Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. College Lacrosse Bracketology is back. The Syracuse Orangemen, riding five straight one-goal wins, are the top seed in the projected bracket, but the team that sits outside of the field might be the bigger story for now.
Patrick Stevens walks us through his projected NCAA tournament field if the season ended today.
Using LaxPower’s RPI replica as a tool, he breaks down the field into automatic qualifiers and at-large teams. Here’s a hint: A certain team from Chapel Hill might not make the cut.
2. Virginia and Yale cruised to victories on Tuesday night. Ben Reeves scored twice and dished off four assists, and teammate Jackson Morrill scored four timres, to lead Yale past to a 23-7 win over St. John's. Joe French scored four goals for Virginia to help the Cavaliers blow out Cleveland State 20-7. They played without Zed Williams, who was attending his father's funeral.
Here's what else went down in the men's game:
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Monmouth overcame a deficit to beat Lafayette 9-8 for its fourth straight win. (MD1)
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No. 1 Limestone remained undefeated, dominating North Greenville en route to a 17-8 win. (MD2)
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Denison used goals from 16 different players to blow out Hiram 26-1. (MD3)
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Stevenson moved to 3-0 in conference with a 22-8 win over Lycoming. (MD3)
And in women's action:
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In Division I, No.7 Cornell came out of the gates hot and didn't look back, leading to a 17-3 win over Binghamton on Tuesday night. Sarah Phillips, Amie Dickson and Catherine Ellis each had four points to lead the way for the Big Red.
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Allie Flahery scored five goals to lead No. 5 William Smith to the win over No. 3 Ithaca by a 10-8 score. (WD3)
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Skye Slater and Rachel Saks each tallied five points for No. 10 York in a 14-6 win over No. 13 Catholic. (WD3)
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Kole Pollock and Michele Scannell had six points each to lead No. 1 Adelphi past No. 15 Pace by a 19-10 score and stay undefeated on the season. (WD2)
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No. 9 NYIT overcame a five-goal deficit to beat No. 12 Mercy 13-11. Down 6-1 in the first half, NYIT scored six straight goals to take the lead before halftime. The Bears held on in a tight second half. (WD2)
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Ashley Pyle had eight points on four goals and four assists to lead No. 16 West Chester past No. 19 Bloomsburg 18-11. (WD2)
3. Johns Hopkins coach Janine Tucker filed a protest with the Big Ten Conference, making the case that Northwestern's game-tying goal on Thursday night came after the clock had expired, according to the Baltimore Sun.
It's an unprecedented step for Tucker, who has never protested a game in over two decades of coaching at Johns Hopkins. However, replays from the Big Ten Network show that the ball was in Sheila Nesselbrush's after the clock hit 0.0, thus negating the goal that sent the game to overtime, where the Blue Jays lost 10-9.
Here is the controversial last second goal by Northwestern to force OT against Johns Hopkins with the scoreboard in view (via @NULax) pic.twitter.com/k0MIxOYumB
— Lacrosse Film Room (@LaxFilmRoom) March 31, 2017
4. We have a new No. 1 atop the Nike/US Lacrosse High School Boys’ Top 25. Landon (Md.) is off to a 6-0 start with wins over Brunswick (Conn.) and McCallie (Tenn.) and thanks to a McDonogh (Md.) loss to Culver (Ind.), it moves into the top spot.
Culver, after taking down the former No.1 team, launched from No. 14 to No. 4 in this week’s rankings.
For the women’s Top 25, the top teams avoided the upset bug. McDonogh (Md.), Garden City (N.J.) and St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes (Va.) held firm, while Agnes Irwin (Pa.) and Loyola (Ill.) were the big movers of the week.
Nike/US Lacrosse High School Rankings
National Boys' Top 25 | National Girls' Top 25
Northeast Boys' Top 10 | Northeast Girls' Top 10
Mid-Atlantic Boys' Top 10 | Mid-Atlantic Girls' Top 10
South Boys' Top 10 | South Girls' Top 10
Midwest Boys' Top 10 | Midwest Girls' Top 10
West Boys' Top 10 | West Girls' Top 10
Check out the boys and girls regional players of the week.
5. The US Lacrosse Coach Development Program, since its released its first online courses in 2004, has been ahead of its time.
As part of April’s Coaching Edition of the magazine, we walk you through the steps that the CDP is taking to continue advancing and innovating.
Some of the game’s biggest names share their experiences with the program and how they think it has value for all coaches, no matter the experience.
WHAT WE’RE READING
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Under Armour announced its first wave of 2017 All-America Boys and Girls, who will play in the 12th annual Under Armour All-America Lacrosse Games on July 1 at Johnny Unitas Stadium. Included on the girls' roster was 2015 U.S. U-19 member Andie Aldave.
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Inside Lacrosse dives into the issue of early recruiting, sharing its cover story that summarizes the battle for legislation and what it would mean for the game.
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After committing 13 turnovers in a loss to Ohio State, Towson and coach Shawn Nadelen have made an extra effort to hold onto the ball. It's worked so far, and Nadelen believes his team is getting more comfortable working together.
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Syracuse goalie Evan Molloy is pretty confident is his defense, notably defenseman Scott Firman. Molloy said that Firman is the top defenseman in the country, and his team the top defense, as well.
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Could we have another Chris Hogan story in the works? Former Penn State lacrosse player John Von Nessen, who played football in high school in New Jersey, is trying out for NFL and CFL scouts. Built like Hogan, at 6-foot-2, Von Nessen is drawing many comparisons.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING
What do you do when your team can't practice outside? You improvise, like Valor Christian (Colo,) did. The team decided to pit offense against defense in a game of Lacrosse Dodgeball. Defense got the bragging rights.
Defense comes up victorious in our friendly game of dodge ball in the gym due to weather conditions. Great focus today. #humble&hungry pic.twitter.com/5dM5uQ7poJ
— Valor Mens Lacrosse (@ValorMensLax) April 5, 2017
WHAT’S ON TAP
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The lone men's Division I game on Wednesday is a classic, with No. 2 Syracuse travels to face Hobart. Watch it here.
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Conversely, it's a pretty busy day for women's lacrosse. headlined by No. 1 Maryland visiting No. 15 Virginia. No. 3 Florida makes the trip to Marquette, No. 11 Syracuse meets Loyola and No. 18 Denver faces Butler, as well. For the Warrior TV Listings, click here.