Nothing Drastic in Last Pre-Championship Nike/USAL Division III Men's Top 20

The brackets are set, which means it’s time for the Nike/USA Lacrosse Division III Men’s Top 20 to amble into the sunset. But before we lock the doors, come inside and hang out for a few minutes. We’re going to miss you. 

The NESCAC championship was only exciting if you were wearing baby blue or thought Karate Kid was about the misunderstood plight of Johnny Lawrence and the Cobra Kai dojo. Unfortunately for the Midd kids, they were met with a stampede of goals and were nearly outscored just by Jack Boyden. Middlebury was down 8-0 before anyone even sat down in this game. It was Casey D’Annolfo’s 100th win in charge of the Jumbos and the team’s fifth consecutive NESCAC title. Tufts is the deserved No. 1 seed and will take on whoever is thrown to their cage after the play-in games conclude. 

Salisbury lifted the CLC title after a game that was projected as a high-scoring affair ended up the opposite. Christopher Newport played at a more slowdown pace, but it didn’t seem to matter much to the volume-shooting Gulls. Warner Cabaniss had a big edge facing off, but the Captains couldn’t convert possessions into goals. Andrew Cook was held to just one goal on six shots, with five turnovers. Salisbury was able to overcome a 1-for-14 shooting day from Cross Ferrera thanks to excellent efforts from Jude Brown and Jack Dowd, grinding down the CNU defense throughout the day for the victory. 

Denison staged a massive comeback to grab a win and leave Kenyon on the tournament bubble. Trailing 10-3 at the half, Denison would need something spectacular, and that’s what they got. Despite Kenyon having outstanding faceoff specialist Thomas Nelson, Denison outscored Kenyon 11-3 in the second half, even with a two-goal edge in faceoffs, to come all the way back and notch the win. Ten players found the net for Denison. But, good news for Kenyon — it still made the NCAA tournament and will take on MAC Freedom champion Stevens in their opening round game. 

RIT enters the postseason with a major statement. A gaudy 18 goals from 11 players. Another win over Union. Luke Pilcher led the way with five; nobody else had more than two. Fourteen players registered a point. Will Sterrett saved 13 of the 16 shots that he faced. The Tigers had everything working as they prepare to defend their title in the NCAA tournament. RIT hasn’t lost since March 17. The Tigers have notched several impressive Top 20 wins in that stretch. The Tigers are lurking, even stalking, their prey, while Tufts, Salisbury and CNU steal the headlines. 

NIKE/USA LACROSSE
DIVISION III MEN’S TOP 20

Also considered (alphabetical order): Clarkson (11-4), Hampden-Sydney (13-5), Muhlenberg (11-5), St. Lawrence (12-6)

UPCOMING GAMES

No. 1 Tufts 5/13 vs. Emmanuel / Maine Maritime
No. 2 Salisbury 5/13 vs. Colorado College
No. 3 RIT 5/12 vs. New England College / Western Connecticut
No. 4 Christopher Newport 5/12 vs. Hope
No. 5 Dickinson 5/13 vs. John Carroll / Lake Forest

No. 6 Middlebury 5/13 vs. St. Mary's (Md.) / Merchant Marine
No. 7 Amherst 5/13 vs. SUNY Geneseo
No. 8 Gettysburg 5/12 vs. Scranton
No. 9 Denison 5/13 vs. Illinois Wesleyan / Aurora
No. 10 Swarthmore 5/13 vs. Grove City

No. 11 York 5/13 vs. No. 15 Cabrini
No. 12 Washington and Lee 5/13 vs. Centre / Pfeiffer
No. 13 Lynchburg 5/13 vs. St. John Fisher
No. 14 Stevens 5/13 vs. No. 19 Kenyon
No. 15 Cabrini 5/13 vs. No. 11 York

No. 16 Bowdoin Season complete
No. 17 Williams 5/13 vs. No. 20 Babson
No. 18 Union 5/13 vs. Western New England
No. 19 Kenyon 5/13 vs. No. 14 Stevens
No. 20 Babson 5/13 vs. No. 17 Williams

Nike/USA Lacrosse Rankings

Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women

HOT

York (+1)

York has been hot. Quite hot. Because of a slow start to the year, York fell to the bottom of the Top 20. But the Spartans have very much righted the ship. They’ve won nine straight, and 12 of their last 13. Will Harnick is up to 81 goals this season. They don’t have an easy tournament road. They have a first-round game with Cabrini and are likely headed for a second-round game with top-seeded Tufts. But York is doing all the right things well at the right time. 

NOT

RPI

RPI was bubblish all year. (Bubbly?) The Engineerrs lived on the bubble of the Top 20. They played close games with contenders putting. They were right there in critical moments to really push their season over the top. Ultimately, they just came up a few goals short. One goal loss to Middlebury, but a win over St Lawrence. Three-goal loss to Hamilton, but beat Muhlenberg. It all added up to a 9-7 record and just not quite enough to get an at-large NCAA bid. Two of RPI’s top three scorers are freshmen, and they return plenty of firepower. They’ll be looking to turn those close losses in 2023 into close wins in 2024. 

IN

Kenyon (No. 19)

Hey, how do you knock a team that went after everyone on their schedule like it was their final contest? If you haven’t seen Kenyon play, you’ve been robbed of the innate joy provided by watching Thomas Nelson absolutely merc guys at the faceoff X. It’s like watching a cartoon sometimes; that’s how easy and smooth his exits are. But a FOGO does not an entire team make. The Owls also sport a pair of 60-plus point scorers in Jack Guiffre and David Chintala. Oh, and they’re backstopped by Adam Hall — a freshman goaltender who is saving nearly 60 percent of the shots that he sees. Kenyon is the darkest of horses but in the best way possible. 

OUT

St. Lawrence (was No. 20)

It was not that long ago that the Saints were on the verge of mounting the summit. Then they lined up across the field from Middlebury, shook hands and watched their goalie run to the cage with hope in their hearts for the final time. That loss to the Panthers really ended up being a tragic turning point in the season for Mike Mahoney and his coaching staff. The Saints will be back in 2024, but it will be a long and pensive wait for a team that was so close to making the leap. 

PREVIOUS RANKINGS

• Preseason

• Week 1: Feb. 13, 2023

• Week 2: Feb. 20, 2023

• Week 3: Feb. 27, 2023

• Week 4: March 6, 2023

• Week 5: March 13, 2023

• Week 6: March 20, 2023

• Week 7: March 27, 2023

• Week 8: April 3, 2023

• Week 9: April 10, 2023

• Week 10: April 17, 2023

• Week 11: April 24, 2023

• Week 12: May 1, 2023