Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. Michigan fired both of its lacrosse coaches Tuesday, an unexpected development that, given the desirability of both positions, could jumpstart the coaching carousel.
John Paul, a Michigan alum who spearheaded the men's lacrosse team's transition from club to varsity in 2012-13, led the Wolverines to an 8-1 start this season, which included their first-ever win over a nationally ranked opponent (then-No. 10 Penn on March 11). But they finished with five straight losses, all to Big Ten opponents. Michigan is 1-14 in the conference since lacrosse became a Big Ten sport in 2015.
Paul was named Lacrosse Magazine's 2011 Person of the Year after leading the effort to elevate the Wolverines to Division I. Michigan, which won three MCLA championships in Paul's 14 years as the club coach preceding the move, became the first major FBS university to add men's lacrosse since Notre Dame did so in 1981. The addition also was the impetus for the Big Ten adding the sport. Paul's supporters took to Twitter to express their gratitude.
Jenny Ulehla, previously an assistant at Florida and the head coach at Temple and James Madison, led the Wolverines women to an upset win over rival Ohio State this season. They finished 5-12, their fourth consecutive losing season.
2. Landon (Md.) and McDonogh (Md.) further entrenched themselves as the nation's No. 1 teams in high school boys' and girls' lacrosse, respectively. Both had big weeks, with the Bears sweeping D.C.-area rivals Georgetown Prep (Md.) and Gonzaga (D.C.) and the Eagles thwarting Notre Dame Prep (Md.) to extend their remarkable winning streak to 172 games.
3. Boston College's Kenzie Kent might make it look easy, but transitioning from a six-month ice hockey season into the throes of a lacrosse playoff race is anything but simple. Our colleague Mark Macyk profiles the Eagles' two-sport star.
4. The ACC and Big Ten are set up to snag all eight at-large bids to the NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament, according to Patrick Stevens, who checked in with the first of three Bracketology installments this week as we make our way to Selection Sunday.
5. In Tuesday action, Boston University and Lehigh advanced in the Patriot League tournament with quarterfinal wins over Lafayette and Bucknell, respectively. In Division II, Indiana (Pa.) and Mercyhurst ousted Slippery Rock and Seton Hill, respectively in the PSAC quarterfinals.
Notable results on the men's side included a win for Division II No. 1 Merrimack over Southern New Hampshire and Pace's overtime triumph against Saint Anselm in the Northeast 10 quarterfinals. In Division III, Hampden-Sydney and Lynchburg advanced in the ODAC tournament with victories over Shenandoah and Randolph-Macon, respectively.