs They are shooting 37% but clearing at just 84% and a team save percentage of 52% against a relatively weak schedule is cause for concern Duke faces Providence on March 12 and Richmond on the road this week 9) Ohio StateThe first road trip of the year to Notre Dame resulted in a seventh consecutive win for OSU A Shane O’Leary goal from Garrett Haas on a sneaky question mark set play off a timeout made it 10-9 Buckeyes with less than 15 seconds to go This game was never more than a two-goal spread D-man Bobby Van Buren did outstanding work covering Chris Kavanagh while defenders Kyle Foster and Cullen Brown limited Jake Taylor’s shots and goalie Caleb Fyock didn’t let in any soft goals The Buckeyes have a defense of national merit After stubbing their toe against Utah on February 1 They competed for 60 minutes and didn’t sabotage themselves on the road who spent two years on a mission in South Africa before recalibrating in 2024 is a worker and a classic two-handed X threat Fairfield transfer Jack McKenna (6-6) was productive Freshman Liam White can run and scored a critical late goal The entire first midfield is made up of transfers or PA in its two-deep—I’ve never seen that Alex Marinier had a hat trick and was my guest on the podcast. The goal scorer from Burlington came to Columbus as a defenseman and has scored over 50 goals after a position switch The Buckeyes now have wins over UVA and ND and fly west to Denver 8) Johns HopkinsJays in the Dome on Sunday for a standalone ESPNU game Hopkins took a 3-2 lead in the first quarter when Matt Collison fired from distance on an extra-man opportunity against a flopping SU goalie The game slowed down in the second quarter with JHU’s defense organized and making astute slide decisions while forcing weak-angle shots A routine clear suddenly became transition offense Hopkins looks battle-tested and has dialed back its overzealous sliding The game was tied 6-6 halfway through the third quarter before Dylan Bauer scored off a crease feed Joey Spallina and Sam English pulled off the hidden ball trick to make it 9-8 Cuse No excuse to ever give up a goal like that but a bad upfield slide opened up interior passing lanes leading to a 10-9 Syracuse lead with 8:13 left and I would expect him to be in the lineup moving forward 10-10 suddenly became a 12-10 deficit with under six minutes to play Goal 13 for SU was a classic example of bad slides creating offense for the opponent Over-sliding against quality opposition is a losing strategy Can they get over the hump and win a quarterfinal round game Hopkins (5-2) plays at Navy on Saturday night at 7 p.m. 7) SyracuseAn early lead in the Dome behind Dwan and Hiltz dissipated into a 4-4 tie after one quarter Hopkins committed a two-minute non-releasable penalty Syracuse doesn’t play championship-brand lacrosse when it comes to game management They make all sorts of clock and score mistakes and have to deal with self-inflicted wounds SU would benefit from executing the fundamentals better The second midfield delivered as Wyatt Hottle drew the JHU slide Spallina was being taken out by Scott Smith #HHH couldn’t find the cage and had already hit three pipes Luke Rhoa face-dodged and somehow squeaked one past Staudt to tie it 6-6 shot selection and execution became an issue—too much sidearm Cordes scored his second of the game off the dodge to make it 8-7 Michael Leo then dodged from the left GLE and buried an overhand finish to tie it 8-8 Spallina and English executed the hidden ball trick to give Otto a 9-8 lead heading into the fourth English seems to be playing the entire game A 9-9 tie after Trey Deere’s shot was stuffed by Staudt turned into a 10-9 Orange lead with eight minutes to play gave SU a 12-10 lead after getting fouled on the shot Syracuse’s lack of discipline showed again when Trey Deere retaliated against Weishaar and got flagged and JHU didn’t press out despite being down two goals Leo sealed it with a lefty rip after English drew slides from four different defenders Jimmy McCool made a stop with 1:30 to play to secure the win Orange (5-2) play Manhattan and Colgate this week 6) North CarolinaThe Heels handled Hofstra 18-7 and sit at (5-1) with wins over Michigan Jacksonville comes to Chapel Hill on Sunday losing to Penn State after building a four-goal lead with under three minutes to play A handful of fans braved the 29-degree temps and wind on Saturday in Ithaca Cornell’s FOGO committed an unreleasable penalty and their 12-8 lead disappeared into a 12-12 tie in the last 2:27 of regulation It’s bad enough to kill off a two-minute penalty late in the fourth quarter Big Red’s (4-1) penalty-killing unit didn’t get the job done and Cornell didn’t get notable bench scoring Big Red hosts Princeton on Saturday for Ivy supremacy The winner likely secures home-field advantage for the Ivy Tournament 4) ArmySixty-one members of the roster played in a 17-4 win over Holy Cross—that’s two busloads The Cadets led 17-2 after 45 minutes as Jackson Eicher took 16 shots and finished with nine points Brady White and Bennett Ong saw minutes in the cage Army (6-0) now plays Lehigh in coal country The Mountain Hawks knocked Navy off the list this week LSM Christian Fournier gobbles up loose balls like stat man Russ Dlin eats hot dogs The dilemma for Army is strength of schedule—it’s hard to improve when you’re playing non-Top 20 teams so frequently with goalie Jack Fracyon making just four saves the Lions trailed 12-8 with less than four minutes to play Kyle Aldridge cut it to 12-9 with 2:27 left Cornell’s Jack Cascadden was flagged for unnecessary roughness and given a two-minute non-releasable penalty with 2:20 remaining Liam Matthews scored on the EMO to make it 12-10 with 1:52 left Luke Walstrum struck on the power play to cut it to 12-11 with 1:18 Jack Aimone tied the score as the penalty was released—12-12 with 17 seconds left Ethan Long banged home the game-winner on an assist from Hunter Aquino 2) PrincetonThe Tigers took care of Rutgers on Saturday night as goalie Ryan Croddick thrived under the lights Coulter Mackesy was my guest last week on the Quintessential Podcast. Barbecue Burns is shooting at a high percentage for a squad looking to get back to Championship Weekend after losing in the 2022 semis The Tigers square off with Cornell in Ithaca on Saturday in a monster matchup Princeton began playing men’s lacrosse in 1882 and had immediate success 1) MarylandThe Terps (6-0) suffocated Delaware 14-3 holding the Hens to just 17 shots through 45 minutes They committed just eight turnovers and cleared 23-for-23 They don’t beat themselves and control tempo Watch them sprint on the whistle to stop play while Zach Whittier (2,3) and Elijah Stobaugh (2,1) were effective Bench scoring for Maryland remains a subplot in need of a weekly revision Maryland travels down Route 29 to play Virginia at 4 p.m Q-TipsNavy lost its tenth straight game to Lehigh and was demoted from the Top 20 on Friday night Denver and Michigan got tossed from the party The Wahoos and Bulldogs are one more win away from inclusion Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllstars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Recent guests include current players Alex Marinier A lively Tuesday menu of midweek mayhem resulted in a rough afternoon for the bottom half of the Ivy League That trend continued on Wednesday as Army walloped Yale The Ivies bounced back on Saturday as Harvard took down Syracuse Seven Top 20 matchups highlighted the Saturday menu Nobody was smart enough to play a standalone game on Sunday and Virginia backers are astonished by the February results I found this week’s ranking exercise fairly simple for spots #1-9—then nearly impossible for #10-20 20) FairfieldSometimes it takes more than 60 minutes the Stags needed 66 minutes to earn a double-overtime win over cross-town rival Sacred Heart Rob Moore accelerated up the right hash and gave Fairfield the 13-12 victory topping Manhattan in overtime 8-7 behind a game-winner from Keegan Lynch The Stags made NCAA playoff appearances in 2002 and 2005 Andy Baxter was hired away from Yale (defensive coordinator) in 2019 and the build has been underway in the CAA They’ll add spice to a lively league race among Towson the latest a 14-5 eye-opener against Virginia The Buckeyes lost their first game to Utah and have since beaten Detroit it’ll be the halfway point of their season—seven games played That’s both scary and a sad commentary on how men’s lacrosse has become a winter sport 18) Boston UniversityRespect the Terriers at (4-0) with victories over Siena 17) MichiganThe Wolverines (2-2) lost to Duke in overtime They play a pair of tune-ups before facing Harvard on March 8 16) DenverThe Pios got destroyed by Cornell in frigid Ithaca Pioneers welcome Marist and Quinnipiac to town on Friday and Sunday 15) ColgateRaiders blasted Villanova 16-5 and have pocketed wins over Harvard and Albany Their 10-man ride and aggressive mindset are fun to watch The Patriot League is going to be fantastically chaotic in 2025 14) SyracuseIt’s better to hit a rough patch now and learn from it than to coast through a bunch of cupcakes I was part of a national championship team that began the season at (3-2) hope that the pair of sobering setbacks to Maryland and Harvard lead to growth I see too many wasted or empty possessions Impatience and poor shot selection have been common themes It appears as if the strategy doesn’t vary much from week to week SU lost a game against Cornell in 2024 after building a seven-goal lead it was evident that the Terps played an A-level game The conditions were not ideal at 37° and raining and the Dome team clearly was not comfortable with their stick work and shooting you cannot shoot low-to-low and expect the ball to go in So the SU defense was not bad in settled sets it’s apparent that SU lacks dodgers on attack When Harvard switched on picks and Joey Spallina was not able to beat a short-stick defender They’re highly skilled but don’t have a go-to dodger when they need to draw a slide or attack the goal 13) HarvardThe Crimson have been playing lacrosse for 145 years Their last championship was before my time—in 1915 A signature win over Syracuse in the Dome quickly changes the trajectory of the season and announces to the Ivy League that Harvard won’t be an easy out and fourth quarters despite being -24 in the FO department Syracuse only put seven shots on goal in the second half Miles Botkiss and Teddy Malone were the heroes Harvard welcomes Marquette to Cambridge this weekend 12) RichmondDefense is the name of the game for Richmond Goalie Zach Vigue made 13 saves and is now just two saves away from 500 for his career A one-goal win over Lehigh (9-8) after beating UVA in C-Ville is a positive start Spiders tangle with Cornell on March 2 at Robbins Stadium on beanie giveaway day 11) PennAfter an opening-day loss to G-Town the Quakers used that failure to fuel a Tuesday win over Albany Chris Patterson (4,1) and Ben Smith (3,2) were the most productive Freshman FOGO Stevie Davis went 12-of-23 (.522) and they held Delaware to basically nothing on Saturday Emmet Carroll made 14 saves and gave up just two goals 10) GeorgetownThe Swamp Dogs (2-2) have faced Loyola Give them credit for the company they keep They scrapped against ND with a defensive plan that limited crease scorer Jake Taylor That’s not going to cut it against the upper echelon Freshman FOGO Ross Prince is off to a strong start The Big East appears to be wide open after a rough weekend where GT 9) DukeAn OT win over Michigan is admirable Duke is seemingly building an identity around a talented defense who realizes the strength of his team begins with its rope unit and stable of d-men and Charlie Johnson are protecting the paint Shorties Jack Gray and Aidan Maguire are elite Pole Mac Christmas is a danger running the field The attack has questions to answer after combining for just one point Andrew McAdorey scored the game’s final three goals in a takeover moment Duke entertains Princeton on Friday and Penn on Sunday 8) Johns HopkinsWhen the opposing team’s two most lethal players and the rest of the team takes a combined four shots—it would appear to require kindergarten-level defensive adjustments None came in the Jays’ 13-12 home loss to UNC D-man Scott Smith successfully covered Owen Duffy in 2024 The Jays slid to everything and ran around with their hair on fire The inability to contain Duffy (4G) and Pietramala (6G) proved fatal It was one of the most top-heavy production games I’ve ever witnessed And one of the rare instances where the JHU defense was to blame That unit had held 13 consecutive opponents to 11 goals or fewer with Russell Melendez and Matt Collison starring Melendez is spending more time behind the goal The bench didn’t provide much outside of a Sean Crogan wing iso goal and the wingers—was superbly tough on draws and seemed to have answers and adjustments Hopkins will be double-poled on a weekly basis Hopkins fans living in the Dark Ages of program history—a decade of disappointment The last time the Blue Jays made a Championship Weekend appearance was 2015 Have expectations at Hopkins changed since the golden era The current administration has given Coach Pete Milliman time and patience they’ve been rewarded with gradual improvement (12-6) in 2023 with a quarterfinal loss to ND and (11-5) in 2024 with a quarterfinal loss to Virginia are positive trends after hitting rock bottom (4-9) in 2021 and (7-9) in 2022 The Blue Jays welcome Virginia to Homewood Field on Saturday at noon (ESPN+) Mark Dixon and I will be up top in the Sol Kumin Press Box for ESPN UVA attackman McCabe Millon was hit hard and high with :37 left in the Buckeyes’ blowout win UVA is reeling after losses to Richmond and Ohio State Their half-court offense has been dreadful 7) UNCEpic performances from Dom Pietramala and Owen Duffy led to a 13-12 UNC win on Homewood Field The Heels enjoyed Sammy’s fine cuisine on Friday night in Hunt Valley and the duo of Duffy and Pietramala ate all afternoon as Hopkins provided a dessert buffet and Cole Aasheim—is a likable trio with mobility The Heels’ rope unit is excellent with Leif Hagerup Offensive midfielders will have to ramp it up Lefty Ryan Levy added some IQ and distribution qualities that gave JHU headaches I prefer a more narrow and mobile stance for grad goalie Michael Gianforcaro The super-wide stance isn’t for everybody—it’s not ideal for smaller goalies who need to rely on quickness and movement The Heels double-poled JHU’s first midfield but didn’t apply much ball pressure allowing Hopkins to spin the ball without fear Carolina’s offense will need a stronger depth of offensive contribution The Heels host Penn on Friday and Princeton on Sunday in the ACC-Ivy Challenge These games will be awesome and available on ESPN+ 6) ArmyAdd Army to the list of Championship Weekend contenders They’re undefeated and have won their games by an average of 9.25 goals With a team motto of “Keep the Change,” the 2023 Army squad won the Patriot League title and upset Maryland in College Park 16-15 where they lost a heartbreaker 10-9 to Penn State they were ranked #1 in the nation for the first time in program history losing to BU in the Patriot League semifinal and were denied a postseason bid Army led 5-0 less than 10 minutes into a midweek showdown at Yale Army goalie Sean Byrne made 10 first-half stops The Cadets banished Yale outside the Top 20 with a sleeper hold in the second half Jackson Eicher has been stockpiling points very sound defensively while protecting Byrne and the paint They open Patriot play with Lafayette this weekend Army does not have a taxing non-league schedule outside of North Carolina 5) Penn StatePenn State has more Final Fours in the last six years than UNC has NCAA Tournament appearances The Nittany Lions dispatched Navy 13-7 behind production from Luke Walstrum Opponents must respect the attack duo of Kyle Lehman and Matt Traynor Have you seen any highlights of freshman midfielder Hunter Aquino He’s a tall (6-5) lefty with speed and skill—just another terrific recruit for coach Jeff Tambroni 4) PrincetonLosing the second quarter 4-0 was costly in a 13-9 setback against Maryland This was Princeton‘s closest defeat to Maryland in recent history and a sign perhaps that the margin is shrinking A 4-2 Tiger lead became an 8-4 deficit as the Terps strangled possessions Coulter Mackesy was a bright spot with (3,1) Princeton had no real offensive contributions from their second midfield or bench and won just 10 of 26 face-offs Coulter Mackesy was my guest on the Quintessential Podcast this week 3) CornellWhat if Cornell develops a defense that can hold opponents below 12 goals Big Red handled Denver on Saturday in Ithaca A 6-1 and 10-1 early advantage sent the Pios’ hopes home quickly A 15-5 dominant win—a warning flare to the country Big Red plays Hobart on Tuesday and Richmond on Sunday 2) MarylandLSM Jack McDonald was back in the lineup against Syracuse having been granted an extra year by the NCAA with a contingency to sit out the first two games of 2025 His seven ground balls against SU were impactful and give MD an elite 1-2 LSM combo with AJ Larkin Maryland clamped down on Princeton after four early Tiger goals The Terp defense settled in and controlled the game Princeton won six of the first seven face-offs The Terps’ offense is showing patience early in the shot clock The Terps will be in Atlanta facing Notre Dame at 1 p.m Chris Cotter and Paul Carcaterra have the call Junior goalie Thomas Ricciardelli made 16 saves in his road debut A 17-game win streak and 39-3 record since April 2022 for Kevin Corrigan’s team with Chris Kavanagh (3,1) as the centerpiece and the Irish got added points from LSM Will Donovan and midfielders Fisher Finley and Jalen Seymour Defender Shawn Lyght was my guest last week on the Quintessential Podcast. Notre Dame plays Maryland in Atlanta at Bobby Dodd Stadium on Saturday Georgia native and GT graduate Chris Cotter has the TV call with Paul Carcaterra in a 2024 title game rematch When was the last time Virginia and Yale were out of the Top 20 simultaneously Quint Kessenich covers college lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Massive shuffling of the deck with the entire country 20) FairfieldWith wins over Lehigh and Brown Devin Lampron and Keegan Lynch are their top point producers with opponents shooting just 21% as the defense allows only six goals per game Fairfield has upcoming games with Sacred Heart and Manhattan before playing Providence on March 1 19) MichiganA 15-9 road victory over Hobart was engineered by a seven-goal fourth quarter Aidan Mulholland and Jack Jenkins scored four goals apiece while Will Byrne recorded his first hat trick as a Wolverine 18) HarvardThe Crimson beat Providence 12-10 on the road to open their 2025 campaign Providence won 12 extra face-offs and went 1-7 with the extra man The Crimson travel to the Dome to play Syracuse on February 22 17) DenverThe Pios won a blizzard game against Utah They made a goalie change 2:59 in after their starter allowed three quick goals The whiteout conditions suited rookie goalie Grayson Manning who made 16 saves while allowing just five goals Cody Malawsky led the Pios with seven points DU faces high-scoring Cornell this Saturday (ESPN+) 16) YaleLate-starting Ivy League teams are at a distinct disadvantage when debuting committing 21 turnovers while clearing at just 62% in a loss to Nova—eight failed clears and this loss may prove costly on Selection Sunday 15) VillanovaThe Wildcats defeated Yale 13-11 behind four goals from Matt Licata They took 46 shots in a game that featured nine penalties where the high temperature is forecasted to be 22 degrees I rewatched the spirited Wahoo 19-9 win over Colgate on February 8 and have to say it was less impressive to my eyes than the box score mistake-filled lacrosse—fun to watch for sure But the Cavaliers got almost all their goals directly off face-offs but nothing is more valuable than seeing the game in person Richmond stung the Cavs in the mud by jumping up 4-0 in the first five minutes Settled offensive sets that at best can be labeled bland and stale and was much more efficient in half-court sets Who is Virginia going to turn to from the midfield Cavs have a busy week with High Point on Tuesday and then Ohio State on Saturday I would expect changes in personnel and strategy 13) RichmondA season-opening loss to Maryland was transformational Coach Dan Chemotti and company have reeled off consecutive wins over Robert Morris and Virginia The win in Charlottesville was a program first and only the second Spider win over their in-state rival in 12 tries you saw a team with a plan—a group of players who balanced playmaking with clock and score implications Richmond has a very good defense with Hunter Smith LSM and captain Tommy Stull was outstanding Goalie Zach Vigue was sharp and steady when the Cavs pulled within two in the fourth quarter His work around the cage with GBs and clearing was A+ Coach Chemotti makes the most of what he has Richmond capitalized on UVA mistakes and possessed the ball well Aidan O’Neil is the quarterback—a two-handed classic X attackman with a variety of moves up each hash Gavin Creo played a great game in a complementary role and Max Merklinger is highly skilled and makes good decisions has had success hovering in the crease area and scoring on quick sticks and one-touches and that was apparent in the final 20 minutes Richmond and Saint Joe’s are once again on a collision course in the Atlantic 10 for the AQ 12) PennAn 8-6 loss to Georgetown featured only 25 Penn shots committed five turnovers and had two penalties in the fourth quarter Penn has multiple injuries at the FOGO spot Goalie Emmet Carroll was terrific in defeat using his combination of size and hand-eye coordination the goal was moved off its line by his shoulders or hips 11) GeorgetownAn 8-6 win over Penn was a defensive battle that the Hoyas needed badly to remain in the at-large hunt Effective dodging and shooting have been in short supply Losing isn’t the worst thing in the world—failing to improve from a loss is who have clearly adopted a defense-first mentality need to find or create some party starters as they step up to play ND in the swamp 10) DukeWinning is the most effective deodorant LSM Mac Christmas scored Duke’s first goal and broke a 7-7 tie with St Christmas and company gave up four first-quarter goals but then only five in the final 45 minutes Andrew McAdorey led all scorers with three goals while Terp transfer Eric Malever had a goal and three assists FOGO Luke Engelke gave Duke possession from the dot Coach John Danowski captured his 475th career win He is 475-219 in his 42 seasons as a head coach 9) UNCThe Heels played hard in their win over Michigan and that trait revealed itself again in a Friday night 9-4 win over Stony Brook Truly excellent teams can win games in a variety of ways—with offense or defense Carolina comes to Charm City to tackle Johns Hopkins on Saturday (ESPN+) in a compelling ACC vs 8) ArmyThe Cadets suffocated Rutgers to the tune of 9-3 Freshman Brayden Fountain scored four goals and added two assists Goalie Sean Byrne had 10 saves and a goal with a 60-yard shot into the empty net during a 10-man ride A 10-man ride doesn’t work without direct pressure on the ball carrier Cadets and Yale on Wednesday will be interesting 7) Penn StateThe Nittany Lions could not capitalize on a dozen extra faceoff wins and lost to Princeton in overtime Matt Traynor took 15 of the team’s 38 shots and had five goals 6) Johns HopkinsThe Jays are (4-0) after banking wins against Denver Saturday’s one-goal win at Loyola illustrates that the offense has a long way to go “We Want More” hosts North Carolina in a critical Big Ten-ACC game at Homewood on Saturday (ESPN+) 5) Syracuse#HHH steamrolled Towson 18-7 on Monday night and dizzying stick-work reserved for Championship Weekend participants Sam English is playing the Matt Abbott role My only concerns would be twofold—the lack of bench scoring (2,1) and new goalie Jimmy McCool He wasn’t bad but needs to tighten up his pipe-to-pipe movement and rebound control Otto came up shorthanded at Maryland on Saturday This offense is developing a habit of disappearing against blue-chip defenses This game and last year’s quarterfinal loss to Denver raise serious questions Why does the offense look so good against mid-tier teams The Orange also needs to do a better job of game management and situational awareness They seem casual at times with details that make a big difference in quality games With SU and UVA dropping games on Saturday Harvard makes a rare trip to the Dome on February 22 4) CornellAn 18-10 road win at Lehigh was spearheaded by Michael Long (3,4) and CJ Kirst (5G) for a unit that assisted on 14 of its 18 goals The Mountain Hawks (0-3) scored a season-high 10 goals Big Red faces Denver on Saturday in Ithaca at 11 a.m 3) PrincetonThe Ivy champs began with an overtime thriller indoors at Penn State in a critical Ivy-Big Ten showdown Goalie Ryan Croddick made 21 saves in dimly lit Holuba Hall and Coulter Mackesy began his Tewaaraton campaign with five goals 2) MarylandWhile at Maryland in his 15th season The Terps silenced the Orange hype train 11-7 on a chilly Saturday afternoon 1A) led eight different goal-scorers in an improved effort a week after nearly being upset at Loyola Maryland built the lead in the third quarter with a run “Be the Best” has a difficult non-conference schedule that continues with Princeton this Saturday 1) Notre DameRudy ran away from Cleveland State on Wednesday night I was able to watch portions of the contest while preparing dinner a burgeoning real estate agent and the closer from the crease Chris Kavanagh finished with nine points in an overall team performance that I would label sloppy and Brady Pokorny scored career-first goals Defender Shawn Lyght was my guest this week on the Quintessential Podcast Irish bombarded Marquette 22-8 on their Midwestern concert tour They look for revenge against Georgetown this weekend A robust bunch of teams is clamoring for Top 20 consideration Quint Kessenich covers college and PLL lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Fans flock to campus for rivalry games played in the sun Joy robbers eying bracketology in the first week of April is a misguided exercise Enjoy these lacrosse games for what they are—not for what they mean Why aren’t teams playing more stand-alone games on Sunday Does anyone care about attendance or eyeballs I would estimate a 50% increase in fans and five times the social media impact by playing in a solo time slot There were 50-plus games (men’s and women’s) to choose from on ESPN+ at 1pm on Saturday Where is the promotion and innovation in men’s lacrosse Teams continue to bypass creative scheduling opportunities I wish coaches’ compensation was tied to attendance and TV ratings rather than camps and prospect days 20) Sacred HeartPioneers have won five straight Canisius and Siena both playing well in league 19) GeorgetownHoyas (7-3) survived in double overtime 10-9 at Marquette Aidan Carroll and Fulton Bayman have been standouts Opponents shooting 33 of 87 (38%) in the first quarter against GT Notre Dame and Richmond with zero top 20 wins Stop us if you've heard this before … Aidan Carroll calls game in overtime!#HoyaSaxa #GATA pic.twitter.com/UetmfrJkBp 18) FairfieldStags (10-1) ran past Hofstra a week after losing to Stony Brook Ten wins for Fairfield is tremendous but the road gets rough at Delaware next 17) DartmouthBig Green (7-3) still in the hunt for the Ivy Tournament but floundering some after consecutive losses to Princeton and Harvard Keep in mind Dartmouth was (3-10) last spring Coach Sean Kirwin is transforming the program Making the Ivy field of four would be a huge deal in New Hampshire 16) RutgersScarlet Knights (6-6) have an RPI of 16 and put themselves into the B10 race with an 8-6 win over Maryland They don’t have any bad losses and play a challenging schedule with a #14 SOS RU claimed its highest ranked win in program history It was just the second lifetime win over Maryland snapping a 19-game winning streak for the Terps Cardin Stoller made 14 saves and scored a goal against the ten man ride A ten man ride without ball pressure is a ticking time bomb 15) Boston UniversityTerriers (8-3) were toasted by Duke at home Holy Cross and Army are not enough right now Goalie Will Barnes is trusting his intuition and defender Connor Kehm reads opponents well The Patriot League revolves around Army with BU 14) Saint Joseph’sHawks (8-3) have won eight of nine and dominated St Bonaventure 15-3 on Saturday playing 36 men Ben Dutton scored five times and Collin Campbell had a hat trick D-man Levi Verch scooped up seven ground balls and has 66 on the year 13) RichmondSpiders (8-3) used a 5-0 start and let goalie Zach Vigue do his thing earning the 36th victory of his career in a win over Hobart and they have quality wins over Georgetown and Virginia Pick-heavy offense makes sense for a team without alpha dodgers A 7-6 lead after 45 minutes on Sunday in front of a packed house in Ann Arbor disappeared as the offense went dormant late Penn State grabbed the key game with a late surge Wolverines face Rutgers on Sunday at noon (BTN) Michigan has wins over Maryland and Hopkins in the Big Ten and an RPI right in the mix at #12 11) DukeDevils (9-3) suffered a pair of seven-goal losses to Denver and Notre Dame before departing for Boston University So the 12-7 win over BU stops the bleeding An 8-2 run during the middle portion of the game provided the separation Coach John Danowski got offensive production from Max Sloat Carolina rivalry game is on Saturday at 4pm on ACCN 10) Penn StateLooks like Penn State (7-3) is sliding more on defense this year leading to opponent step-down looks with feet set which means they aren’t giving up goalie-friendly shots Sliding less would help keep things simpler for their All-American goalie and that’s one reason Jack Fracyon’s save percentage is down in 2025—he hasn’t forgotten how to play Fracyon was excellent in the second half against Michigan PSU double-poled Michigan’s first midfield and a pair of quick goals gave the Lions an 8-7 lead with 11:00 to go winning 11-8 for their first league victory Matt Traynor hit the 100-goal mark in the win FOGO Colby Baldwin has played great in 2025 and gets tested by JHU’s Logan Callahan this week “We Are” welcomes “We Want More” to Happy Valley It’s energy-based and often an offensive midfielder drops back to deny a shorty an easy outlet before playing defense and BU make up a smart résumé with no RPI drainers on the menu Jack Speidell continued his mastery of the crease with six goals in an 18-7 win at Dartmouth A 7-0 first quarter and 11-1 halftime margin told the tale Coach Gerry Byrne was my guest on the Quintessential Podcast this week—he talks all things Harvard lacrosse 8) Notre DameA 3-0 lead in the Dome quickly unraveled into a lopsided loss to Syracuse Irish (5-3) shorted Michael Leo while placing a pole on Sam English and paid the price Leo controlled the matchup and SU’s picking game caused defensive confusion Teams that attack Notre Dame from behind the cage tend to have more success than those who initiate from the alleys Irish made uncharacteristically sloppy defensive mistakes The first midfield lacked pop and the face-off trio struggled all day Virginia limps into Arlotta Stadium for a 5pm game on Saturday on ESPNU Jake Taylor is shooting over 50% from the slot and Chris Kavanagh is pouring in around five points per game who already have quality wins over Michigan and Duke 7) North CarolinaAn important home win over Virginia was a step toward both the ACC tournament and NCAA tournament for a UNC program moving in the right direction The Heels (8-2) used relentless possession to break open a 7-7 tie in a commanding 18-9 win on an 84-degree afternoon in front of a lively crowd UNC took 51 shots and got contributions from Spencer Wirtheim It was a critical rebound after the Army loss and solidifies the Heels as a potential NCAA seed They’ll take the short trip to Durham for a rivalry showdown at Duke on Saturday at 4pm on ACCN 6) Maryland‘Be the Best’ (8-2) got upset by Rutgers 8-6 in what might be the most shocking result of the weekend That score resembles something from the stall-ball era Playing in an empty football stadium can be tricky The Terps shot just 6-for-40 and once again got zero bench production—non-starters shot 0-for-20 Turtles now head to Columbus to take on Ohio State on April 12 in what should be a showcase goalie matchup between Caleb Fyock and Logan McNaney All six Big Ten teams qualify for the conference tournament Those three words greet you at Michie Stadium Jackson Eicher has a right-handed bazooka—when his feet are set Army (9-1) worked their bread and butter by isolating Evan or Hill Plunkett to create space for Eicher The Black Knights took care of Colgate 13-7 Despite nine failed clears and an 0-for-5 day on EMO and FOGO Will Colletti was fully back in the mix Army heads to Navy on Saturday for a big-time rivalry game Evan Washburn returns to the lacrosse booth after covering the NFL and March Madness 4) Syracuse11,000 fans in the Dome feasted on Dome dogs while the Orange took care of Notre Dame pulling away 14-9 despite clearing just 19-of-28 Offensive coordinator Pat March leaned heavily on the picking game and midfielder Sam English continues to be the ultimate Swiss Army knife SSDM Carter Rice remains one of the most underrated players in the country Now sitting at (9-2) with serious momentum the swag kings head to Long Island to face Cornell Joey Spallina and company are going back home 3) PrincetonFOGO Andrew McMeekin has been improving steadily over the past few weeks A 17-12 Tuesday win over Lehigh was powered by the starting attack and freshman Peter Buonanno Tigers fired off 58 shots but had six failed clears which allowed Lehigh to reach double digits—a red flag Goalie Ryan Croddick leads the nation in saves per game a credit to his play but also a symptom of a defense yielding too many shots Saturday’s 10-5 victory over Vermont showed how mid-week games can impact energy and execution Princeton led 7-1 at half behind strong defense Coulter Mackesy scored four times and Barbecue Burns added a hat trick Princeton’s RPI is strong with key wins over UNC 2) Ohio StateEleven-game win streak still rolling after the Buckeyes spoiled Johns Hopkins’ homecoming party Righty sniper Alex Marinier buried six goals and Garrett Haas registered his third hat trick of the season Hopkins slid erratically and didn’t get enough from the goalie position the Bucks hold a #11 RPI—partially a result of scheduling Detroit 1) CornellBig Red (9-1) handled Albany 18-11 on Tuesday with their dynamic attack trio accounting for 16 points the toll of the two-game week showed as Cornell needed a late 4-1 push to secure a 13-9 win going 15-of-22 with seven ground balls and a goal ‘Hard Hat 21’ travels to Long Island to face Syracuse on Saturday Big Red’s RPI still trails their poll ranking CJ Kirst continues to put up Tewaaraton-level numbers Michael Long is shooting 47% for the nation’s top-scoring offense Face-offs and defensive stops will be key in this heavyweight bout The men’s and women’s NCAA lacrosse championships will be played in Gillette Stadium on Memorial Day weekend Men’s Quarterfinals will be played at Hofstra and Navy on May 17 and 18 It would appear as if the quarters will be amazing in 2025 Ten automatic qualifiers and eight at-large selections form the bracket Higher seeded teams host in the round of sixteen Bitter cold enveloped lacrosse nation in mid-January What impact will frigid temperatures and abbreviated or disjointed practices have on the game-day product we see in February Here’s my initial poll of 2025 after 18 D1 games this weekend.  20: Towson(13-4) in 2024 and 7-0 in CAA play the Tigers enjoyed a nine-game winning streak last spring The 2025 season begins with a couple of 2024 NCAA Tournament quarterfinalists starting with the home opener against Charm City rival Johns Hopkins on Tuesday Let’s see if Towson is a mid-major with upside or just the beneficiary of a cupcake schedule The CAA outside of Towson and Delaware wasn’t stellar It’s always fascinating to see teams from the non-power leagues elevate themselves up the rankings 19: RutgersA sneaky good 10-6 win at Lehigh a playoff team and Patriot League champion while Lehigh shot just 6 of 30 with 22 turnovers That’s the storyline—clearing 12 of 22 is death Scarlet Knights goalie Cardin Stoller had 10 saves with six goals against 18: UtahThe Utes took down Ohio State with a box score that reads like a thriller: +13 in ground balls and three players with five points apiece (Luke McNamara Ryan Stines) added up to a 19-13 road victory in Big Ten country Ohio State started goalie Henry Blake (36%) welcomes Delaware to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday at noon where the weather looks OK with partly cloudy skies and a high of 36 17: HarvardYou win in the locker room first has the Crimson ready to move up the Ivy standings this spring 15: GeorgetownA 13-6 win over Loyola in the swamp in front of 1,223 fans represents a successful opening day the game was more in line with expectations A 12-2 run fueled by Joe Cesare and Kevin Miller led to the 13-6 winning margin GT only had 29 shots—that won’t cut it at Homewood an insanely talented athlete for the position shrugged off a slow start to finish with 14 saves (70%) Moore and the Swamp Dogs will try to slow down Hopkins on Saturday in Baltimore 14: ArmyCadets begin 2025 at UMass on Saturday Midfielder Evan Plunkett is one of my favorite players 13: MichiganTemps were in the 20s in Ann Arbor as defender Pace Billings put the clamps on Marquette The Princeton graduate transfer had five ground balls and led a defense that forced Marquette to shoot a woeful 1 for 26 shot 14 of 49 behind four-point outings from Ryan Cohen and Jack Jenkins 12: DukeThe Devils jumped on Bellarmine 14-2 at halftime on their way to a 26-7 win A 24-7 ground ball advantage at halftime showed dominance Maryland grad transfer Eric Malever (4,2) and Richmond grad transfer Luke Grayum (3,2) were productive for Team Fuqua Duke and Jacksonville renew their rivalry next Devils fans’ nervousness about what lies ahead in the ACC is warranted 11: UNCHeels begin with Michigan on February 8 Anytime an ACC team squares off against the Big Ten there are major RPI consequences for both leagues will be the most intriguing team to follow in February and March 10: PennGoalie Emmett Carroll has shown conspicuous courage under fire Bolstered by a talented and well-organized defense Penn will be locking it down in 2025 as a defensive outlier in an offensive Ivy League meaning we are destined for six more weeks of winter 9: PrincetonThe great teacher for Princeton is experience While I’m not a fan of preseason All-American distinctions it’s hard to ignore the offensive talent assembled in New Jersey A defense is only as good as its weakest link 8: Penn StateHandling Colgate 14-9 behind seven points from Matt Traynor feels like a sensational start to the 2025 season Traynor was (45,7) a year ago as Robin to TJ Malone’s Batman With Malone playing for the Whips in the PLL and the Penn State victory over Colgate resonate the most Up next is a Sunday standalone game at Villanova on February 9 at noon 7: Johns HopkinsThe Jays trudged through the cold spell in January as the only Big Ten program without an indoor practice facility JHU went on a 5-1 run for a 13-10 road victory at Denver Hopkins cleared 17 for 17 while going +8 on ground balls and didn’t meltdown like in the 2024 game against the Pios Russell Melendez had a six-point afternoon while Matt Collison and lefty Hunter Chauvette both finished with four points Patrick Hackler scooped up four ground balls as Hopkins played 15 “new” members of the roster The Jays got seven goals from non-starters “We Want More” rides the bus up Charles Street on Tuesday night to tangle with Towson after flying home from Denver They host Georgetown in a televised game on Saturday 6: VirginiaColgate visits Charlottesville on Saturday I’m excited to watch the defensive six take shape at UVA Interior scorer Truit Sunderland had a productive scrimmage against Drexel McCabe Millon steps into the leading offensive role It’s not about what you don’t have—it’s about maximizing what you do have 5: CornellBig Red is dealing with an injury to sophomore midfielder AJ Nikolic 4: YaleThe Ivies don’t get started until February 15 Leo and Lyons are going to give opponents headaches I think Yale has a chance to be better in the middle of the field than some of the high-scoring Ivies like Princeton and Cornell Jack Stuzin (LSM) and Machado Rodriguez (FO) are key pieces Yale must fix its slide packages and defensive cohesion 3: MarylandGoalie Logan McNaney wears the coveted #1 jersey for the Terps this spring Maryland got 10 points from transfer additions in a 12-7 win over Richmond The Terps scored the first seven goals of the game while holding the Spiders scoreless for 31:03 The television version was typical Maryland—ants running around on a field with sticks The Terps take a short bus ride to a young Loyola team this Saturday at 1 p.m 2: Syracuse#HHH welcomed Jacksonville to the Dome with a 24-5 shellacking building a 10-goal margin through the game’s first 22 minutes 5,041 fans enjoyed the offense and the Dome Dogs Dolphins coach John Galloway was (59-8) as a starting goalie at Syracuse The Orange looked like the #2 team in the country Sam English ran first midfield and played on EMD Joey Spallina and Michael Leo had five points apiece Michael Grace joined Riley Figuerias and Billy Dwan III on close defense Dwan will be my guest this week on the Quintessential Podcast 1: Notre DameThank you for representing college lacrosse admirably during the ND run to the college football national championship game or social media mention adds credibility to lacrosse Rudy apparently led Detroit 18-1 at halftime of a scrimmage The Irish and coach Kevin Corrigan turn their homework in at the last minute with their schedule release finally hitting their website indicating an opener against Cleveland State on Feb Providence defeated Holy Cross as Ryan Bell and Richie Joseph went off Navy employed a 10-man ride in beating High Point on Saturday Loyola went (7-8) a year ago and said goodbye to 23 graduates Going to be a rough February on Cold Spring Lane for the puppies you need ESPN+ for coverage of thousands of games—men’s and women’s college lacrosse plus the PLL and WLL Why didn’t more college teams play on Sunday Sunday standalone games are beneficial for exposure and attendance Hampton and Iona play on Sunday, February 9. I had a wonderful discussion with Hampton coach Chazz Woodson in late January about the progress he is making at the only D1 HBCU lacrosse program Greatness isn’t just about consistency—it demands constant growth With six weeks until league playoffs and just 41 days until Selection Sunday Ten AQ’s will punch their tickets to the NCAA lacrosse tournament while the selection committee will fill out the bracket with eight at-large bids leaving only a handful of meaningful nonconference matchups North Carolina and the Cornell-Syracuse showdown on Long Island could have major implications A huge win over Duke gives the Pioneers hope for the Big East AQ packing into a zone and forcing Duke to settle for outside shots Goalie Malcolm Kleban played well enough to stay in the game and was outstanding in key moments The defense blocked shots like a hockey team and a penalty problem from the Yale game (12 penalties) was reduced to less than a minute in the box and Matt Brown’s squad successfully broke the ten-man ride the Wahoos took another small step forward handling Utah before the start of ACC play Goalie Matt Nunes was sharp for the second straight game while McCabe Millon played his best game of the year The rangy Virginia defense worked well together holding the Utes to just five goals through three quarters but senior midfielder Griffin Schutz recorded a hat trick and lefty playmaker Johnny Hackett looked more comfortable in settled offensive sets The Wolverines defeated Maryland for the fourth consecutive time Emmett Houlihan fed Nick Roode for the triple-overtime winner in an 11-10 thriller at College Park Goalie Hunter Taylor made two clutch saves in the second OT and finished with 13 stops This is a momentum-builder for the second half of the season An awful home loss to Rutgers casts a colossal shadow on the Jays’ season Hopkins lags in non-faceoff ground balls and has middling stats across all categories “We Want More” heads to Ann Arbor on March 29 The Big Green (7-1) haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2003 and are ranked for the first time since 2007 They are the most improved team in Division I securing a gutsy 9-8 OT win at Penn on Saturday The victory marks Dartmouth’s first over Penn since 2013 and first in Philadelphia since 2005 and both Williams Stahl and Alex Jessey chipped in two points Dartmouth hosts Princeton this week in a key Ivy League battle The Cadets are (7-1) after a loss to Boston University that could seriously damage their at-large resume Fountain had been averaging four goals per game but Army’s shooting percentage dipped to just 26% against a low strength of schedule It’s difficult to improve when you don’t face elite competition and over-reliance on Byrne isn’t sustainable The matchup against North Carolina on Saturday at Michie Stadium will be revealing Let’s see if Army and head coach Joe Alberici can respond to the setback The Terriers (7-1) captured a key Patriot League win over Army with their only blemish being a loss to Navy as BU faces Harvard midweek on ESPN+ in a luxury matchup for fans BALL DON'T LIE THE DAWGS DO IT AGAIN IN OVERTIME AT MICHIE!!!!pic.twitter.com/WZw61Tl351 The Crimson (5-2) have notched wins over Providence Harvard welcomes Boston rival BU to Cambridge on Tuesday before facing Binghamton on Saturday as the Crimson continue to rely on their high-powered offense The Hawks (6-2) are riding a seven-game winning streak after taking down Penn 11-10 on Tuesday and beating Providence 16-12 over the weekend That makes them the kings of Philly with local wins over Drexel Saint Joseph’s plays a physical brand of lacrosse with an aggressive ten-man ride that keeps opponents uncomfortable The Hawks host UMass in a critical Atlantic 10 clash The Spiders (6-3) used a zone defense to corral Georgetown adding another quality win to their resume Their strength of schedule has been impressive 10) Duke The Blue Devils (8-2) dropped a shocking loss to Denver but their wins gained value this week with Michigan beating Maryland Victories over Saint Joseph’s and Richmond have aged well Warped by the rain. Baked by the sun. Kicked by the wind. Robbed by the snow. Now spring hits Durham. Midfielder Max Sloat was my guest on the Quintessential Podcast this week The 6-3 San Francisco native has become a lefty playmaker A trip to South Bend this week is critical for Duke The Stags (9-0) are the last undefeated team in Division I lacrosse ranking in the top ten for both scoring offense and defense A 12-11 win over Drexel was fueled by a late 5-1 run The Nittany Lions (6-2) hosted Ohio State on Sunday night at 7 p.m but the camera work was too wide for my taste Matt Traynor and Kyle Lehman both dressed and played A sloppy Ohio State clear led to a Liam Matthews goal the sophomore from Canada showing his mid-range sniping ability Penn State’s defense is at its best when forcing shots Jack Fracyon can handle from distance After controlling play for the first ten minutes things began slipping away as Ohio State punished PSU for small mistakes The deficit grew to 9-5 in the third quarter A replay review after Jeff Tambroni threw the challenge flag appeared to show a PSU goal The Lions found a spark on a blown clear that led to a transition goal The Happy Valley crowd was lively as PSU battled back to 10-7 on an Ethan Long scorcher after another OSU failed clear Penn State was outplayed in the second half The Irish absorbed back-to-back losses to Maryland and Ohio State Notre Dame (4-2) ranks #2 in scoring offense The Irish had a bye this week and now host Duke on Saturday A sluggish start on Tuesday saw the Orange trailing Manhattan 1-0 after 15 minutes Jasper goalie Connor Hapward was a virtual brick wall Syracuse responded with nine goals in the second quarter and finished with an 18-2 win Joey Spallina had six points as 3,652 fans watched the Orange dominate the faceoff battle 21-2 scoring just five seconds in and building an 8-2 halftime lead over Colgate Spallina may have played his best career game—not because of his points He scored on a restart with five seconds left in the third quarter then added a crucial goal in the fourth to push the lead back to three A 16-12 win over Colgate was a solid day for the Orange Syracuse must address poor clock management at the end of quarters and learn to play more complementary lacrosse Decisions like shooting with 1:40 left on an unreleasable man-down penalty or wasting possessions after a faceoff win can be costly against teams like Notre Dame The Tar Heels rolled to a 14-2 victory over High Point improving to (7-1) with notable wins over Michigan creating extra possessions and frustrating opponents With Army up next and the ACC schedule looming UNC is firmly in the national conversation Let’s see how they navigate the next six weeks as the turbulence ramps up A nine-game win streak for the Buckeyes (9-1) was punctuated by a statement victory at Penn State on Sunday night settling for perimeter shots and lacking penetration but a gritty second quarter changed everything and converted easy cash-ins to tie the game at 4-4 with Alex Marinier proving to be a problem when he gets his feet set on his right The Buckeyes’ identity is clear—elite defense and a commitment to playing complementary lacrosse Shane O’Leary got underneath from the high lefty wing to push the lead to 11-8 with 9:30 remaining dunked one from the crease off a feed from Garrett Haas making it 12-8 as OSU flexed its offensive depth Caleb Fyock (62%) is one of ten goalies in Division I above 60% and was rock-solid Sunday night shutting the door and launching pinpoint outlets and the close defense got the job done in a 13-9 statement win With road wins at Notre Dame and Penn State The Tigers (5-2) got a crucial Ivy League win over Harvard further strengthening an already top-tier resume Defender Colin Mulshine locked up Sam King holding him to just one goal and one assist on seven shots while forcing three turnovers Mulshine has only committed one penalty in his career—a hold against Harvard two years ago considering the level of competition he faces weekly Nine of Princeton’s 13 goals came from midfielders Princeton went scoreless for the first nine minutes before finding its rhythm Coulter Mackesy is now just one goal away from tying Chris Massey (146) for second all-time at Princeton Jesse Hubbard sits atop the program’s record books with 163 goals Mackesy is also tied with Jon Hess for fourth in career points (215) Croddick is being asked to make 15+ stops per game Princeton hits the road to face Dartmouth next The Terps (7-1) took it on the chin against Michigan in overtime suffering their fourth straight loss to the Wolverines It’s clear that Michigan coach Kevin Conry is in Maryland’s head Midfield production and bench scoring were in short supply Maryland has been executing its systems efficiently on both ends Their defense remains among the best in the nation A massive Big Ten clash looms as Penn State comes to College Park this Saturday The Big Red (6-1) were too much for Yale to handle posting a 19-14 road win in New Haven to solidify their spot at the top while Ryan Goldstein dished out eight assists—both career highs averaging over 15 goals per game and showing no signs of slowing down Cornell turns its attention to Penn this Saturday before a highly anticipated showdown with Syracuse later on Long Island Kirst is playing like a Tewaaraton front-runner and the Big Red are in full control of their Ivy League destiny Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section Recent guests include current players Alex Marinier (OSU) We are at the midway point in the race to Boston and Cornell are putting the pedal to the metal some very successful teams are playing at a slower pace this lacrosse season Pace ratings according to IL (1–77 Most goals are coming within the first 10 seconds of the shot clock or the last 10 seconds of the shot clock Teams are more deliberate and working deeper into the clock It’s also a down year for star-powered offensive personnel compared to 2024 Nobody has a decent second midfield this spring and goaltending is getting stronger and more consistent The result is a slower overall pace of play The Hoyas (6-3) cling to the final Top 20 spot ahead of Sacred Heart Georgetown has a #17 strength of record but a lowly #30 RPI A 14-13 win over Providence shows how tight the Big East race will be The Big East is clearly a one-bid league this year with its tournament scheduled for Denver on May 1 and 3 The men’s and women’s NCAA lacrosse championships will be played at Gillette Stadium on Memorial Day weekend The men’s quarterfinals will take place at Hofstra and Navy on May 17 and 18 Ten automatic qualifiers and eight at-large bids will form the 18-team bracket Higher-seeded teams will host first-round games A 12-10 home loss to Syracuse on the Klöckner grass marked what might be the Cavaliers’ best offensive outing of 2025 After jumping out to a 5-1 first-quarter lead Their midfielders only contributed three goals The Wahoos (5-5) have a tough road ahead with games remaining against UNC They likely need to win at least three of the four to be in the bubble conversation Virginia ranks #30 in adjusted offensive efficiency and is still seeking chemistry connection and competency from the midfield who sometimes resembles a dancing squirrel on the front lawn Ben Wayer remains the Cavaliers’ ground ball king The Wahoos will face North Carolina in Chapel Hill on Saturday on ACC Network the find 🔑the finish 🤝#GoHoos🔸⚔️🔹 pic.twitter.com/kSrENO5faF The Blue Jays (6-4) were punchless in their biggest game of the year dropping a disappointing contest at Michigan “We Want More” hosts Ohio State on April 5 a game that could make or break the Jays’ season it’s fair to ask: will Hopkins win another game Their ground ball numbers are down—averaging 25.7 per game compared to 31.2 a season ago When you have LSMs and starting defenders with fewer than one ground ball per game Hopkins is getting no real offensive boost from its short sticks and the team has a negative turnover margin The Hawks (7-3) dropped a tight one-goal game at home to UMass further heating up a tight Atlantic 10 race between UMass Defender Levi Verch continues to be a menace causing turnovers and dominating ground ball play The Terriers were blasted by Harvard on Tuesday but the starting attack was held to a combined (0,2)—a stat line that never wins Freshman Tim Shannehan is emerging as a gifted passer and goalie Will Barnes remains north of 60% in saves BU rebounded with a 16-4 win over Holy Cross Coach Ryan Polley continues to push the right buttons The Terriers head to Duke this weekend while the vibes on BU’s campus are strong with the men’s hockey team heading to the Frozen Four gave Princeton a scare on Saturday in nasty sleet Goalie Mason Morel has been lights out and is saving at over 60% the race for the third and fourth spots in the Ivy League tournament is wide open and the winner will take a giant step toward Ivy postseason qualification The Minutemen (8-2) pulled off a crucial 11-10 road win on Hawk Hill against Saint Joseph’s a result that keeps them on the national radar and freshman goalie Owen Salanger played like a veteran in the cage Trace Hogan chipped in two goals and three assists showcasing a balanced and dangerous offense UMass has now won seven straight and carries a #17 RPI that’s within shouting range of an at-large resume A sweet victory in the rain over Johns Hopkins has Michigan (6-4) right in the mix in both the Big Ten and the at-large conversation This team appears to be peaking just as others are starting to fade The big question is: which version of the Wolverines will show up this week The one that got dusted by UNC and Notre Dame or the squad that played Duke close and beat both Maryland and Hopkins Michigan continues to struggle at the face-off dot in 2025 a weakness that often masks other deficiencies they give up fewer than 10 goals per game and have a defense that can match up with anyone They perform best against opponents who lack elite offensive talent Michigan is currently ranked #2 in adjusted defensive efficiency The Wolverines lack high-end dodgers capable of breaking down top cover defenders which makes their offensive success vary wildly week to week the matchup with Penn State this weekend on BTN should be one of the best games on the schedule The Crimson (7-2) are surging after handling Binghamton 17-12 on Saturday and a dominant 16-7 rout over BU on Tuesday while Sam King is averaging five points per game Harvard is highly efficient on offense and thrives at a fast pace One red flag: Harvard ranks just #73 in face-off winning percentage That may come back to haunt them in high-stakes games The Spiders (7-3) have only lost to Maryland The backloaded Atlantic 10 schedule means we’re still waiting for heavyweight matchups against UMass and Saint Joseph’s Lucas Littlejohn leads the way with 36 points while Aidan O’Neil orchestrates the offense from X and Max Merklinger continues to make timely plays and whoever wins the A10 title will be a brutal draw in the NCAA first round The Blue Devils (8-3) were humbled in South Bend in a 14-7 loss to Notre Dame Their attack struggled to penetrate against the Irish defense and without significant upgrades to the offense it’s hard to consider Duke a true title contender right now and the offense lacks the dynamism needed to compete with top-tier defenses The Devils will look to rebound against Boston University a game that could become an important résumé builder if they have aspirations of playing deep into May UNC (7-2) was down one at halftime to Army on the road and couldn’t string together enough quality possessions to pull out a win and the Heels didn’t play a clean enough game to take down a tough opponent in a hostile environment Winning on the road in that kind of setting is like swimming upstream—everything has to go right a clear sign the offense wasn’t firing efficiently Owen Duffy and Dom Pietramala each had three goals but the Heels are still looking for ways to create outside the six-on-six offense they struggled to contain Jackson Eicher and didn’t establish control of key matchups The face-off unit remains elite, ranking #4 nationally in win percentage, and the offense is a top-ten unit in scoring. But resume wins over Johns Hopkins, Penn, and Michigan are tepid, so Saturday’s game against Virginia on ACC Network is critical. Chris Cotter and I will be in Chapel Hill to call it. Lefty shooter Dom Pietramala was my guest this week on the Quintessential Podcast and I came away very impressed with his demeanor and insight Even with Michie Stadium under construction on the reservoir side the crowd energy was high and the Black Knights (8-1) fed off it in a hard-fought win over North Carolina The officials didn’t exactly bring their A-game scoring six goals to keep the offense rolling in the absence of FOGO Will Colletti The Black Knights led 8-7 at halftime and never gave up the edge AJ Pilate matched up with Owen Duffy and helped slow the UNC star while SSDM Christian Mazur continues to be one of the toughest matchups in the country proving again why they’re near the top of the Patriot League and now sit with an RPI of #9 Next up is a key league clash on the road at Colgate The Nittany Lions (6-3) have now dropped two straight Big Ten games to Ohio State and Maryland which is both surprising and a little alarming The defense isn’t necessarily playing poorly but the offense isn’t doing enough to tip the balance this becomes a must-win for Penn State to stay afloat in the Big Ten The Orange (8-2) erased a 5-1 first quarter deficit and closed the game on a 3-0 run to earn a gutsy 12-10 road win over Virginia It was an impressive response to early adversity and while Syracuse isn’t playing perfect lacrosse yet they’re showing signs of growth and resilience There are still several areas in need of cleanup but they’re trending in the right direction Sam English continues to be one of the most versatile players in the country and goalie Jimmy McCool delivered a poised Syracuse ranks in the top ten in both scoring offense and defense The Orange welcome Notre Dame to the Dome on Saturday afternoon in a marquee ACC showdown on the ACC Network Joey Spallina enters averaging 3.5 assists per game Notre Dame dominated Duke 14-7 on Saturday in front of a lively home crowd at Arlotta Stadium and looked like a fully-formed title contender They lead the nation in adjusted offensive efficiency Even without All-American defender Shawn Lyght they were lights out on both ends of the field What was a 2-2 tie quickly became an 8-2 cushion Taylor is now converting 49% of his shots and continues to be the ultimate closer Notre Dame is shooting 36% as a team and looked the best they’ve been all year They’ll take that momentum into a hostile Dome environment this Saturday against Syracuse Anish Shroff and Paul Carcaterra will have the call on ACCN The ten-game win streak for Ohio State remains intact after a methodical 13-11 win over Rutgers Playing in the late Sunday slot on the road definitely impacts the upcoming week’s preparation and freshness but the Buckeyes continue to find ways to win Red-hot goalie Caleb Fyock made 19 saves in the victory and has been the engine of this surge and it’s hard not to admire the consistency and confidence with which he’s playing While the Buckeyes weren’t sharp in the clearing game or at the face-off X they got enough timely plays to stay in control Ohio State’s defense is ranked seventh in scoring defense and continues to shine Cullen Brown has become a weekly turnover machine OSU rolls into Baltimore for a huge Homecoming matchup with Johns Hopkins The biggest question—how will the Blue Jays score on Big Tasty messy trip to New Hampshire with a 11-8 win over Dartmouth in a game that featured rain Princeton extended its win streak over the Big Green to ten straight thanks to Coulter Mackesy’s empty netter that gave them breathing room with just over a minute to play Goalie Ryan Croddick made a point-blank stop off a late Princeton turnover and finished with 13 saves and “Barbeque” Burns combined for eight goals and four assists outshooting Dartmouth 60-34 with a +8 ground ball margin and just six turnovers Faceoffs remain a problem—the Tigers rank #70 nationally in face-off win percentage—but their resume still includes big-time wins over Duke though all three of those teams lost this past weekend Princeton hosts Lehigh and Vermont this week as they look to solidify postseason positioning Tuesday is for the Hunter on April Fool’s Day “Be the Best” bounced back in a big way after the loss to Michigan taking down Penn State 13-8 in front of 5,023 fans holding PSU scoreless in the second quarter Maryland only took 25 shots and lost the face-off battle 16-8 but their rope unit completely took over the game Braden Erksa and Eric Spanos each scored three goals but it was the short-stick defensive midfielders who were most impactful and Eric Kolar combined for five points and continue to prove why they’re the best D-mid group in the country Maryland now sits at 8-1 with quality wins over Penn State Their defense ranks third in scoring defense and they’ll look to continue that dominance against Rutgers this week Big Red (7-1) laid the hammer down on Penn with a 15-5 win jumping out to a 7-1 and 10-1 halftime lead before coasting to the finish Cornell maintains control of its destiny in the Ivy League race and is on track to host the conference tournament and Ryan Goldstein continues to dominate as arguably the nation’s best attack unit If the Big Red can win face-offs and get solid goaltending CJ Kirst is averaging more than five goals per game while shooting an absurd 58% The passing game has been elite—Cornell leads the country with 10.6 assists per game Goalie Wyatt Knust is giving them more than 13 saves per contest and has been steady when called upon Cornell will host Albany on Tuesday before traveling to Brown on April 5 I could argue that I’m the luckiest man in lacrosse Most of the blessings in my life have a direct correlation to the sport I’m appreciative of the relationships that the game of lacrosse has provided me this summer with PLL players and current D1 head and assistant coaches I continue to be fascinated by tactics and strategy and have been immersed in the learning business I’m thankful that my family carved gorgeous Halloween pumpkins in October and I fed the excess seeds to the birds and squirrels in the backyard I’m thankful for my garden and the nourishment and solace it offers This fall I continued my work ESPN College Football with friends and people I care about We all come from different places but unite each week to produce and cover a CFB game It’s our differences that make us stronger The lessons I learned as a lacrosse teammate are applied in life.  I’m thankful for the dedication of collegiate SID’s like Ernie Larossa Ryan at Loyola and countless others who help us cover lacrosse and storytell Their work too often goes without mention.  who graciously and quietly has become the sports greatest benefactor His generosity is fueling growth at the World and Professional levels.  Last winter I got to work the Iowa at Iowa State wrestling match For a kid who grew up wrestling in grade school In December listened to the fantastic HBCU bands in Atlanta I flew out to Hollywood and acted a small role in a Hollywood movie “Unstoppable” which comes to theatres on December 6 and to Amazon Prime on January 16 I’m thankful for lacrosse rivalries like Army-Navy Hopkins-Maryland and Ohio State-Michigan that can lure and appeal to non-endemic fans These games are a hook on campuses and in college communities to drive attendance and attention.  sports medicine professionals and physical therapists who work to heal the current day players who seem to be somewhat besieged by overuse injuries I’m lucky to have made it through 22 years of action without significant physical residual damage.  In the spring I helped coach girls varsity lacrosse at Garrison Forest School in Reisterstown My daughter is a relative newcomer to the sport and a sophomore goalie Every Tuesday night during the Off-season we shoot and dodge and pass in a small group for an hour The benefits of small group training are gigantic can help young people navigate through their challenges To get them off their phones for an hour is a blessing And I’m thankful for these moments in the sun Being a part of a team each spring is renewal.  Trevor Baptiste and Jules Heningburg who raise awareness and push for diversity I’m so lucky to work with friends like Paul I’m proud of the next wave of announcers like Evan I’m grateful to the hundreds of people who work on our television shows behind the scenes – who don’t get the notoriety they deserve  When I started there were three lacrosse games on television a year Now you can watch thousands each spring and summer I’m also appreciative of the advocates in Bristol and Charlotte – who have elevated lacrosse content during the last two decades I’m fortunate to have run shifts and learned from JV I’ve taken a little part of their game with me.  I’m thankful for my mom’s health (she watches most games) my sister Kyle’s honesty and the patience of my older brother Pace I’m thankful for quiet time spent at my cabin in the woods to work outside We should all be thankful for the shot clock I’m blessed and grateful to travel America promoting and covering lacrosse – been to 44 states and 8 countries on this journey And let lacrosse bring you new friends and life experiences.  I’m encouraged by the PLL – Paul and Mike Rabil are disruptive innovators who refuse to sit still pushing and advancing lacrosse with new age sophistication And I’m fortunate to watch the players first-hand – doing things on the field we never thought possible The coaches in the league have been nothing short of amazing to work with I cherish my interactions with people like Bill Tierney Holman and Tierney have been leadership figures in my life since the mid 80’s who works tirelessly on my articles and podcast.  Thank you Dr I got to meet Virginia Tech women’s coach Kristen Skiera in Blacksburg and also spent a morning at a BYU lacrosse practice in Provo I’m energized by these interactions.  I’m thankful for the referees – who toil in obscurity outside of Matty P I’m eager for the 2025 season – it’s one that promises to be unlike anything we’ve witnessed before with a deep cast of title contenders and star power in the likes of CJ Kirst But I’m most thankful for the fans – the viewers the readers and the ones who show up to games and cheer The fans who email me or send me notes from across the globe Looking through my notes from the 2024 season and we have to wait and see about what we don’t It’s better to stay silent when you don’t know the full story but it promises to be the most unpredictable and fascinating season in lacrosse history January is a month dedicated to studying film from the 2024 NCAA tournament I’ll start with the NCAA title game and watch the tournament games in reverse order all while understanding that last year was last year Johns Hopkins hasn’t appeared at Championship Weekend since 2015 Fans may be underestimating the talent drain at Homewood “We Want More” scrimmages UMBC on January 25 at noon Navy also has holes to fill with Xavier Arline and Jackson Bonitz off to serve the nation I think #66 Jack Norton bears watching as a top-five SSDM in the PLL draft How’s Loyola going to score goals without Adam Poitras Charley Toomey has to hang his hat on Matt Minicus (33,16) from 2023 Lehigh remains in the mix for Patriot League supremacy Richard Checo and Luke McAuliffe are an excellent one-two defensive punch Midfielder Dakota Eirman put it all together late in 2024 Rutgers and Lehigh play a game in Pennsylvania on February 1 Joe’s has to remake their offense after saying goodbye to Matt Bohmer Midfielder Jesse Jason and defender Levi Verch are two players coach Taylor Wray must maximize usually strong in half-field defensive sets will be vulnerable early in the season after shorties Will Godine and Dylan Hess exhausted their eligibility along with LSM Wallace Halpert and defender Wesley Chairs Hess is playing college club for Florida and should resurface this summer in the PLL Kyle Lehman is the star of the future at Penn State The Nittany Lions will miss TJ Malone for sure and have to find capable SSDMs The close defense should be a team strength (Alex Ross & Will Costin) in front of goalie Jack Fracyon Of their top nine on defense in 2024, the Fighting Irish must replace goalie Liam Entenmann and close D-men Mario Napolitano and Chris Conlin because their midfield position group is once again deep with Jordan Faison and Tyler Buchner completed their football season on January 20 in the national title game They will all get a few weeks of rest that includes wall ball Faison will need rest and recovery time after taking four months of contact Jeffrey has been scout team player of the week twice in January The hunt for a three-peat will be captivating The Irish scrimmage Air Force on January 18 and Detroit on Sunday A 2024 Championship Weekend appearance by Denver in coach Matt Brown’s first year made sense considering that DU didn’t lose a point from 2023 The Pios had 11 seniors and 7 grad students who played a ton in 2024 What’s the offense going to look like without JJ Sillstrop The Pios host Johns Hopkins on February 1 on the funky-designed field in a compelling opener at altitude It’s been well-documented that Virginia is going to look different without Connor Shellenberger The Cavs lose 54% of their scoring from 2024 able to anticipate and problem-solve in real time He seized big moments and played with hunger and determination The Wahoos scrimmage Marquette and Navy in Annapolis on January 25 The Terps have been to the Final Four ten times since 2011 Coach John Tillman may have to build slowly FOGO Luke Weirman and defender Ajax Zappitello’s graduation will initially be evident Don’t forget this team also sees the departure of Eric Malever That’s a lot of new faces playing signature roles Aidan Maguore and Jack Gray form the best one-two combo from the SSDM spot in the nation the Blue Devils may take on a more concerted defensive posture this spring They lost massive amounts of firepower (78%)—the players who threw the ball into the net The Blue Devils’ non-conference schedule in February includes Bellarmine North Carolina has a three-headed sophomore monster with superstar Owen Duffy Harvard captain and first-team All-Ivy shorty Andrew O’Berry joins the squad as a grad student I can see them winning ten games this year as the ACC The rise or fall of UNC will be fascinating The Tar Heels host Michigan on February 8 in a tone-setting game for 2025 Inside Lacrosse is hyping Princeton who must find some serviceable shorties and a goalie to complement their very potent young offense The Tigers lose less than 10% of their points from 2024 I would expect high-scoring games in the Ivy League involving all teams not named Penn The Tigers have ramped up their non-conference schedule and open at Penn State Penn is an outlier in the Ivy because they can defend with lefty Ethan Till The Quakers have beaten more non-Ivy heavyweights than Princeton Yale has been awful at scooping up defensive ground balls and often falls during coverage or makes boneheaded slide decisions Coach Andy Shay will miss Matt Brandau and Patrick Hackler Scorers Leo Johnson and Chris Lyons have a supporting cast to propel the Bulldogs into the high teens on a weekly basis Cornell is a sexy preseason pick based on the return of playmakers CJ Kirst this trio on attack will produce incredibly skilled highlights Joey Spallina is my lacrosse preseason Tewaaraton favorite He’s going to average six points for a team that’s going to be ranked 1-2-3 for most of the season But his lack of production against premier athletic defenders will be an ongoing storyline See the Denver quarterfinal loss for an example initiating becomes a liability against Virginia and Johns Hopkins—teams that have future Premier Lacrosse League cover men So SU must utilize a team offensive scheme and let Spallina’s pro-level IQ and I’ve received reports that his play has soared and Jackson Birtwistle to a spicy offensive mix The Orange have been stuck on 11 national titles since 2009 and haven’t been to Championship Weekend since 2013 Harvard has a boatload of holdovers from a playoff appearance in 2022 and Thomas Martinson all played as freshmen that spring and Martinson have been slowed by injuries Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and can be followed @QKessenich on X Utah last week for a college football game Kansas handed the Cougs their first loss of the season on a chilly Saturday night at the base of the Wasatch Mountains The 2024 BYU championship lacrosse team was recognized at halftime on the field in front of 64,000 fans I was able to attend a BYU lacrosse practice on Friday morning at 5:30am in the indoor football facility I conversed with players and coaches during practice – those discussions comprise this week’s Quintessential Podcast.  The BYU Cougars Men’s Lacrosse team competes in the MCLA Founded in 1968; significant records of the team only date back to 1995 when Jason Lamb began his tenure as head coach They’ve been massively successful in Provo The Cougars won their sixth National Championship in 2024 going (19-0) adding to a bounty that includes titles in 1997 It was the first undefeated season in program history.  BYU is the standard in the MCLA and has raised the bar for the sport in the Utah Valley.  Coach Matt Schneck (Wilton CT) took over the reins from Lamb in 2009 Schneck led the Cougars to their fourth national championship becoming the first person in MCLA history to win a national championship as both player (BYU) and head coach The Cougar players do not pay lacrosse dues for travel Most teams charge dues and supersize the roster to raise money The BYU athletic department supports the lacrosse team’s financial needs They have a sponsorship deal with Warrior for lacrosse gear and the athletic programs wear Nike footwear The athletic department is aligned and supportive of men’s lacrosse.  Fridays practice was long – from 5:30am to 8am – intentional to rep a boatload of six-on-six and hold a legit full-field scrimmage with four 15-minute running-time quarters the pace and intensity were exactly where they should be a handful of freshman adorned their high school helmets That’s Indicative of the tryout process that coach Schneck told me can last throughout the fall.  The coach said he likes to operate with a roster of around 45 The roster management challenges at BYU revolve around student-athletes coming and going on their two-year LDS missions athletes will play lacrosse as freshman and then travel abroad on a mission for two years before returning to Provo for school and lacrosse out-of-shape and susceptible to soft-tissue injuries has two critical advantages – their players are typically older than the competition and BYU athletes don’t drink alcohol a disruptive innovator in the MCLA space.  BYU lacrosse players get 10 hours a week with their coaching staff The players I spoke with said that’s just a baseline for compliance and the actual commitment is far greater The team lifts in the football weight room with strength and conditioning staff Few D1 programs can match that set up.  There were at least four assistant coaches at Fridays practice – an OC DC and former players who live in the area who help coach Schneck orchestrate practice They are staffed for success.  Jake Halversen who scored seven goals in the title game win over Utah Valley and was at practice tutoring the young goal scorers.  Comparing levels of play -whether it be D1 to D2 or D3 or the MCLA – is inexact Making broad brush generalizations is not the answer to the question of overall team quality BYU has scrimmaged Air Force and Denver – I didn’t ask for scores.  That wasn’t my mission – I just wanted to see them in action – but it’s worth noting that BYU has former D1 players Stew Vassau and Taylor Mason (both Utah transfers) on the roster Vassau has a wicked change of direction from the midfield in the mold of Tucker Dordevic wasn’t practicing because of a minor injury but is 6-4 225.  There are four or five Cougars who could easily be on any D1 roster in the country and you wouldn’t blink They had six goalies at practice and coach Evan Clinger had his hands full warming them up There’s another half-dozen team members that could play minutes for at the D3 level The Cougars come in all shapes and sizes – all are in excellent shape What’s notable is that the Cougars displayed the same practice traits that teams like Maryland Their player leadership is exceptional – as twice during the morning session active players led a brief BYU players face the identical challenges as student-athletes across the landscape of D1 – except they get no athletic scholarship money less free gear and less external notoriety They squeeze just as hard but don’t get as much juice My recent conversation with Texas coach Kyle Hartzell was enlightening in regard to the challenges facing MCLA players and their programs Texas is looming as a formidable rival to BYU Each week the Cougars honor a practice player-of-the-week (Juice Award with title belt) and Fridays session ended on a fun and positive note.  There is no place I’d rather be than at lacrosse practice.  How lucky am I I observed that the BYU players and staff truly love one another and the game The camaraderie of a team with like-minded peers was omnipresent That’s how you go (19-0) while defeating Michigan State Liberty and Utah Valley in the championship bracket in Round Rock I thoroughly enjoyed my morning with the Cougars It’s easy to see why and how this program has risen to national dominance When you invest in quality people and do the work all supported by consistent structure and grounded in a common faith – the rewards will be undeniable Coach Schneck and his players have developed a culture and tradition that’s palpable The quality of student-athlete on this team is off-the-charts They are academically motivated and faith-based young men who love lacrosse for the right reasons.  I walked away from my morning with the BYU men’s lacrosse team as a fan for life I’m 11 weeks into college football coverage It’s a yearly refresher after seven months of college and PLL coverage Full immersion in football has me watching film walk-throughs and meeting with players and coaches on the road to game-day My dad was a high school football coach on Long Island at Oceanside HS and I grew up on the sideline and then played This week I’m covering Clemson at Virginia Tech on Saturday at 3:30pm on ESPN.  I’ve selected some nuggets and quotes from coaches and players that have a direct correlation to the sport of lacrosse You’ll find a quote and my reaction / explanation when applicable Some of the quotes are self-explanatory.  Although I’ve heard it more than once this fall The equation maps out to mean (Event plus Response equals an Outcome) The only thing we can control is the response It’s your response that matters and determines the outcome I’ve been to Colorado three times this fall and six since Deion Sanders aka Coach Prime was hired.  “Every game we play has big implications.” I was never aligned with UVA coach Dom Starsia’s philosophy of “no big games” You get so few opportunities to compete for the massive amount of preparation that you invest If you’re not excited to play every Saturday Gameday is your day to shine – the excitement level should have nothing to do with who you are facing “We don’t talk about tomorrow – it’s about today.” Coach Prime sounding like Apollo Creed from Rocky III in 1982 “There is no tomorrow!” I love that scene that begs Rocky to train harder right now Travis Hunter – Colorado WR & CB to his coach Buffalo OC Pat Shurmur “Next time #17 covers me…throw me a slant.” Player to coach in-game communication and trust are critical to team success. In game adjustments are best when mutually formulated and implemented. See something, say something. Use your timeouts and halftimes to discuss what you’re seeing, feeling and how you can better attack or defend. Talk about it 4) creating a numbers advantage in an area.” PLL All-Pro Grant Ament joined me on the Quintessential Podcast a week ago and we spoke about his offensive mindset in this era of positionless lacrosse “One commodity you want is to be a closer.” Train and practice to be a closer – a finisher – a player who thrives in the final 15 minutes or overtime “You beat press coverage by breaking the tape Exploding through or around the press corner with body lean like a sprinter breaking the tape at the end of a race.” This is equivalent to being a dodger with the ball and defeating man-to-man defense Those that dance or stand upright or dodge upright have no chance Defense will always be about relentless energy “The only thing a defense can control is getting off the field.” Don’t waste time bemoaning your circumstances Once on campus your high school recruiting stars are meaningless The players are spending too much time on Tik Tok.” Put your phone down and participate in the real world Find a hobby or beneficial diversion from academics and lacrosse Social media is never the yellow brick road to positive mental health Worry less about the opponent and more about yourself Don’t get in the comparison game with other players and teams the D1 landscape has more parity than ever There’s a difference between executing during practice and then in games There is a difference between the first and fourth quarters Train physically and mentally to perform at crunch time Don’t let the scoreboard or your win-loss record be your belief barometer They’re living on their phones and social media.” The challenge for teachers and coaches and parents has never been more difficult This generation of teens  is clearly addicted to their devices It’s impacting the athlete experience from all angles True leaders could care less about popularity Taylen Green – Arkansas QB on leadership  “You must display strong actions before opening your mouth.” Then demand the identical standard from others.  Taylen on the portal: “ The transfer portal creates teams that resemble trail mix with different ingredients.” While lacrosse isn’t as portal heavy as college football or basketball there are high ranking teams that have to assimilate more than a half dozen new faces Maryland and Duke are two squads to watch this spring as they welcome impact transfers coaches should ask themselves two fundamental questions Virginia lacrosse used a similar mantra in recent seasons under coach Lars Tiffany  The Cavaliers use their Friday pregame practice to entirely work on fundamentals It fundamental Friday in Charlottesville weekly Winning on the road is hard and it’s never been more difficult than it is right now at the D1 men’s level “Learn to trust the people that have trusted you.” Because I remember as a freshman college goalie being hesitant to make changes or adjustments to my fundamentals playing style or training calendar based on selfish During my freshman fall ball at Johns Hopkins the coaches asked me to tweek / change my stance and stick positioning I struggled to immediately adapt and conform instead of trusting my coaches and the professionals who were hired with one goal in mind – to improve athlete performance I realized they were unequivocally correct The lesson was to trust those who have your back.  Frosty January practices are the toughest season The winter portion of the calendar features shivering and quivering freshmen The frigid wind burns the coach’s face as he screams Frozen cleats crunch the turf with every step “Talk!” The defensive coordinator echoes a command that ricochets throughout the bareness of campus College lacrosse freshmen need to process information faster they need to take what they’ve been taught and apply it they plummet down the depth chart like the mercury it’s easy to be excited on the first day back But who’s got juice on a Wednesday in mid-January Who’s got energy and passion during week three Every catch or drop is scrutinized in every drill What freshman can hold up under the pressure Some first-year players are built for January He can finish inside and from mid-range using an assortment of creative releases and finishes The Darien and Eclipse product has elite left-handed stick skills and feels like the right addition to Chris Kavanagh and Jake Taylor on attack in South Bend for Notre Dame The rookie unofficially had seven goals and one assist through three quarters in a scrimmage against Air Force last weekend He’s a true goal scorer who’s very creative I can anticipate this freshman having a healthy shooting percentage for a team that shot 38% in 2024 He can dodge enough that opposing teams will be hesitant to short-stick him the best six-man group in the country in 2024 ND destroyed opponents last spring by more than six goals per game on average the demands of being a full-time lacrosse athlete may be both overwhelming yet beneficial and rest and recovery have to be tailored for a marathon college season (five months) to avoid hitting the freshman wall in late April and the steam of exertion leaking from helmets in the cold Training on the tundra feels galaxies away from Memorial Day a rookie attackman from Shoreham-Wading River and 2024 Legacy Taz may start against Bellarmine on February 1 He’s a 5-8 righty with excellent burst and acceleration to push topside and finish with accuracy on the run His hard-nosed Long Island attitude is earning strong grades from a coaching staff with similar Hempstead Turnpike backgrounds The UA All-Star Game MVP is ACC-ready with a competitive edge a luxury given today’s high temperature of 13 degrees You won’t see grass for another three months in the 315 Payton Anderson is a lefty freshman midfielder who goes 6-3 and 220 pounds and may be in the discussion for playing time sooner rather than later in the Dome With a gritty attitude from Hopewell Junction NY—which is up the Taconic about 40 minutes north of Yorktown and east of the Hudson River between Newburgh and Poughkeepsie—don’t be confused by his Brunswick white-collar labeling Anderson has excellent skills and multiple shot releases with his feet set he can wiggle around defenders to the paint I wouldn’t expect to see a major splash right away in Gary Gait’s veteran-laden offense expect to see nibbles of shifts in February and a slow build with upside standing shoulder-to-shoulder as if to shield the wind defenders Luke Hublitz (Brunswick) and 6-5 Tommy Snyder (St Anthony’s) won’t likely start but could be in the rotation from day one Snyder has shown advanced schematic ability in the fall and pre-season He was a standout basketball player in high school Hublitz has an opportunistic eye and an active stick to create turnovers First-year players should be asking questions reaching out to coaches—be willing to look at practice clips with coaches That’s not a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of commitment With snot dripping down their faces and numb fingers many lacrosse freshmen struggle to keep up during conditioning They’re racing and competing against men now—players who are 21 or 22 years old and more responsive to the coach’s whistle Collegiate lacrosse freshmen quickly learn to both love and hate that whistle is likely to get shifts for Virginia at the midfield Former Cav John Fox babysat Hudson when he was young Hausmann is showing flashes that demand playing time What college lacrosse freshmen will blossom when the springtime colors come around Quint Kessenich covers college and pro lacrosse for the ESPN networks and LaxAllStars and can be followed on X at @QKessenich Arts Fishing Club will take the Proud Larry’s stage on Friday Oxford marks the band’s fifth stop in a jam-packed tour lineup The name of the band comes from lead vocalist Christopher Kessenich’s grandfathers — both of whom are named Arthur While Kessenich has a sentimental attachment to the name it also encompasses the band’s journey in the music industry where you are just going out on this adventure and you’re casting into the unknown a little bit anytime you write a song,” Kessenich said you’re empty handed and you have to have the mentality that the reason you go out fishing is to do the process … You’re just always casting for the next one and hopefully one of these days you’ll catch a big old fish and write a big old hit.” Kessenich discovered his musical talents and passion at a young age it was always my dream job,” Kessenich said I kind of believed in myself a little bit more and then took the steps to put myself into places where music is a reality.” he spent all of his time trying to become a songwriter and guitarist After spending a year in Vienna playing a mix of covers and original songs as a street performer he realized he could make a career out of his passion “I made a good amount of money,” Kessenich said and people are willing to throw me some money I’m gonna really do this.’ So I started diving in straight up from there.” he covered an array of artists ranging from folk like Bon Iver and Mumford and Sons to ska punk like Sublime In a review of Arts Fishing Club’s “Rothko Sky” album, Jared Eichmann of The Indy Review compared the band’s sound to the likes of Mt “I hear familiar artists in these songs such as Rayland Baxter Jack Johnson and even some early John Mayer,” Eichmann said “All of this complex songwriting really fits with the lyrical theme of this portion of the album.” Kessenich elaborated on the various influences and sounds that can be found in his band’s music “I think that we’re pretty ’90s influenced alternative rock influenced and a little bit more of that Bon Iver a sophomore political science major from Naples “Tupelo Honey,” was featured on her Discover Weekly playlist “When I listened to ‘Tupelo Honey,’ I definitely was imagining myself just driving down the highways of Mississippi and just seeing the sunset and just really feeling the music I could see myself listening to that over and over again “I definitely want to look into seeing them on Valentine’s Day.” Arts Fishing Club is in the process of releasing an EP and an album Their next release is a song called “Supernatural Groove,” which is set to come out Feb Attendees of the Proud Larry’s concert can expect a broad range of both old and new songs in addition to the band’s improvisational approach to its stage performances “I’ve just always wanted to push what we can do as a live show I think for me it’s pretty important that we’re playing the instruments and that it feels very organic and in the moment,” Kessenich said where it’s more of our emotions of that day and that night channeling through the song.” In a review of Arts Fishing Club’s “Rothko Sky” album, Jared Eichmann of The Indy Review compared the band’s sound to the likes of Mt. Joy, Caamp and Wilderado, among others. “I hear familiar artists in these songs such as Rayland Baxter, Jack Johnson and even some early John Mayer,” Eichmann said. “All of this complex songwriting really fits with the lyrical theme of this portion of the album.” Kessenich elaborated on the various influences and sounds that can be found in his band’s music. “I think that we’re pretty ’90s influenced, alternative rock influenced and a little bit more of that Bon Iver, indie influence as well,” Kessenich said. “I would say (for) most of our songs, everything else can be stripped back, and I can play them acoustically, and they’ll, for the most part, still completely work.” Charlotte Price, a sophomore political science major from Naples, Fla., discovered Arts Fishing Club on Spotify. One of the band’s songs, “Tupelo Honey,” was featured on her Discover Weekly playlist. “When I listened to ‘Tupelo Honey,’ I definitely was imagining myself just driving down the highways of Mississippi and just seeing the sunset and just really feeling the music. I could see myself listening to that over and over again. It was so peaceful,” Price said. “I definitely want to look into seeing them on Valentine’s Day.” Arts Fishing Club is in the process of releasing an EP and an album. Their next release is a song called “Supernatural Groove,” which is set to come out Feb. 10.  Attendees of the Proud Larry’s concert can expect a broad range of both old and new songs in addition to the band’s improvisational approach to its stage performances. “I’ve just always wanted to push what we can do as a live show. I think for me it’s pretty important that we’re playing the instruments and that it feels very organic and in the moment,” Kessenich said. “We like to have it a bit more open, where it’s more of our emotions of that day and that night channeling through the song.” All Rights Reserved to S. Gale Denley Student Media Center 2019 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Unless otherwise noted, you can republish most of The Daily Mississippian’s stories for free under a Creative Commons license. All Rights Reserved to S. Gale Denley Student Media Center 2019 I sat down this week on the Quintessential Podcast with Maryland coach John Tillman. We talked about the 2024 Terp season that ended in the NCAA title game, their magical playoff run of three wins, transfer portal impact and the summer recruiting circuit.  I asked him: What are some trends you’re seeing this summer? What’s catching your eye?  John Tillman: I think, for a lot of us college coaches, high school coaches, parents and even the kids – I think there are a lot of guys playing too much lacrosse.  I understand there’s a sense of musical chairs – if you’re a young player and you want to go to college and play, and you’re a parent, you feel the need to make sure that you’re out getting seen, because when the music stops, you want a chair to sit in.  JT: I thought there was a little bit of overaction after Covid that people signed up for too much and did too much, and that would back off over time. I don’t think we’ve seen that back off. I feel like there are kids playing more than ever. JT: We now have four college coaches per team that can go on the road. So you have more eyeballs out. There are more events than ever. And sometimes what people forget is, our job is to go out and find the great players. And if you are from an obscure club or an obscure high school, our job is to find you, even if you’re not at the biggest events. So if someone is playing for a prominent high school and a prominent club, and then they’re doing a lot of showcases, and then they’re jumping on another select team and another select team…You’re seeing guys playing sometimes 11 straight days or 15 days out of 18.  Q: That’s not smart. It’s too much. Stop the madness.  JT: That’s a lot, especially when a lot of times in these tournaments. You’re playing no less than three games a day in really hot weather. Or if you make the playoffs, you’re playing sometimes five games, and you would rarely do that. A college athlete would usually take a day off and rest your body and hydrate.  Q: The price to pay for chasing the dream is the physical health and mental wellness of the athlete.  JT: We are seeing a lot more overuse injuries like hamstrings, hip flexors and back issues. Q: These injuries pop up at the high school level and then are compounded in college as the volume gets turned up. Common sense adjustments to the summer recruiting calendar would benefit everyone.  JT: We, as a coach’s group, need to put in more dead periods to help with it, because we’re seeing a lot of the same kids over-and-over again.  I think the families mean well, and it sounds good in December. But when you’re in it, when it’s really hot, the guys are tired. You’re just not seeing that love of competition. You are not seeing that enthusiasm by everybody.  Q: The players aren’t thriving. They are in survival mode.  JT: It just seems like it’s a lot. More is not more. And I think I speak for a lot of coaches because we keep having these conversations. The college coaches, and even some of the High School coaches, because they’re worried about their student-athletes.  Q: Recruits benefit from playing multiple sports. Being a multi-sport athlete prepares you for the demands of playing college lacrosse. But more importantly, being a multi-sport athlete in high school prepares you for life.  JT: You learned so much from playing other sports, whether it’s football or soccer, hockey or wrestling, and you’re worried that they do so much lacrosse that maybe they can’t play those sports, and there’s so much benefit from getting a break and putting your stick down and doing something else. And then being excited to pick up your stick again. So, is there a way where we can somehow meet in the middle and help everybody just have a healthier experience? Q: It’s the race to nowhere where people are so focused on  exposure that they forget about improvement and putting their best foot forward. The calendar needs reform.  JT: I understand why they (parents) do it. I can see why there is anxiety. Are we at a point where we need to step in and say, all right, you know what? We’re going to add limits. Right now, we have a dead period from July 2 to July 6. Do we elongate that dead period to a full week? Do we add another one? Q: I would go even further. Should Monday through Thursday be off limits all summer long? Should the month of August be a dead period?  This is America and event operators have a right to be in business. It’s critical to understand that event operators care about the money in their pockets. They don’t care about the health and wellbeing of your son or daughter. If they did, events would offer holistic speakers on – None of them do. All they care about is the money. They want to take your money, let you play, hopefully without incident and send you back on the road. They could care less about the holistic development of your child. They are not educators. They are lax entrepreneurs. The only solution is for the college coaches, the evaluators, to say enough is enough. We aren’t going to your tournament. We need time off during the summer.  JT: The summer calendar will be discussed because we had a coaches survey go out, asking those questions. That will be discussed at our coach’s convention in December.  Q: It’s time to pump the brakes. Less is more. Burnout is real.  Be mindful of your time spent in practice compared to game ratio. In season, college lacrosse players invest at least 20 hours of practice and training for every two-hour game. The summer sweet spot for a high school player is a ratio around 10 to 1. That’s ten hours of practice for every hour of game action. Meaning prospects should be actively training their skills in a small group environment where teaching, touches and reps are ample.  Think about summer more as a time for development and less as a period of exposure. Too many players are under performing because of event burnout and would be smarter to invest more time into their skill base before stepping onto the big stage.  Playing better in less events > playing poorly every weekend.  December is the longest month. December is about buckling down for  final exams and returning home for the holidays.  It’s a month spent back in your hometown with old friends.  It’s a month of temptation and distraction during the holiday season. It’s a dangerous break of routine prior to training camp.  College players should use free time in December to formulate and write down goals for the season. Get yourself a calendar and journal. Write down your short term and long term goals – they can meander in any direction.  Set your goals but understand that they are empty words – without work.  Training camp opens in January, many on Monday January 6. The first day of practice is a finish line #1 in the race with multiple finish lines. The opening game on your schedule is a finish line. Break the season up into segments with training camp, February 1, March 1, April 1, May 1 and the championship game being circled dates on the calendar.  Lacrosse has morphed from a four month season into a five month marathon. Training camp in January is either 3 or 4 weeks in duration, depending on the school. Scrimmages cap off each week. The regular season is 13 Saturdays, with a league championship week and then three weekends of the NCAA tournament. That’s 20 plus weeks for teams competing on Memorial Day, a duration that rivals the NFL.  It’s a long grind. Burnout is real, especially for freshman, who tend to hit the wall in the later stages of April. Burnout stems from a lack of physical, mental and spiritual nourishment. Prevention is a shared responsibility between coach and athlete. It’s the athletes job to work harder while the coaches job to tap on the breaks.  As you read this, there are less than 60 days until real D1 games. February 1 is a Saturday. Lacrosse is now a winter sport. A sampling of games I found opening week.  Many programs open on February 8. The Ivy’s begin competition on Saturday February 15. Memorial Day falls early on the calendar this year – May 26.   If you’re at a high level D1 program, you have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them, is up to you. Everybody practices for the same amount of time. It’s the 15 or 30 minute segments of individual work that you do before or after practice, or on Sundays, that will chart your personal growth. Train to win and to dominate.  The season is a roller-coaster ride of emotions – unpredictable and littered with bumps. Remind yourself that you are here to learn lessons. Each crisis is an opportunity.  December is about preparation, discipline, structure and maturity.  Effective communication and talk on the lacrosse field fosters success. I’m not talking about smack talk, I’m talking about functional strategic talk.  Many coaches are not doing enough to teach effective communication.  This is based on my experience working with coaches and players at the youth, high school, college and professional levels.  There is no formal template for talking and listening on the lacrosse field . It’s a vital piece of championship lacrosse. Every team member needs to be on the same page with clear and concise commands, while using names.  Talking needs to be taught and practiced.  Defense is played with your mouth, eyes, feet, hands and the stick. A defense that talks is connected and operating as one. Defending together requires constant over-communication. Talk should be done early, it should be loud and continuous. Sliding, rotating and recovering on defense happens fast and is rarely perfect. Talking through these unique movements will fortify your defense.  Every time the ball moves between offensive players or changes locations each defender should yell his assignment. A connected defense sounds like a bee hive, with constant noise emanating from all seven sources.   Clear cut verbiage is essential for defending two-man games. Be loud. Pick coming left. Get thru. Stay. Switch. Etc. Every team has its own specific calls – its own defensive language. Being precise with the defensive vocabulary is a non-negotiable. Flying solo doesn’t cut it. Listen and benefit.  Typically the crease defender, the man the middle, is responsible for both deterrence and disruption should any opposing player dare venture into the dirt. Along with the goalie, he is usually also responsible for letting his teammates know what’s happening. These defenders are the glue.  What are we running? Identify the defense your opponent is utilzing. Echo calls from the bench. Use first names or nicknames to grab your teammates attention. “One more” calls will positively impact efficiency in transition.  Who’s initiating the offense? What are offensive teammates talking about off the ball? Are we flip flopping and switching spots , or are we staying put? Who has the matchup? Who is setting the on-ball pick? Or the off-ball screen? How much time is left in the possession? Did we get a reset? Keep the offensive conversation going.  Ball carriers under duress benefit from the support of verbal commands. Be an extra set of eyes for your teammate. Does your teammate see the imminent danger? Does he know who’s open? Does he know he has no time? Or plenty of time? “Cross-field!” or “High Opposite” or “You have time” or “I’m covered” all help.  Goalies are enlisted to organize and talk to the six defensive pieces.  Goalies should empower d-men with an unshakeable voice. Don’t talk too much. Edit to amplify. Use your vocal range to tell a story. Be calm and confident. A goalies talk should have octaves and should be a step ahead.  It’s about being ready for what happens next. Your voice aids defenders with their backs to the ball, those that can’t clearly see the action. Good talk helps offensive midfielders who may have been trapped on the field playing defense. They need assistance. Talk ensures everyone is eating from the same menu.  Don’t let the ebbs and flows of a bad performance impact your self-esteem and therefore your talk. Your defense needs you to be a rock. And when your defenders make a great play, be vocally positive.  When you are man down, bark out the opponents formation and how your defense is to play it. When the offense changes structure a smart talking goalie has his defense ready for the shift.  Tactical talkers verbalize shot clock and game clock scenarios. Open your mouth, you are in charge.  Communication can win a face-off loose ball or a 2 v. 1 grounder. It can win the scrum after a face-off. Be the third man in with your mouth loudly giving instructions to your teammate. “Man” “Ball” “Flip it” “Goose it”. Listen to your opponents talk and react accordingly to dismantle their plans.  You will never master the game, but if you embrace improving your talk, it will become a catalyst for improvement. Talk cultivates awareness, and is to be practiced and rehearsed daily in every single drill. Good talk keeps your actions in alignment with your squads operational code.  When young players are unsure, they don’t talk. That gives evaluators the impression that the prospect lacks confidence. Coaches sit field level at club events for a reason. Evaluators want to listen and figure out which defenders are doing the talking.  Find your voice even when you’re gassed. Talking is engagement. Talk loudly. The more consequential playoff games will have the loudest fans. Those arenas test your communications.  Without a doubt, elite level talk will lead to better results for the individual and for your team.  © 2025 BVM Sports. Best Version Media, LLC. Quint Kessenich unveils his final Top 20 rankings for 2025 The upcoming week will be critical as ten automatic qualifiers (AQs) will be awarded with teams aiming to secure their spots in the NCAA tournament Kessenich notes that while conferences like the Big Ten are strong defensively the offensive performance is still a looming question for many teams Selection Sunday is poised to offer major implications for various programs Expect a shake-up in rankings as conference tournaments unfold with teams either solidifying their NCAA tournament positions or facing elimination The NCAA tournament selection show will take place on May 4 impacting several teams significantly based on their performances this week With ten AQs on the line and teams demonstrating both strengths and vulnerabilities expect intense competition in Championship Week which will ultimately shape the landscape of the NCAA tournament The summary of the linked article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence technology from OpenAI We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it OK Privacy policy I’ve put together a special Holiday Wishlist for the lacrosse community From the essentials like new gear and game improvements to personal wishes for players and coaches here’s a lighthearted look at what I hope Santa brings to the sport this year Quint Kessenich cover college sports for ESPN and will be at the citrus bowl on New Year’s Eve Please do not drink and drive during the holidays.  Standing in a cold huddle outside on a frozen field being battered by the wind Snow drifts frame the field as the sun sets early just trying to defrost and hear coach through the gusts.  Everyone is hoping to make a strong first impression.  The coach is barely recognizable in layers He dresses for 5pm and sets expectations for week 1 and the season This is not the same smiley guy who showed up and seduced your parents during the home visit And he’s not the cordial host they met during a campus trip There’s little tolerance for mistakes or a slow pace Coaches focal points become clear through his drills whatever – a team becomes how and what they practice.  It’s your job to prove them wrong and produce results that warrant promotion it’s like a beaver taking down a tree with relentless small bites.  The team aura takes shape with leaders emerging A great team will have players holding players accountable.  Understand the subtleties of the ME and the WE Certain periods are designed for the individual and others for the squad.  simply learning names and building trust is at the top of the list.  ask them to arrive early and help with their equipment Checking their pockets before practice is critical Many will show up not knowing how to wear protective equipment and with dysfunctional sticks.  Tempo always beats standing around in the cold not stand idle in line drills.  Focus on fundamentals effort and the process- the results come later.  D1 college coaches tend to avoid intense physical contact coming off a holiday break Ramping up gradually is more shrewd than blasting out of the starting blocks.  Ohio State scrimmaged North Carolina on Sunday October 13 18-13 Buckeyes after four quarters and 23-15 OSU after a fifth quarter That’s a lot of goals – a positive sign for a Buckeye team who struggled to find the back of the net in 2024 Worth noting that Owen Duffy did not play for the Tar Heels.  I spoke with Ohio State coach Nick Myers on my way home from Arkansas this past weekend “The UNC event was a solid go and we had great crowd in our stadium.”  When I asked him about the more potent offense he replied Fall ball flicks 📸#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/KdHFGhaWCT The Buckeyes scrimmaged Robert Morris on Saturday and led 19-7 after four quarters That’s another explosive outing for the offense.  Encouraging signs considering that Ohio State is coming off a (6-9) season in 2024 which was preceded by a (5-9) record in 2023 OSU is a combined (2-11) on the road in the last two years.  the Bucks had three straight one-goal losses to post season teams – Maryland Can they morph those one-goal losses into wins They return mostly intact this spring with 70% of their starts back and 80% of their scoring remains on the roster They ranked #50 in cumulative shooting percentage (26%) and #41 in cumulative efficiency finishing the year at #22 in the RPI They averaged just five assists per game (#60) A day of celebration and fellowship pic.twitter.com/qkffw3xOvF the attack rotation is between five seniors and a sophomore who are battling for playing time.  Coach Myers told me “We played two separate attack units evenly in both scrimmages The story is that Ohio State returns foundational producers on offense and added four functional transfers to its core they just have to learn how to pass.  An under-the-radar player to keep an eye on is sophomore Garrett Haas who has played well in scrimmages against UNC and Romo He was a freshman last year after playing high school ball in Texas and Utah Haas is Mormon with seven siblings and spent two years in South Africa after high school on an LDS mission it took a year to recalibrate and catch up to the speed of college lacrosse and to get his body right he’s very skilled and surging up the depth chart.  Goalies Henry Blake and Caleb Fyock are currently competing for the role He’s listed currently at 6-2 and 297 pounds on the roster.  Scarlet and gray have sufficient bodies at the SSDM spot but lack experience coach Nick Myers has won 120 games and is above .500 in the Big Ten Ohio State’s signature moment was the 2017 Final Four and national championship game Myers has done admirable work raising the profile of lacrosse in Ohio and the Midwest Andrew Vossler works with the goalie and FOGO’s while Mo Lavallee handles the operations.  Happy #nationalcoachesday to our leaders!#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/p2xMwnDMob Coach Myers is searching for more depth at close defense His top three are solid but he understands the importance of having a viable 4th guy.  Ace defender Bobby Van Buren was injured in 2024 Van Buren got hurt in the Robert Morris scrimmage last weekend.  OSU is waiting on an MRI and holding their breath.  With external competitions done for the semester That means passing & shooting sessions for offensive players in small groups approaches & recoveries for d-men and plenty of reps for FOGO’s and goalies OSU will hit the weights hard and bring their conditioning levels upward as January inches closer The 2025 spring schedule is comparable to prior editions Their big non-league games will be UVA in Columbus with trips to Notre Dame and Denver I can see (6-9) flipping to (9-6) or to even a 10+ win campaign.  Bret Bielema and Shane Beamer nearly came to blows on the field during an injury timeout the head coaches had a relatively anticlimactic handshake following the fiery in-game exchange "Shane Beamer and Bret Bielema shake hands after Illinois beats South Carolina in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl Quint Kessenich then asks Bielema about the drama with Beamer and Bielema ignores that to talk about the win," Awful Announcing said of the postgame exchange and questioning from Kessenich "It was a good football game," Bielema said in response to the question about Beamer we got ourselves in a bowl that means a lot to this program We're trying to build something sustainable Can't say enough about our kids and their effort and obviously a really good South Carolina team After the game the South Carolina coach suggested he was a "ton" of respect for Beamer "I’ve got a ton of respect for Coach Bielema I've really enjoyed being around him this week especially when his own player is on the ground hurt In the end Illinois took down South Carolina by a final score of 21-17 as the Big Ten moved to 4-1 against the SEC this bowl season This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Charlotte North shot a lacrosse ball 92 miles an hour during the skills challenge at the Premier Lacrosse League All-Star game in Louisville earlier in July a bona fide star and the first female to eclipse 90 mph I would anticipate that within the next five years that threshold will become commonplace The next generation may even approach 100 miles per hour she will have company in the 90 mph club in short time CHARLOTTE NORTH JUST HIT 92 MPH 🔥🔥🔥(via @unleashedwlax, ESPN+) pic.twitter.com/lsGETazl0U The 90 plus radar clocking is noteworthy because I’m concerned about the health and safety of field players who are potentially innocent targets from high velocity shots and cringe at the thought of a player (teammate or opposing defender) being pegged by 92 mile an hour fastball to the face It’s worth mentioning that Charlotte has shown expert discretion in her career With excessive velocity comes responsibility women’s players do not wear helmets other than the goalie Men’s goalies have been besieged by concussions a story for another day.  Eye protection is the only armor in the women’s game This extreme velocity combined with no protection is a ticking time bomb.  I get the feeling that the rules of the game have not kept up with the athletic excellence The rules were not designed to be played with lacrosse sticks with sizeable pockets and players who can shoot the ball in the 90 mile an hour range What looks like innovative stick design has greatly shifted the balance of power between ball carrier and defender When the ball doesn’t come out of the pocket Ball retention changes the way defense is played Just plug in some YouTube videos of women’s lacrosse from 1990 are built to prevent step-down shots with dangerous shots and shooting space calls – but the capacity of modern day elite shooters far exceeds what the rule makers ever thought possible but can be dangerous with little regard for defensive posture.  The offensive area is congested with 14 field players around the arc We are seeing more zone defensive schemes that further clog the field Rule makers would be shrewd to scale it back to a 6 on 6 in half-field sets Collisions are escalating on a yearly basis Vicious hammer cross-checks to the shoulders upper arms and hips have become an every possession occurrence Forceful cross-checking must be eradicated Players are compelled to wear pads on their upper arms and ribs The offensive counterpart to cross-checking has become flopping the embellishment of contact between ball carrier and defender It’s actually a penalty that’s not being called often wriggling in discomfort like a European soccer diva Women’s field lacrosse is on a trajectory to become men’s lacrosse Women’s box lacrosse is full pads with modified contact Perhaps helmets and pads are inevitable.  Women’s lacrosse has never been more difficult to officiate It’s part women’s basketball and part men’s lacrosse I do not envy officials who make their living in this gray area Ensuring Safety is most critical to the games health Finding the sweet spot between effective rules safety and style of play is a tricky waltz.  Athletes Unlimited Pro Women’s Lacrosse 2024 is Underway You can watch the Athletes Unlimited pro women in action this week: Thursday July 25 5pm on ESPNU and Sunday July 28 at noon on ESPN2 live from USA Lacrosse Headquarters in Sparks Four weeks of games culminating on August 11 with Joe Beninati and Courtney Martinez Connor on the call Keep in mind AU rules are different from high school and college.  Please select what you would like included for printing: Copy the text below and then paste that into your favorite email application David Lawrence Kessenich of Denver Colorado died peacefully with his family surrounding him on January 22 1967 to Lois and John Kessenich of Le Mars He is survived by his loving wife of 22 years Colleen Burk Kessenich and three awesome children and Andrew (13 yr); his parents John and Lois Kessenich; his father and mother-in law Peter W And Mary Ann Burk; four siblings- Julia (Jerry) Kessenich Deevers-Rich; Mark (Susy) Kessenich; Paul (Peggy) Kessenich; and Jerry (Joan) Kessenich 15 nieces and nephews: Nicklaus Deevers; Suzanne (Kyle) Deevers Allen; Melissa (Jat) Kessenich Phounsanoy; Clint Kessenich; Hannah Kessenich; Daniel Kessenich; McKenzie Kessenich; Kolby (Hannah) Kessenich; Danika Kessenich (Joe) Mehrer; Alaina Kessenich; Mitchell (Hailey) Kessenich; Adrianne Kessenich; Nathan Kessenich; Jared Kessenich; and Kelly (Eric) Burk Jamison Great nephews-Carter and Oliver Allen and Great nieces-in-law Morgan Jamison and Stella Jamison David is also survived by a large number of aunts David was raised on a third generation farm near Le Mars Iowa He attended and graduated with honors from Creighton University and subsequently received an MBA from the University of Chicago His professional career began as an adviser to middle market companies raising debt and equity for growth initiatives and later as a private equity professional David ultimately co-founded Excellere Partners based on his belief in a better approach to supporting entrepreneurs and management teams through private equity-sponsored partnerships Over the ensuing 13 years the firm has generated extraordinary investment returns with its entrepreneurs ranking as one of the top performing private equity investment firms globally David's motto was ""always do what is right and do it with excellence."" This was one of the last bits of advice he gave his children just before he died as they and their mother gathered around him at the hospital along with hard work and persistence was directed to ensuring his family had a good life and that others in greater need were supported David retained his interests in agriculture by being involved in numerous farming operations with his family David enjoyed his philanthropic endeavors that mattered to him and that he knew would make the world a better place for others such as ensuring others had the opportunities for a good education medical research to help improve methods to cure various forms of cancer He also supported various organizations helping those living in poverty or working to improve the lives of others a variety of family activities at their mountain home in Beaver Creek He loved attending and giving advice to his children as they pursued their education and attending their extracurricular activities He approached being a family man with the same intensity and persistence as he did his work Memorials may be made to the Denver Rescue Mission or the Leukemia Lymphoma Society (LLS) Good Shepherd Catholic Church2626 East Seventh Avenue ParkwayDenver, CO 80206 Denver Country Club1700 E 1st Ave.Denver, CO 80218303-733-8242https://www.denvercc.net/ This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors Denver is the next PLL road stop as the pros caravan across the country should be sold out and lively on Friday and Saturday night It looks as if Philadelphia and California will be left out of the playoffs The seedings and bracketing remain wide open Zed Williams has been on a torrid goal scoring streak the rookie who’s now quarterback of the settled sets has been passing and making decisions at an All-Pro level He’s climbing into contention for Rookie of the Year behind Connor Shellenberger and Brennan O’Neil.  Zedzilla is SO BACK 🐍👀 https://t.co/88vPMF3cZb pic.twitter.com/Xmz0iji1Qk Snakes FOGO Joe Nardella sets the tone and often tilts the possession equation.  The Whipsnakes are on a three-game win streak and have flipped the script with an infusion of youth – specifically Adam Poitras Goalie Brendan Krebs is a compelling story having been a career backup at Chaminade High School before his career took off at Manhattan for then head coach John Odierna This will be a tricky turnaround for Maryland – they played a pair of taxing games in sauna-like conditions in Charm City cross-country travel and opening the festivities on Friday night against the Outlaws may add up to a sub-par performance I would not be shocked to see a regression Trending Whips midfielder Tucker Dordevic suffered a broken jaw on Sunday and is done for season Whipsnakes picked up Waterdog midfielder Ryan Conrad in a trade for draft picks earlier this week Conrad has not been producing at career form with only (5,1) and 14% shooting after playing seven games The change of scenery may wake him up.  Pat Aslanian and Zack Currier have ties to the old franchise.  The 2024 Outlaws have been inconsistent – on their best day they look like a legit September team Brennan O’Neil and a strong rookie class gives local fans hope.  the seven-time NCAA champion grabbed D1 gold in 2015 with the upstart Pios This summer has been a difficult transition for the veteran coach What lineup changes do we see from Philadelphia now that they are eliminated from the post season They traded midfielder Ryan Conrad for a second-round draft pick His imprint on the roster with an eye on 2025 starts now.  Hey rook! 👋🐶@PLLWaterdogs @mboehm5_ pic.twitter.com/BcpOrPN30N we get our first pro look at Michael Boehm the rookie from Michigan He did it all for the maize and blue and can hopefully add a spark this weekend Tierney is not the first highly successful college coach to struggle in year one as a professional lacrosse coach See Mike Pressler and Dom Starsia in their initial year for context The coaching jobs in college and pro are dissimilar the PLL head coaching job comes with a GM role and this aspect is 70% of a coach’s impact Roster formation and player personnel decisions and management are key.  California has no realistic path to playoffs Veteran playmaker Rob Pannell has been terrific while surrounded by a dung heap Coming off an embarrassing defeat in Baltimore I would expect the Redwoods will come out swinging this week We will talk about the 2025 draft during this game.  and note that the 2025 class is not remotely close to the excellence and depth of the 2024 group New York took a bye weekend and avoided a trip to humid Baltimore.  Worth watching is the PLL Rookie of the Year Race between Connor Shellenberger Brennan O’Neil and TJ Malone and an Atlas offense that continues to dazzle with highlight worthy moments This game against the Archers promises to be one of the most skilled in pro lax history Welcome home, @DenverOutlaws📍 pic.twitter.com/0HPJrf3LHV Connor Fields and Grant Ament have been cooking this summer This offense is a delight to watch in half field Utah hosts a double-header next weekend in SLC Attack-man Matt Moore hurt his shoulder in Baltimore and his injury status isn’t ideal for coach Chris Bates.  Carolina is coming off a season defining win in Baltimore against Utah Goalie Blaze Riorden bagged another goalie goal in Baltimore Coach Andy Towers received much better depth of scoring as Ross Scott Shane Knobloch and the rookie class finally clicked.  If this offense can get in gear the Chaos will be a factor in the postseason with a defense that ranks #1 in league.  Let’s see how Denver manages the double-header weekend I would expect the Outlaws to get off to a fast start before tiring in the final 15 minutes.  Salt Lake City is the final regular season weekend.  OSHKOSH — The City of Oshkosh is making identifying lead in your water pipes as easy as snapping a photo (The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story with additional details for the web.) Alicia Kessenich has lived in her Oshkosh home for 18 years Like many of the homes in her neighborhood the structure was built in the early 1900s Kessenich was getting work done on her sewage line when crews noticed a lead water pipe not to have that lead pipe in our house,” she says Kessenich was unaware of the lead pipe prior to the sewage work there are processes through the City of Oshkosh Public Works Department to make sure residents can stay informed of the lead risk in their home and public works employees will be able to identify the pipe material and descriptions of each requirement are included in the form according to assistant director of Oshkosh Public Works is to have complete data of all lead pipelines in Oshkosh by the fall The city needs to submit the data to the EPA They are asking for photos to be submitted by Sept Gohde says the city knows replacement can be expensive but the inspection is just the first step of a several year process “Just because we find lead or galvanized now does not mean you have to replace it immediately,” he says Gohde says the City of Oshkosh is looking into grant opportunities to help cover future costs of replacement you can mitigate harmful effects until replacement by using a lead water filter you can reach out to Public Works at (920) 232-5336 We cover stories making an impact in Oshkosh. This is your home to stay on top of what is changing in Oshkosh and why it matters to you and your family. We want to hear from you! Click here and tell us what we should be covering in your neighborhood Quint Kessenich began at ESPN in 1993 covering men’s lacrosse He currently serves as a lacrosse analyst and college sports reporter Kessenich works on television’s most extensive college lacrosse package – featuring regular-season action and the NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship He also works as an analyst and reporter on Premier League Lacrosse games across ESPN platforms Kessenich covers college football and the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship his responsibilities expanded to high school football men’s college basketball and various NCAA championships He established the ESPNU Lacrosse Podcast in 2010 and it quickly became the industry leader for lacrosse news He was also a frequent contributor to ESPNU.com Preakness and Belmont Stakes for ESPN and ABC Kessenich contributes to Inside Lacrosse Magazine and is actively involved with “First Stick” a non-profit that introduces urban schools and athletes to the game of lacrosse He was also a columnist on college lacrosse for the Baltimore Sun Kessenich played one year of professional lacrosse with the Baltimore Thunder in 1999 and at the amateur level for the storied Mount Washington Lacrosse Club Kessenich was a two-time winner of the Ensign C A 1990 graduate of Johns Hopkins University Kessenich remained in Baltimore where he has been an assistant lacrosse coach at the Boys’ Latin School He is a member of the Johns Hopkins Athletic Hall of Fame as well as the Long Island Chapter and the Baltimore Chapter of USA Lacrosse Hall of Fame Need Photos? Click the logo and sign up for access to the ESPN Images Library Paul Carcaterra & Quint KessenichIn studio – Chris Cotter & Matt Ward Notre Dame, winners of 12 straight games is looking for a repeat championship “It’s gotten to the point where anyone who tells you that Notre Dame isn’t the prohibitive favorite in championship weekend – They’re nuts,” said Paul “Does that mean they’re guaranteed to win there’s certain things that could happen in the complex of a game.” Denver lost in the Big East semifinals at Villanova and have since rattled off wins against Michigan and Syracuse in the NCAA tourney They are a defensive based team with excellent specialty groups – FO First year coach Matt Brown runs an offense by committee “I think our defense is relentless,” said Brown We want to get our stick on you whether it’s on ball or off ball The Pios arrived in Philadelphia a day earlier than normal we’re actually going to go out on Wednesday night I just felt like I don’t want to get caught in a mad rush with travel and if there’s any hiccups with weather When ND has the ball: Pat Kavanagh runs the show Each player has a different skill set that adds to the potency (G,A) Coach Kevin Corrigan can roll out a second and third midfield and keep the pressure on opponents Pioneers defense it littered with veterans When Denver has the ball: The biggest question will be how will Denver score JJ Sillstrop and Michael Lampert are the catalysts with 17 and 23 assists Cody Malawsky is a creative lefty who can make magic in the slot and around the crease OC Dave Metzbower owns 7 NCAA rings and will have a plan Josh Carlson and Jack Tortolani have good size and can’t be slept on What to watch for: How is Denver going to score How effectively can the Pios clear against the nasty ten man and Kavanagh ride Will the Irish be able to crack the DU defensive code I’ll watch those games for clues and flaws because DU bottled up SU last week Maryland (10-5) destroyed Princeton 16-8 in the round of 16 and upset Duke in the quarters Face-off athlete Luke Weirman is winning 73% of the draws in the NCAA tournament He scored twice after winning the ball forward against the Blue Devils Terps makeover on offense suddenly has the group shooting 30 of 76 (39%) in their two recent wins Duke had 14 possessions in the second half They managed just nine shots resulting in three goals “Now we know what we are capable of,” said Ajax Zappitello we just have to get confidence in these guys Coach Tillman’s done such a great job of echoing that all year.” “We have all the pieces to the puzzle,” said Ajax Just when are we going to start putting the puzzle together We feel that strongly about everybody in our locker room.” That belief has manifested itself into a Final Four appearance Virginia is (13-2) in the NCAA tournament since 2019 Behind a Connor Shellenberger game winner and a relentless ride they nipped Johns Hopkins on Sunday in sudden death First year McCabe Millon turned it up a notch finishing with six points to overcome subpar games from Griffin Schutz and Payton Cormier Schutz went for (4,2) when the Wahoos beat Maryland in College Park in mid-May When Maryland has the ball: Using picks and inverts is the starting point for this offense that lacks alpha dodgers Eric Spanos moved to attack and Braden Erksa getting shifts at the midfield during the two-game win streak On ball coverage is not their defensive issue – crease coverage and slides and recoveries have been more troublesome Repeated face-off wins by Luke Weirman are body shots to the Cav defense that will pay off in the fourth quarter extra man and transition strikes can get Maryland to their magic number which may be 11 or 12 according to my calculus When Virginia has the ball: All eyes will be on the Connor Shellenberger (attack UVA) and Ajax Zappitello (defense MD) pairing when the Cavaliers have the ball Griffin Schutz (4,2) went off in the Cavs regular season win over Maryland Virginia will need their midfielder’s to produce The problem here is that UVA doesn’t receive much from their second midfield line What to watch for: Virginia’s ten-man ride can be a difference maker Righty Kyle Morris (Gilman) could be making his first career start for Virginia while lefty Logan McNaney will be playing in his 54th game UVA’s Lars Tiffany will try to dictate tempo and pace by being aggressive UVA has been intent on playing fast and ferocious Maryland’s John Tillman has a track record of making critical game winning adjustments Winners of 14 straight games for Kevin Corrigan (36th year), the Irish handled Albany 14-9 and Georgetown 16-11, before topping Denver last Saturday in the semis They ran away and hid from Maryland on Monday in one of the most lopsided finals ever The delayed final game was over before halftime ND scored on 10-of-18 first half possessions Their ball carriers easily maneuvered to the middle of the field Maryland made no saves – stuck in the mud with little lateral movement on a wet grass surface that requires mobility they could not run by their man and their picks were not effective The Terp playoff run had started with a pregame storm and rainbow against Princeton on May 11 Rainbows are symbolic of a new beginning and hope Coach John Tillman and his scrappy team tied together three wins as underdogs But when the second storm hit the Link on Monday as the fly-over and anthem concluded Maryland returned to being their former selves It was as if their magic spell had dissipated Maryland is now (2-6) in title games under coach Tillman They are 13-time runners-up since tournament inception in the early 70s The Notre Dame coronation completed a (16-1) season while scoring 15.6 goals per game and winning games by an average margin of 7.18 It’s not prudent to compare championship teams to one another It’s an argument that nobody can win and detracts from enjoying the here and now I’m seeing some analysts lineup Maryland 2022 and Notre Dame 2024 side-by-side for further inspection All I will say is if the game was played on semifinal Saturday the Irish depth would prove to be a difference maker Don’t forget that Maryland was against the ropes against Cornell in the 2022 final when the game ended And Terp coach John Tillman has shown himself to do his best work with a full week ND’s national championship banner should be hung on campus in South Bend at the Mendoza School of Business Coach Kevin Corrigan built a post Covid roster stuffed with 25 seniors and grad students April and May on the backs of the juice supplied by the Kavanagh brothers Irish went (36-3) since the last six games of 2022 a spring they were controversially denied a spot into the bracket Pollsters will argue about the merits of Maryland Even Georgetown can be tossed into the discussion Duke never turned the corner and finished with six losses – shocking for such a talented ringless senior class Virginia fell apart with injuries and anemic midfield production Syracuse was young and not athletic enough the 2025 collegiate season appears to be one of the most wide-open title chases in memory the four ACC teams have major questions to answer Hopkins and Maryland don’t appear to be elite or Memorial Day contenders They’ll be good but probably not great without more portal additions a youthful conference in 2024 with upward mobility as Covid implications subside The Irish will re-load with a new bagpiper  Meanwhile Denver graduated a large group of super seniors and seniors Georgetown has to snap their quarterfinal hex Maybe the storyline will be a Cinderella run from a mid-major like Towson or Albany Maybe somebody new breaks though for a first champ weekend appearance For now, it’s onto the PLL summer – game one is Saturday at noon on ABC – a championship game rematch between the Utah Archers and Philadelphia Waterdogs Shane Knobloch and Connor Shellenberger making debut appearances as pros have made a $5 million gift to support the work and faculty-led research of the Polsky Center which includes naming the faculty director position Faculty Director at the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Chicago announced today that it has received a $5 million gift from University of Chicago Booth School of Business alumnus David Kessenich This gift will be used to support the groundbreaking work and faculty-led research at the Polsky Center the faculty director position will be named the Kessenich E.P Polsky’s current faculty director is Steven N the Neubauer Family Distinguished Service Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at Chicago Booth David Kessenich, who is chairman, co-founder, and managing partner of Denver-based private equity firm Excellere Partners (E.P.) and progressed in his career after making a switch from investment banking to private equity Kessenich was asked to present in Professor Kaplan’s Entrepreneurial Finance and Private Equity class frequently over the years helping MBA students understand how to develop a fundraising pitch for investors Kessenich was also invited to serve as a member on the Private Equity Council which is an elite group comprised of private equity investors and alumni who provide ongoing support and guidance to the Polsky Center and its Svider Private Equity Program Through this involvement with the Polsky Center Kessenich learned about the many offerings at the Polsky Center and how MBA students are supported in a variety of ways including how to career change into private equity Kessenich was also interested in furthering additional faculty-led research in this field “I felt there couldn’t be a better way to honor Steve than to leave a legacy in support of the work he has pioneered,” remarked Kessenich in describing his motivation for his gift When it comes to private equity research as a whole Professor Kaplan’s work is widely-acclaimed and has had a tremendous impact in the field A Fortune Magazine article once referred to him as “probably the foremost private equity scholar in the galaxy.” He ranks among the top 60 in paper downloads and in paper citations (out of over 280,000 authors) on SSRN (Social Science Research Network) He is the co-creator of the Kaplan-Schoar Public Market Equivalent (KS-PME) private equity benchmarking approach developed this method to measure the wealth multiple effect of investing in the private equity investment And while his reputation as a private equity scholar is widely-known Kaplan is also responsible for establishing Booth as one of the nation’s top graduate entrepreneurship programs In 1996, the same year that the Polsky Center’s Edward L. Kaplan, MBA ’71, New Venture Challenge (NVC) was launched decided that the University of Chicago needed a strong entrepreneurship program He asked Professor Kaplan to create the program The Kauffman Foundation provided a $1 million grant to help Kaplan start an entrepreneurship center at the business school which would be later named the Polsky Center an entrepreneurship concentration was introduced and Professor Kaplan hired Ellen Rudnick as the Center’s first executive director while he remained faculty director of the Center the school ranks as one of the top graduate entrepreneurship programs in the nation and offers 35 classes taught by 39 faculty In addition, the University of Chicago technology transfer office is now part of the Polsky Center, and has a dedicated team of scientists and technology licensing professionals on staff to support faculty researchers by protecting their intellectual capital and licensing their research to external partners The Polsky Center also has a community-facing mission, providing support and mentorship to local community entrepreneurs on Chicago’s South Side who are not affiliated with the University of Chicago. Through Polsky’s 34,000 square-foot co-working space and startup incubator in Hyde Park called the Polsky Exchange these entrepreneurs gain significant resources for growing their businesses Kessenich believes that this continued growth and expansion of the Polsky Center will enable new opportunities and differentiate the University “It is such an exciting time—the combination of the Center’s origination at and continued association with Chicago Booth Professor Kaplan’s two decades of faculty leadership and now the expansion to the entire University perfectly positions the Polsky Center to drive innovation new ventures and cutting-edge research,” remarked Kessenich To learn more about Kessenich’s gift, please read the story here Designed and developed by:bright bright great The PLL kicked off their 2022 season in Albany on June 4 and 5. I will be working a handful of games this summer for ESPN The family of networks has extensive coverage of the league which includes 47 games available on ESPN+ The shows are distributed globally in more than 170 countries worldwide This relationship represents a mammoth step forward for the sport Coverage resumes this weekend from Charlotte, NC. I encourage you to watch. The play on the field is awe-inspiring. This weekend I was down on the field, an eye-opening vantage point. The pro game has come so far. The athletes have never been bigger, stronger, faster, and honed for peak performance The coaching has been upgraded significantly since the MLL debuted in 2001 The players come in all shapes and sizes from a diverse geographical footprint After the the handshakes following the Redwoods vs Atlas match in Albany these PLL players came together organically (From left to right) – Jules Heningburg There are many reasons to be captivated by them; their incredible abilities on the field but most of all for strength of their character and willingness to be heroes for the next generation of players.   I find it odd to see a higher proportion of black players in the PLL then in college lacrosse Why are some college rosters lacking diversity What can be done to make the sport look more like America We will keep pushing to change this equation Remember the origins of the creators game began with a game amongst the animals The winged animals against the four-legged animals and he became the MVP because nobody could match his quick dodging ability lacrosse must always be a safe place for everybody.  This photo represents a lot of different thoughts for me My friend Craigssportsphotos took it unsolicited I met Nakeie back when he was a high school senior and member of the Under Armour senior game The first practice on a brutally hot day in Timonium he showed up with his feet blistered from playing in a high school football All-Star game down in Dallas although the vibrant nature of Nakeie set a hook in me I knew he was on the path of success and that he could be a difference maker at Duke Louisville football game and watch him as a running back the Duke football team I ended up covering a zillion Duke games during his career his joy for competition and his humble yet positive personality and hoping he would play well and cement a spot in the Redwoods lineup he represents the next generation of college stars to turn pro I felt like a parent sending your kid off to college after shepherding him through adolescence His next chapter starts now and I’m eager to watch him perform and impact others the bond between former teammates is strong and comforting Matt and I can trace our relationship back to the epic rivalry between Lynbrook and Elmont High School Matt is now an assistant coach with the Chaos for coach Andy Towers a fierce competitor and always can turn on a smile Scott Marr is the head lacrosse coach at Albany former assistant at Delaware and Maryland who’s taken the Great Dane program to new heights His success and promotion of the sport in the Capital region was on full display Saturday with the sellout PLL crowd in Albany Scott and I were classmates at Johns Hopkins and shared endless moments together works for the PLL during the summer weekends I joked that his title should be President of Solutions A native Logan Islander from MacAurthur High School and a lefty who’s shots rarely found the net behind me (Haha a role that he’s taken into the real world.  to check in on their lives as fathers and coaches gave this PLL weekend in Albany greater meaning and substance Let the game be a pathway to building relationships for life There is no shortage of characters on our ESPN crew Kettering is an English professor masquerading as a producer Boyle lives in New York City with his young family and loves to cook as we burnt off his gigantic meal the next morning in the Hampton Inn gym This time of summer usually has meant saying goodbye and fading into our summer routines with our families Chemistry is one element that we’ve established Chemistry comes not from sharing wings and a drink on a Friday night but from having honest and open conversations about challenges that we face in our real lives My teammates have been enormously supportive of me during this past month that saw me lose my older brother Wes on May 17 in a tragic bike accident These teammates have been an essential part of my recovery They are a real world example of true friendship they all add value to our shows and our team dynamic I draw strength from them and I look forward to seeing them on June 18 on Long Island for my next PLL assignment following a great weekend in Albany My Top 20 presented by SPIRE Lacrosse I spoke with Irish scorer Jake Taylor on the Quintessential Podcast this week Syracuse is at Notre Dame on Saturday at 2pm on the ACCNetwork Cavs shut out Drexel during the last 37 minutes winning 14-4 as goalies Matt Nunes and Kyle Morris stood tall The defense caused 18 turnovers and won the point of contact often rolling Dragons into pinch double-teams Payton Cormier had 6 goals in three quarters and midfielder Griffin Schutz had 3 goals continuing his dominant play from last week While Virginia doesn’t have a viable second midfield they’ve been bolstered by complimentary scoring from their rope unit of Joey Terenzi Twisted 🌪️🌪️🌪️ pic.twitter.com/1x5sovsSn2 Connor Shellenberger set the Virginia all-time points record as No He had a goal and five assists and now owns 282 points The victory was Lars Tiffany’s 200th of his career Albany accounted well for themselves and is improving to the point where they will challenge for the America East title and AQ Silas Richmond scored seven goals and defender Jake Piseno was a menace That’s seven straight wins for the Nittany Lions Cloud free Sunday in Columbus with an intimate crowd wrapping the field saw OSU up 6-1 The challenge was for Penn State to pick up the tempo and pace You don’t want to play half-court against Ohio State Make the snail run fast and make it a 110-yard game Mac Costin iso ties the game 7-7 entering the final quarter TJ Malone makes it 8-7 PSU with 13:00 to play Grant Haus transition goal 11-8 with 3:30 is the icing Impressive clock and score management from PSU Goalie Jack Fracyon and the defense dug in during the final 30 minutes This team has likable qualities – they scrap know how to win and played in Philly last May Lions host Maryland on Easter (BTN) at 7pm Let’s see if PSU has moved the porta potties out of the main camera shot Otto suffocated Duke 10-4 on Wednesday night to solidify their top ten status following a hard fought gritty victory over Hopkins Billy Dwan III marked Brennan O’Neil and the rest of the group pushed Blue Devil shooters away from the slot area allowing goalie Will Mark to do his thing They are more solid in the middle of the field Offense. Defense. Special teams. You name it. It was clicking tonight.#HHH x #LikeNoOther pic.twitter.com/x3lKAFVBaU #HHH showed maturity at Hobart on Saturday getting the job done while competing in unseasonably wintry weather with snow and cold Defender Billy Dwan III scored twice on the ice Trey Deere subbed in for Owen Hiltz and scored twice When the Orange believe the hype they are vulnerable When they dig in an just play clean lacrosse SU has the strongest strength of record metric in D1 Cuse at Notre Dame on March 30 in a game I will be covering (ESPN+) Notre Dame’s blowout win a week ago against Michigan is the best lacrosse I’ve seen this spring How does a team go from scoring 18 goals a game to putting only 4 in the net Duke lost 10-4 Wednesday at Syracuse in a performance so mind boggling and poor that you have to wonder what’s going on behind the scenes in Durham The four goals scored by are the fewest by the Blue Devils since they had three against Notre Dame in 2012 How do you explain this complete flop in a big ACC game And what are Coach Danowski and the captains doing to prevent it from happening again Duke shot 4 of 36 with both goalies making 14 saves Blue Devil shots rarely were triggered from the paint Why does Brennan ONeil suddenly appear on a milk carton at critical moments Duke got 0 points from the bench and shrunk the lineup On Sunday Brennan O’Neil appeared to aggravate his left hamstring while scoring three times 11-7 win over Denver at Spalding in Maryland is more of the same theme Duke offense is flash and fireworks against bad teams and suddenly scoring goals versus quality is challenging Devils square off with streaking BU on Wednesday “Hard Hat 21” is now in the catbird seat to host the Ivy League tournament after defeating Yale on Saturday following last week’s win at Princeton The penalty kill unit and CJ Kirst won the day in the high scoring affair with Yale Cornell’s offense is multi-pronged and dynamic with short sticks who require constant baby sitting Ivy defenses are sold separately in 2024 making these league games must see television Cornell and Penn meet on Franklin Field this weekend America’s team lost 14-9 on Friday night in Boston and are now (7-1) First quarter clearing 3/6 set a sloppy tone and BU controlled the action in the first three quarters Army plummets in the RPI and are not a lock to earn an at-large bid if they fail to win the Patriot League plus their first round NCAA game and quarterfinal just got a lot more challenging With an SOS at #37 and RPI now in double digits the margin for error has evaporated Final score tonight: pic.twitter.com/GV6XgcK8Ya Denver and Hopkins returned a massive percentage of their 2023 offensive output and all got off to splendid starts in February only to struggle a bit lately Army travels to Chapel Hill on Saturday for an intriguing match against a Tar Heel program which has plummeted to the abyss Bulldogs are (4-2) and still the reigning RPI leader which is all you need to know about the archaic metric RPI is a shaky index when dealing with small sample sizes and I wish the NCAA tournament selection team would also use other more reliable analytics Somewhere in the middle of 1 and 39 is the truth They’ve got an elite FOGO with Machado Rodriguez and a lethal offense spearheaded by Matt Brandau It’s remarkable that the team has continued to be competitive without attackers Leo Johnson and Chris Lyons Slides and recoveries never look the same twice The timing and coordination need to be upgraded The good news is that these schematic deficiencies are fixable They play at a pace and with an intensity that few can duplicate So if they set a fast pace and play to their strengths Andy Shay is a Lemoyne graduate and this mating is a wonderfully generous display of sportsmanship We can ill afford to ignore the bottom 20 programs NCAA tournament criteria should not be penalizing teams for playing Hampton Pios (6-2) didn’t have the voltage to compete with Duke Pioneers visit Villanova on Saturday to jump start their Big East schedule “We Want More” had spring break this week coming off back-to-back losses to Syracuse and Navy The offense was cooking with fish grease early on Sunday at Rutgers torching the Scarlet Knights for a 7-4 halftime lead Then the RU 1-3-2 zone defense slowed Hopkins with the Jays lead only 1 with 15:00 to play Russell Melendez hit a mid range shot to make it 9-7 Melendez popped out of his slump to spark this win The defense and Chayse Ierlan did their jobs late as JHU wins at Rutgers 13-8 which has been a hornets nest for the program recently Q4 | 4:16JHU-12, Rutgers-7Collison puts one home from in tight off Angelus' 5th assist of the night. 5 assists & 7 points are one shy of JA's career-high. #GoHop #WeWantMore pic.twitter.com/whzd5S92eW Jays tangle with Michigan on ESPN2 this Saturday at noon with Chris Cotter and Paul Carcaterra in the booth the Swamp Dogs showed no signs of rust in a 21-9 blowout of Dartmouth on Tuesday afternoon Joe Cesare and Chase Llewellyn continue to produce and I’ll admit that midfields don’t play two-ends running up and down the field in a way they once did but having a trustworthy second group is reassuring when playing in a conference title game in heat on a single days rest #Hoyas Win Sixth-Straight with 14-8 Victory at No. 18/17 Richmond#HOYASAXA #GATA https://t.co/9phhZLRNn3 Swamp Dogs, surprising underdogs, were emphatic 14-8 winners Saturday against Richmond Just more proof of the progress this squad has made since early February Grad midfielder Alex Vardaro was excellent with 5 goals TJ Haley had three assists and the Second midfield once again chipped in five points Hoyas and Providence dance on Saturday in a Big East conference game Michigan scored last in a compelling B10 opener dropping the Terps and casting a shadow on their 2024 season “Be the Best” is (5-3) with overtime wins over Brown They are firmly on the bubble in a league that’s falling down the polls Maryland is suddenly stuck in the mud with a middling midfield corps no alpha to bail them out and a rope unit that doesn’t compare to prior editions Terps bus up to Happy Valley for a Sunday night game Nate Kabiri scored the last three goals in a Tiger win over Harvard This win is a giant step towards qualifying for the Ivy four-team tournament and keeps Princeton in the hunt for an at-large bid Spiders non-league schedule has featured dates with Maryland All four losses which will toughen RU for league play starting with St Bonaventure Dalton Young all by himself!#OneRichmond pic.twitter.com/gYByR8tIQR Wolverines enjoyed the postgame handshake line after defeating Maryland by one in Ann Arbor seemingly turning their season around with a single win Big blue roster is more talented than Maryland’s So the question becomes teamwork and systems Michigan had been struggling against the pick and roll (two man games) Justin Tiernan scored five times and the Wolverines cleared the ball with perfection after the first quarter Justin Wietfeldt dominated the dot in the late stages Michigan faces Johns Hopkins in Baltimore on ESPN2 at noon on Saturday with Cotter and Carc on the mic Raiders are (6-3) with victories over Penn State Gate has a negative ground ball margin and FO at 42% Hunter Drouin and Rory Connor lead the charge Quakers (5-3) were victims of Tuesday turmoil dropping a midweek game to St Joe’s 12-7 which will seriously hurt any hope of an at-large NCAA bid goalie Tommy Gross went 68% and the defense neutralized Penn’s midfield scoring Penn rebounded with a low scoring 11-8 win over Dartmouth in hellacious weather conditions an orange ball and 4-0 run in the third quarter made the difference Q4 6:44 | #12 Penn 11, Dartmouth 6Walsh ➡️ Scane 🟰 🚨🚨#ILPL // #FightOnPenn🔴🔵 pic.twitter.com/vLfJhv6QnU Villanova and Brown offset by losses to Georgetown Their schedule is top shelf but this outlier loss becomes problematic and uneasy on Selection Sunday when teams on the bubble with similar resumes are scrutinized Quakers are finished with non conference games This young and emerging team looked strong beating Navy midweek Nova is ready now to challenge Denver and Georgetown in the Big East Terriers are (6-2) with back-to-back wins over Loyola and Army 14 saves against the #1 team in the nation.Another outstanding performance for Will Barnes.📸 @Jonratnerphoto pic.twitter.com/7dmTQZy63r (7-0) is the lone undefeated team in D1 men’s lacrosse I have a feeling that we could be seeing massive coaching turnover at the end of the 2024 season I sense some coaches are now on the hot seat Two or three key jobs that domino into five or six changes at “Power 5” programs SPIRE’S world class High School and Post Grad lacrosse program are ideal for serious lacrosse players looking for an intense training environment to prepare for the next level of competition The academies sere college-bound high school student athletes as well as high school graduates looking to train & compete for an additional year while seeking the best possible college scholarship opportunities  The High School Academy features a blended learning environment of college preparatory academies along with unique personal development and career preparation features  PG students can earn college credit by taking two core classes per semester at Kent State – Ashtabula or online Metrics details The past three years (2020–2022) have witnessed the re-emergence of large Understanding ozone variability remains of high importance due to the major role Antarctic stratospheric ozone plays in climate variability across the Southern Hemisphere Climate change has already incited new sources of ozone depletion and the atmospheric abundance of several chlorofluorocarbons has recently been on the rise we take a comprehensive look at the monthly and daily ozone changes at different altitudes and latitudes within the Antarctic ozone hole Following indications of early-spring recovery the October middle stratosphere is dominated by continued amounting to 26% loss in the core of the ozone hole We link the declines in mid-spring Antarctic ozone to dynamical changes in mesospheric descent within the polar vortex highlighting the importance of continued monitoring of the state of the ozone layer Considering that 2015 and 2018 were also similar record years (five of the past eight years overall have exhibited record ozone holes) our aim here is to better understand recent changes in Antarctic ozone we take a systematic approach to analyse the behaviour of SH polar ozone throughout the key springtime months of September to November We begin by examining the recent record ozone hole years of 2020–2022 in the context of historical total column ozone (TCO) observations and onset/breakup metrics We then focus on signs of ozone recovery in vertical and horizontal distributions of SH polar stratospheric ozone during the SH spring months we investigate links between the ozone signals and dynamical changes in order to identify the likely drivers of the observed ozone changes a Zonal mean TCO in Dobson units (DU) across latitudes 60∘S to 90∘S shown for the months of Sept. for years 1979–2022 (2002 and 2019 excluded) Error bars for OMI represent the standard deviation of the daily mean TCO measurements (2005–2022) The lines present a linear fit from 2001–2022 The linear fit uncertainty is quoted at the 95% confidence interval and T = Years since 2001 b Deep ozone hole onset and breakup dates (130 DU Missing years do not surpass the TCO/area threshold during the season The lines present a linear fit from 2005–2022 The linear fit uncertainty is quoted at the 95% confidence interval and T = Years since 2005 we also find that the choice of turnaround/pivot year for the overall ozone trends (e.g. 2000 vs 2001) has little impact on the trajectory This raises the question of how many years of observational records will be needed to solidify TCO recovery particularly in light of emerging new sources of chlorine and the changing state of the Antarctic stratosphere due to climate change influences These results suggest that there may be new patterns emerging in the mid-spring evolution of the ozone hole Results are presented across latitudes 45∘S–82∘S and pressure levels 0.68–215 hPa (approximate altitudes in km given on the right) for the months of a September contour level intervals are 0.01 ppmv/year) represent the slope of a linear fit across the range of years All volume mixing ratio changes that are significantly different from zero (at ≥95% level) are indicated with black hatching Black vertical lines indicate separation between months A simple linear fit across the range of years (2004–2022) is found with contour colours representing the slopes (ppmv/year) Changes that are significantly different from zero (at ≥95% level) are indicated with black hatching which indicated decreasing October TCO and a shift towards a later breakup date of the deep ozone hole Red line: PCO for the pressure levels of 5-50 hPa and averaged from 60∘S to 82∘S; Pink line: As red line but now averaged from 75∘S to 82∘S; Dark blue line: PCO calculated for pressure levels 1–5 hPa and averaged from 60 ∘S to 82 ∘S; Light blue line: As dark blue line The results from linear fits are shown in the legend with errors quoted at 95% confidence interval and the percent change in PCO since 2004 is given after the Δ-symbol Both PCO time series in the middle stratosphere show a significant negative trajectory the net change of the time period from 2004 to 2022 is approximately − 26% in the area closest to the pole (magenta line The PCO values for the 5–50 hPa region are generally between 80 and 160 DU indicating that this region is a large contributor by weight to the corresponding TCO measurements This linear fit is slightly positive and only significant when the region of interest is limited to 45°S–60°S (light blue line) this increase is equivalent to less than 2 DU which does not represent a notable contribution to the change in the total ozone column zonally averaged MLS/Aura polar (75∘S–82∘S) CO concentration (VMR) Black vertical lines indicate separation between months with contour colours representing the slopes (ppbv/year) altitude of late-October CO maximum for 2005–2022 and c October partial column ozone (PCO) (from 5 to 50 hPa and 60∘S–82∘S) vs altitude of late-October CO maximum for 2004–2022 with error quoted at 95% confidence interval and Alt = altitude of late Oct Finally, we correlate the altitude of late-October CO descent with the second PCO series from Fig. 4 (magenta line, 75°S–82°S, 5–50 hPa), with results presented in Fig. 5c This too produces a significant negative correlation These results imply that the EPP indirect effect (or lack of arriving NOx) due to changes in the timing and altitude of mesospheric descent could play a role in PCO during October Further investigation is required to determine the exact dynamical origin of these effects By taking a holistic look at the yearly progression of the Antarctic ozone hole over the last two decades The addition of recent years to the Antarctic (60°S–90°S) total column ozone time series results in insignificant long-term change since the early 2000’s even where significant recovery has previously been reported we find a delay in both the deep ozone hole onset date as well as the breakup date The early springtime upper stratosphere near the polar vortex edge shows signs of ozone recovery the middle and lower stratospheric ozone poleward of 60°S declines at a rate of over − 0.03 ppmv/year from 2004 to 2022 with peak values in October exceeding  −0.10 ppmv/year the October partial column shows a total reduction of 26% from 2004 to 2022 This is equivalent to approximately 30 DU in the total column Atmospheric tracer observations show evidence of a vertical shift in mesospheric air descending into the core of the ozone hole This is highly correlated with October stratospheric NO2 and the ozone decline identified above More study is warranted to determine the precursors for the changes we identify in mesospheric descent and better understand the extent to which these effects will impact polar ozone in our changing climate We additionally calculate the ozone hole breakup dates from 2005 to 2022 by finding the last day in the season when the < 130 DU ozone hole reaches an area above the 1 million km2 threshold The day after this is considered the breakup date The slope of each point is reported as change in parts per million volume ozone per year (ppmv/year) is found using bootstrapping with 1000 iterations (results are consistent when 10,000 iterations are used) The slope of each point is reported as the change in parts per million volume ozone per year (ppmv/year) is found using bootstrapping as in the previous section Four series are created from the October mean MLS/Aura data each further isolated by a range of altitude and latitude levels: Pressure levels 5–50 hPa averaged from 60°S–82°S and from 75°S–82°S; Pressure levels 1–5 hPa averaged from 60°S–82°S and from 45°S to 60°S MLS ozone concentration values are then averaged zonally and across the latitude range specified to produce a single profile for each year The resulting PCO values are used to find a linear regression fit for each time series Statistical significance is reported using 95% confidence interval on the coefficient estimates from the regression fit An approximation of the net ozone loss through the range of years is calculated using the estimated slope of the linear fit The slope of each point is reported as the change in parts per billion volume CO per year (ppbv/year) is found using bootstrapping as in the previous sections Panel b: The MLS/Aura CO daily profiles are used for October 27th to October 31st (last 5 days of October) and are averaged zonally and latitudinally from 75°S to 82°S, as before in panel a. The altitude range is cropped to 5–50 hPa to match the coverage used for the PCO calculation for the 2nd series in Fig. 4 A Modified Akima Interpolation is performed to find the altitude (in kilometres) of the CO profile maximum for each day The altitude of the CO maximum is averaged across the 5 days to find a single value for each year present in the dataset The October mean stratospheric NO2 versus the altitude of late-October CO maximum is used to find a linear regression fit across 2005–2022 (2004 is excluded from the CO data due to the starting point of 2005 for the OMI NO2 data) Panel c: The MLS/Aura altitude of late-October CO maximum data is used again We select the 2nd PCO series produced in Fig. 4 using the pressure level range of 5–50 hPa and averaged from 60°S to 82°S The October PCO (from 5 to 50 hPa and 60°S–82°S) versus the altitude of late-October CO maximum is used to find a linear regression fit across 2004–2022 Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion: 2022 Halogen Occultation Experiment confirmation of stratospheric chlorine decreases in accordance with the Montreal Protocol Solomon, P. et al. Rise and decline of active chlorine in the stratosphere. Geophys. Res. Lett. 33 (18) https://doi.org/10.1029/2006GL027029 (2006) Chubachi, S. A Special Ozone Observation at Syowa Station, Antarctica from February 1982 to January 1983. In: Zerefos, C.S., Ghazi, A. (eds.) Atmospheric Ozone, pp. 285–289. Springer, Dordrecht https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5313-0_58 (1985) Large losses of total ozone in Antarctica reveal seasonal ClOx/NOx interaction Stratospheric ozone depletion: the main driver of twentieth-century atmospheric circulation changes in the southern hemisphere Signatures of the Antarctic ozone hole in Southern Hemisphere surface climate change Son, S.-W. et al. Impact of stratospheric ozone on Southern Hemisphere circulation change: a multimodel assessment. J. Geophys. Res.: Atmosph. 115 (D3) https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JD014271 (2010) Ten years of ozonesonde measurements at the south pole: implications for recovery of springtime Antarctic ozone Salby, M. L., Titova, E. 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Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC), Greenbelt, MD, USA https://doi.org/10.5067/Aura/MLS/DATA2506 (2020) Download references were partially funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Business Innovation & Employment Endeavour fund Smart Ideas project PROP-76111-ENDSI-UOO (Contract UOOX2106) analysed the data and prepared the figures wrote the manuscript with comments from C.J.R The authors declare no competing interests Nature Communications thanks the anonymous reviewers for their contribution to the peer review of this work Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42637-0 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science A 5-5 tie ballooned into a 15-6 win holding Lemoyne to one goal in the second half But right now they are unbeaten and have two quality wins I have never had more difficulty putting a poll together Yale is up next in the Mile High City on Sunday Pinging pipes for goals on a Saturday night at Barton for tonight’s @Safeway Goals of the Game. #GoPios pic.twitter.com/rYfSSpNtLF Black Knights topped Syracuse in the Dome on Wednesday night 14-13 in OT Army is ranked in the Top 5 for the first time since 2005 Evan Plunkett (3,2) and Jackson Eicher (3,1) were the offensive heroes 3,668 fans in central New York witnessed a fast and frantic game a contest that even the officials struggled to keep pace with Army has excellent personnel at all positions They’ll need more bench scoring from the second midfield going forward Poles Ryan Nixon and Christian Fournier stood out late in that game with nifty ground ball and handle plays in traffic Evan Plunkett May be the most versatile and dangerous midfielder in the land Jacob Morin has a shot with ridiculous velocity Reese Burek and Jackson Eicher keep the unit balanced and flowing Eicher buried the game winner with a textbook rocker step move to the middle Eight days. Three games. Three dubs. #FamilyToughnessTradition | #NOW pic.twitter.com/pBBotHkEwg PA on Sunday has Army at 5-0 for the first time since 1993 The attack combined for 15 points and Evan Plunkett had four points Trip to Monticello yields a Doyle Smith Cup and signature win over Virginia Minus their late game meltdown to the Pios they’d have an argument for the top spot based on wins over Virginia Pace of play and physicality have taken a quantum leap forward in the past two seasons Transfer portal and fifth year seniors equate to a bigger Jhu won the specialty situations and clamped down in the second half defensively turning a 10-8 halftime deficit into a 14-12 lead on their way to a 16-14 victory The JHU pep band was a no show but the midfield depth and production proved to be the difference maker OC John Crawley chose to work the motion offense mainly through the midfield and it was the winning move clutch collie 😤💪Matt Collison comes up CLUTCH with 1:25 left in the 4th quarter to put us up by two goals over UVA. #WeWantMore pic.twitter.com/a1vk2yjzkh Hopkins victory over UVA capped off a run of five straight ACC losses during the week The pack of contenders is deeper and more closely grouped than I anticipated when the season began Anish and Carc have the television call on ESPN + at 6:30pm If you’re going to defeat the Bagpipers you must limit chaotic opportunities for the Kavanagh brothers and stay out of the penalty box Defenses will try to make Eric Dobson make decisions and shots with his feet on the move And being vigilant in interior coverage of Jake Taylor is essential to minimize the Irish offense will be one of the best in the nation by year’s end A front running 14-9 win over Maryland on Sunday with a packed house at sunny Arlotta was the medicine for their debut debacle a week ago against Georgetown the Kavanagh brothers and Jake Taylor were making magic around the net END Q3: @NDlacrosse 11, @TerpsMLax 6.Big defensive quarter for the Irish. Faison scores two to get the ND crowd fired up.Big final 15 minutes coming up. pic.twitter.com/iZJ2VdtA2Z Bagpipers and midwestern rival Ohio State tussle on Saturday A 16-14 loss at Klockner in front of 3,434 fans sends the Doyle Smith Cup back to Charm City for the year This game was action packed with hard hitting action The 97th meeting in the series stamps Hopkins as a legit title contender and reveals some flaws in the Wahoos The Cavs didn’t dress primary FOGO Anthony Ghobriel UVA off-ball and transition defense were sub-par When you give up shots from between the football hashes The second midfield is providing no pop right now The first midfield lacks dodgers not named Griffin Schutz Connor Shellenberger fought like crazy late in this game Interesting defensive decision to pole Hopkins midfielder Dylan Bauer thereby putting the ball in the stick of Matt Collison although Jurassic Park was closed on Saturday Wahoos entertain RoMo on Tuesday and bus to Towson on Saturday a lack of urgency and poor shooting acumen (12 of 47) all were to blame Brennan O’Neill was held to one goal as Duke chose to play team offense the intensity level and attention to detail wasn’t what it needs to be Sometimes I honestly think John Danowski likes losing an early game to make it a learning moment Three excellent games plus Army at Lafayette all shared the same time-slot The age difference between these two rosters is staggering Losing games is not the worst thing in the world HAVE A DAY, @zawada_josh!4 goals, 2 assists 🔥#GoDuke pic.twitter.com/NQwYOKmEvO Sunday loss to Notre Dame featured some uncharacteristic turnovers by Maryland in the defensive zone and while clearing I found it perplexing that Maryland didn’t invert more and attack the ND defense from X after watching Georgetown have success with that strategy Dangerous because of their goalie and face-off combo Midfield scoring and penetration is what needs to be ramped up Otto came up a goal short on Wednesday in a home thriller against Army Has it created false expectations and pressure Let’s face facts – He isn’t in the discussion for the Tewaaraton Trophy just yet an elite passer and distributor with perhaps one of the most advanced game IQ’s I’ve seen for a player of his age He can read and diagnose the game faster than everybody But we have seen in losses to Maryland and Army that when covered by a top tier defenders (Ajax Zappitello & AJ Pilate) Spallina struggles to create his own high percentage scoring chances Speed and separation quickness become an issue AJ Pilate locked him up and it appeared to lead to frustration and poor shot selection A lesson to be applied going forward against ACC powers there are some of Spallina’s teammates who need to look deep into a mirror and figure out how to better contribute Spend less time worrying about the box score and individual accolades he is heavily invested and cares deeply about lacrosse OC Pat March and coach Gary Gait will figure it out This is a small speed bump on what will be a long and fruitful career And I don’t want to hear anybody talking about “pressure” Don’t willingly put the #22 jersey on your back run around social media promoting it and then complain about pressure Army was slow to slide to SU all night and it became a day when Orange midfielders had to be able to run by their man One issue I have with SU’s offense is that many of the offensive players have the similar attributes and body types So opposing teams can switch picks and not stress out it’s helpful to have a differing cross section of size I would expect Duke and Virginia to play the same styled defense as Army Force SU ball carriers to beat their man and score unassisted goals Orange midfielders had some success with the re-dodge on Wednesday BTB goals that go viral on social media are only worth 1 point At times I get the feeling that certain players are chasing style points Respect the difference between functional creativity and show-boating they set a North American record for earliest Senior Day Joey Spallina has seven goals and was more active off-ball #HHH postseason resume is very much a work in progress I’d surmise that they’ll have to win two of three against Hopkins North Carolina and Cornell if they don’t upset ND Orange and Hopkins take their iconic rivalry on the road to Charlotte “Hard Hat 21” tattooed Hobart on Tuesday for their biggest win margin since 2018 Hugh Kelleher hit on four of his five shots Freshman Willem Firth dished out three assists and CJ Kirst had five points behind seven goals from CJ Kirst on a stingy Ohio State defense CJ KIRST AT X. UNSTOPPABLE. @CornellLacrosse has a superstar on its hands. pic.twitter.com/83PVjPAi8I “We Are” rallied to defeat Yale in overtime behind a monster outing from TJ Malone double invert and feeds to the crease during the comeback Nittany Lions and Cornell should be a great one on Saturday I’m old enough to remember when Jeff Tambroni took the Big Red to the NCAA final knock the sand out of your shoes and consider it an energy docking station crease scorer Justin Tiernan had 4 goals and Ryan Cohen finished with four points 𝙂𝙊𝘼𝙇No. 4 on the day for Tiernan with 8:21 to go in Q3. Helper from Cohen.10-5 lead.#GoBlue〽️ pic.twitter.com/gWcErp8nw3 Michigan finished up their three game spring break road trip with an impressive 13-8 victory against Delaware as Mikey Boehm eclipsed 200 career points Brown played zone defense in an 11-5 loss to the Hoyas in DC on Saturday TJ Haley was excellent for coach Kevin Warne Will Godine and Jack Leary are game changers very much hinged on the work of Hess on ND midfielder Eric Dobson The trio took away the middle of the field forced alley dodges while close defender Ty Banks was pressing out at X against Pat Kavanagh Hess also set a great pick behind the net in early offense GT’s offense has developed snappy ball reversal – that is the ability to swing the ball top to behind or left to right of the formation TJ Haley has become more dangerous as a scorer in big / little scenarios four goals came from initial ISO’s from behind the goal This is a must for all teams who play Notre Dame GT better be careful with High Point on Tuesday at 5pm Spiders sucked the life out of Binghamton in the second half Richmond may cruise through their league schedule Spiders pay a trip to UMBC on Friday at 6pm has old-school charm and some decent spots for food They mauled North Carolina 15-9 on Friday in the rain Nate Kibiri and Colin “Barbeque” Burns are a young attack with massive upside and connectivity 🗣️ Over the head YAARDDDSAAAALLLEEE(via ACCNX / @TigerLacrosse) pic.twitter.com/DQRdDg9Svf The young Tigers met their match with an angry and focused Duke team Tigers and Rutgers is a spirited NJ rivalry game playing with their hair on fire for 60 minutes 14-12 margin made possible by the work of defender Brendan Lavelle on Tewaaraton finalist Brennan O’Neil limiting his touches and production to one goal on eight shots Ben Smith and Luke DiNola scored three apiece Goalie Emmett Carroll had 17 saves in the mud and rain Penn didn’t sit on their lead and took all of the Duke punches late in the fourth quarter Quakers were flat as a pancake on short rest at UNC on Sunday Mike Murphy’s squad takes the short trip to Nova 4-0 and 8-1 leads disintegrated into a 15-14 overtime loss at Penn State Midweek mailing of Merrimack saw the Crimson jump out to a 7-1 lead after 15 minutes forced 11 failed clears and was +29 in ground ball margin 23-8 victory a change of pace after razor thin wins over BU and Bucknell The Crim keeps rolling! #HLX1881 pic.twitter.com/0YfbdHknls Harvard is (5-0) for the first time since 2000 after defeating Vermont on the road 15-12 Crimson at Michigan on Sunday in a sneaky important game for both organizations Bada boom held serve 13-8 over Hofstra in the rain RU is 19-3 in non-conference play over the past three seasons Jersey boys and Detroit meet on Tuesday and then Princeton and RU battle in a trophy game on Sunday 13-9 Sunday win may be a turnaround moment for the Heels after playing so poorly on Friday They dominated Faceoffs 18-8 and James Matan and Dom Pietramala were effective Carolina is (2-2) with losses to JHU and the Tigers Losses to Virginia and Cornell are top tier Question marks exist in terms of offensive output In the shot clock era you can’t win with defense only How many games can OSU actually win in the B10 I spoke with their coach Eric Wolf on the Quintessential Podcast Listen as Eric talks about the turnaround and Highlander culture Twitter: @QKessenichInstagram: @quintekessenich Read last week’s rankings to see how things have changed