Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. The UWLX announced its 2017 draft picks Monday night, as well as its lists of protected players.
Among the newcomers are several 2017 college graduates that each respective team announced as intended draft picks.
The reigning champion Long Island Sound has its eyes on Caroline Fitzgerald (Florida, D), Cortney Fortunato (Notre Dame, A), Nadine Hadnagy (Maryland, D), Sammy Jo Tracy (North Carolina, M), Dorrien Van Dyke (Stony Brook, M) and Caylee Waters (North Carolina, G).
For the Baltimore Ride, 2017 graduates Sammi Burgess (Florida, A), Caroline Federico (Johns Hopkins, G), Steph Lazo (Penn State, A), Zoe Stukenberg (Maryland, M) and Caroline Wannen (Maryland, A) will join the squad.
Current seniors Carly Cronin (Bryant, D), Elisabeth Jayne (Boston University, A), Hannah Murphy (UMass, M), Kayla O’Connor (Boston College, A) and Kate Weeks (Boston College, A) are future Boston Storm players.
Lastly, seniors Olivia Hompe (Princeton, M), Megan Kelly (Penn, D) and Zoe Ochoa (Boston College, G) were selected by the Philly Force.
Celia Balf of Excelle Sports was on site at the draft party Monday night in New York City to report the full rosters.
2. Stanford coach Amy Bokker, a U.S. women's national team assistant, earned her 100th career win as the Cardinal secured a key 15-12 victory over MPSF rival Cal. Bokker now has a perfect 13-0 record against the Bears.
In other Division I women’s lacrosse news, Duke dominated Presbyterian 21-1 also on Monday night, while the lone Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20 matchup was in Division II women’s lacrosse as No. 2 Lindenwood handled No. 5 Queens (N.C.) 14-8.
3. The American Cancer Society will become Major League Lacrosse’s first official league-wide charity of choice in 2017, the MLL announced Monday. The partnership kicks off with the MLL Pink Challenge in May.
“For the first time in the seventeen-year history of our league, we have united every team behind a singular philanthropic effort,” MLL commissioner David Gross said. “It is an honor to name the American Cancer Society as the first official charity of MLL. Too many lives have been touched by this disease and we are hopeful our partnership can play a small part in the eventual eradication of all forms of cancer from our world.”
4. The Tewaaraton Foundation supports the NCAA's decision on early recruiting, it announced in a press release Monday night.
“We commend the IWLCA and IMLCA for their leadership in addressing the issue of early recruiting,” said Jeff Harvey, chairman of the Tewaaraton Foundation. “This decision by the NCAA allows players and their families to make informed college decisions. Student-athletes can now focus on their academics and the unique experiences of being a high school athlete. We truly appreciate the NCAA for recognizing the need to rectify this process."
5. In this week’s Nike/US Lacrosse rankings, Duke and Yale jumped five spots in Division I men’s lacrosse, while Villanova and Providence come in at No. 18 and No. 19. respectively.
In Division I women’s lacrosse, Syracuse was the big mover this week after upsetting reigning national champion North Carolina, while Albany makes its first appearance in the Top 20 this season.
A look at the major-college and junior-college polls released on Monday:
NIKE/USL RANKINGS
MD1 | WD1 | MD2 | WD2 | MD3 | WD3
MAVERIK/CASCADE/IL MEDIA POLLS
MD1 | WD1
USILA POLLS
MD1 | MD2 | MD3
IWLCA POLLS
WD1 | WD2 | WD3
JUNIOR COLLEGE MEN
6. The Epoch/US Lacrosse Players of the Week are Albany’s Dakotah Savitcheff on the women’s side and Maryland’s Dan Morris on the men’s side.
What We’re Reading
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The Maryland women’s lacrosse seniors have lost just three games in their college careers thus far.
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The Baltimore Sun takes a look at tournament chances for Loyola and Navy of the Patriot League.
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After Easter Sunday, it’s crunch time, writes ESPN’s Quint Kessenich for Inside Lacrosse.
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It was a bitter end for North Carolina’s winning streak after falling to Syracuse.
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CBS Minnesota’s David McCoy makes the case for the University of Minnesota adding Division I men’s lacrosse.
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A few Bedford High boys’ lacrosse players in New Hampshire were suspended three weeks for missing practices and a scrimmage to compete in USA Hockey national tournaments – and shared why it was worth it.
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Ithaca high school senior Theo Cowett, who starred in soccer throughout his four years, decided to pick up lacrosse in his final spring.
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The sport has grown in Greenville, S.C., evident of the championships now having two separate classifications: AAAAA and AAAA.
What We’re Watching
STX follows 2005 Tewaaraton winner, Johns Hopkins graduate and Ohio Machine midfielder Kyle Harrison, 34, on his road to recovery after having ankle surgery.
“I want to play the last years of my career,” said Harrison. “I won’t be the guy that just hangs around.”
#TheRoadBack : https://t.co/rQRKNcORrw pic.twitter.com/HFkae7hlkT
— Kyle Harrison (@KyleHarrison18) April 17, 2017
Watch the full video on YouTube.
What’s On Tap
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The Nike/US Lacrosse high school rankings come out today. Check back later to see which boys’ and girls’ teams are No. 1.
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The marquee game of the night pits the No. 7 Syracuse women against No. 10 Cornell at 7 p.m. in the Carrier Dome.
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Also on tap, No. 19 Providence plays Brown tonight at 7 p.m. in Division I men’s lacrosse.