When are crazy things going to stop happening in Florida?
Tampa remains on top of the Sunshine State Conference with wins against Saint Leo (16-7) and Seton Hill (14-9). Rollins has handled its business as well with a 13-6 victory over Palm Beach Atlantic.
It’s that fourth spot that’s wild right now. Florida Tech (5-7 overall) is locked in at No. 3 with a 4-2 conference mark. The battle is on for the fourth spot, though, with Saint Leo, Embry-Riddle, Florida Southern and Lynn all locked at 2-4. It wouldn’t be Florida if there wasn’t a long line.
In the NE-10, it’s starting to look like a three-team race, as Adelphi, Saint Anselm and Pace are mashing their way to the top week after week. For now, Adelphi remains atop the league table at 7-0 after a win over Franklin Pierce. Pace kept up with a win over Saint Michael’s to get to 6-1, and Saint Anselm is just a game back at 5-1 following a win over Assumption. The best part of this love triangle? It’ll get solved on the field. Pace and Adelphi both have a game left against Saint Anselm, with Adelphi’s turn coming this weekend.
The SAC is still a consistent battleground that becomes interesting when the top teams play one another, but the separation between the top teams and the not-so-top teams is now evident. Case in point — the bare-knuckle brawl that was Limestone v. Wingate. The Saints won 17-14, but the Bulldogs showed they wouldn’t just capitulate to the No. 1 team in the country. They put together a respectable comeback after Limestone outscored them 6-2 in the third quarter, but the shots did not fall.
Division II teams are starting to sew their last stitches into the tapestry of their regular season schedules. So, next week's games will be absolutely pivotal to the playoff positioning, and the teams that need those wins to get into the last few spots of their conference will be even more dangerous than usual.
There are no easy games left for anyone. They’re all building resumes now, and the only thing that will get teams noticed will be wins.
USA LACROSSE DIVISION II
MEN’S TOP 20
1. Limestone, 14-0 (Prev: 1)
2. Lenoir-Rhyne, 12-1 (Prev: 2)
3. Tampa, 14-1 (Prev: 3)
4. Adelphi, 10-2 (Prev: 4)
5. Mercy, 10-1 (Prev: 5)
6. Rollins, 11-2 (Prev: 6)
7. Saint Anselm, 7-1 (Prev: 8)
8. Pace, 10-1 (Prev: 9)
9. Wingate, 9-4 (Prev: 7)
10. Newberry, 10-3 (Prev: 10)
11. UIndy, 10-3 (Prev: 11)
12. Mercyhurst, 9-3 (Prev: 12)
13. Seton Hill, 7-4 (Prev: 13)
14. Frostburg State, 9-3 (Prev: 14)
15. Bentley, 6-4 (Prev: 16)
16. Rockhurst, 9-2 (Prev: 18)
17. Lewis, 10-3 (Prev: 20)
18. Florida Southern, 8-5 (Prev: 15)
19. Saint Leo, 8-5 (Prev: 19)
20. Mount Olive, 9-3 (Prev: NR)
Also considered (alphabetical order): Colorado Mesa, Embry-Riddle, Florida Tech, Maryville, Palm Beach Atlantic, Westminster