As the calendar approached April, then-No. 9 Middlebury last week faced a daunting midterm exam in the form of road games at then-No. 8 Salisbury and No. 11 York and a visit from No. 4 Amherst. The Panthers aced the test, however, winning all three of those games to run their win streak to seven and to surge to No. 3 in this week’s Nike/US Lacrosse Division III Women’s Top 20.
No. 1 Gettysburg (9-0) dropped then-No. 14 TCNJ to a .500 record with a resounding 16-5 defeat as part of a 2-0 week. Tufts (8-0) remains No. 2. Wesleyan and Washington and Lee won two away games each and check in at Nos. 4 and 5, respectively.
The Panthers scored the first four goals of the second half to pull away from the Sea Gulls, 11-6, and end their 20-game home winning streak Monday. Two days later in a rematch of an NCAA quarterfinal, Casey O’Neill scored with 4:27 left to once again give Middlebury a one-goal win over the Spartans. Back home against the Mammoths, a three-goal run in the second half helped Middlebury take a 10-6 lead before it hung on for an 11-9 decision.
Salisbury rallied from its loss to knock off then-No. 3 Franklin and Marshall and then-No. 6 Mary Washington, posting a 2-1 week against a similar murderers’ row of opponents. League play heats up this week and presents the Bullets with their first true road game against a ranked foe with their Wednesday visit to the Diplomats.
April 1, 2019 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gettysburg | 9-0 | 1 | 4/3 at No. 9 Franklin & Marshall |
| 2 | Tufts | 8-0 | 2 | 4/3 at Williams |
| 3 | Middlebury | 7-1 | 9 | 4/4 MIT |
| 4 | Wesleyan | 8-1 | 3 | 4/3 No. 8 Amherst |
| 5 | Washington & Lee | 9-2 | 7 | 4/3 Randolph-Macon |
| 6 | Salisbury | 9-2 | 8 | 4/6 Frostburg State |
| 7 | Mary Washington | 9-2 | 6 | 4/6 Christopher Newport |
| 8 | Amherst | 6-2 | 4 | 4/3 at No. 4 Wesleyan |
| 9 | Franklin & Marshall | 7-3 | 5 | 4/3 No. 1 Gettysburg |
| 10 | St. John Fisher | 8-1 | 13 | 4/4 at No. 17 Cortland |
| 11 | Catholic | 7-2 | 15 | 4/3 at No. 13 York |
| 12 | Colby | 6-2 | 10 | 4/2 Endicott |
| 13 | York | 6-4 | 11 | 4/3 No. 11 Catholic |
| 14 | Trinity | 6-2 | 12 | 4/3 at Connecticut College |
| 15 | William Smith | 8-2 | 18 | 4/5 Clarkson |
| 16 | Colorado College | 11-0 | 16 | 4/9 Johnson & Wales |
| 17 | Cortland | 5-3 | 17 | 4/2 Nazareth |
| 18 | TCNJ | 4-4 | 14 | 4/6 Montclair State |
| 19 | Scranton | 9-1 | 19 | 4/2 at Rowan |
| 20 | Bates | 7-3 | NR | 4/3 Bowdoin |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Bowdoin, Brockport, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Dickinson, Hamilton, Haverford, Ithaca, Meredith
Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
William Smith (+3)
Perhaps counter to the call of their namesake, the Herons quietly have won six straight games since a last-minute, 11-10 loss at St. John Fisher — a defeat that looks better and better given the Cardinals’ continued ascension in these rankings. Ellie Burns certainly contributed as a freshman last season, but she has exploded offensively for William Smith with a team-high 29 goals. That she and Rachel Yackel (14 goals) are sophomores and Payton McMahon (13 goals, nine assists) is a freshman bodes well as the season enters its second half.
NOT
TCNJ (-4)
Traditionally one of the strongest programs in the nation, the Lions just haven’t had it when they’ve needed it in big games. A loss at No. 1 Gettysburg carries no shame; a 16-5 loss at the Bullets by TCNJ raises an eyebrow, to say the least. It’s been a precipitous fall, defensively, as the Lions are yielding nearly double the four goals per game they yielded all of last season. The roster remains talented and five of TCNJ’s final eight games come at home, offering opportunities for a rebound to start given a 10-day break until its next contest.
IN
Bates
The Bobcats, who handed No. 3 Middlebury its only loss of the season on opening day, return after they previously fallen back to the pack. Bates has won three straight to improve to 7-3 in advance of Bowdoin’s visit Wednesday.
OUT
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (No. 20)
The Athenas own two wins over NJAC teams, but they could not get one in their only chance against the powerful NESCAC, falling at home to Williams, 14-13, last week.