If there’s one thing Division III lacrosse fans can assume after last week’s results, it’s this: Don’t assume any top team is guaranteed to win.
Such was the case as Tufts edged past Amherst by one goal in a NESCAC thriller, and also when Salisbury needed double overtime to edge past War on the Shore rival Washington College.
That pattern of suspense and naibitters should again unfold this coming week. By Wednesday, three games featuring both squads in the Nike/US Lacrosse Division III Men’s Top 20 will have played out. Predicting those results is a headache waiting to happen.
Until then, here’s how the country’s D-III landscape is shaping up.
Nike/US Lacrosse
Division III Men’s Top 20
April 15, 2019 |
W/L |
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Next |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Salisbury | 14-0 | 1 | 4/17 vs. No. 4 York |
| 2 | RIT | 13-1 | 2 | 4/16 vs. Nazareth |
| 3 | Tufts | 11-1 | 6 | 4/16 vs. No. 13 Bates |
| 4 | York | 13-1 | 3 | 4/17 at No. 1 Salisbury |
| 5 | Wesleyan | 10-2 | 5 | 4/20 vs. Hamilton |
| 6 | Cabrini | 12-2 | 7 | 4/17 vs. Marymount |
| 7 | Gettysburg | 11-3 | 8 | 4/24 at McDaniel |
| 8 | Amherst | 11-2 | 4 | 4/20 at No. 13 Bates |
| 9 | Williams | 10-2 | 9 | 4/17 vs. Western New England |
| 10 | Ursinus | 10-1 | 10 | 4/20 vs. Haverford |
| 11 | Denison | 10-2 | 12 | 4/17 at Wooster |
| 12 | Stevens | 12-2 | 13 | 4/17 vs. Elmira |
| 13 | Bates | 9-2 | 15 | 4/16 at No. 3 Tufts |
| 14 | Washington and Lee | 9-4 | 14 | 4/17 at Virginia Wesleyan |
| 15 | Dickinson | 9-4 | 11 | 4/20 at Muhlenberg |
| 16 | Lynchburg | 9-4 | 17 | 4/17 at Randolph-Macon |
| 17 | Union | 10-1 | 19 | 4/17 at No. 19 RPI |
| 18 | Franklin & Marshall | 9-4 | 16 | 4/20 at Washington College |
| 19 | RPI | 10-2 | 18 | 4/17 vs. No. 17 Union |
| 20 | Stevenson | 7-6 | NR | 4/16 vs. Lebanon Valley |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Cortland, Colorado College, DeSales, Ithaca, Saint John Fisher, St. Lawrence, Western New England, Whittier
Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
Hot
Tufts (+3)
One week after taking a slide down, the Jumbos vault back into the top three with Saturday’s 15-14 win over Amherst. It was Tufts’ third straight game decided by one goal and represented an emphatic rebound from a loss to Wesleyan two weekends ago. As important as a combined 11 points between Ben Connelly and Max Waldbaum were, junior goalie Mason Pollack was equally as vital. He recorded a season-high 19 saves and scored his second goal of the season. Yes, you read that right.
Union (+2)
The Dutchmen are on a roll, having won six straight after Saturday’s 12-11 overtime win at St. Lawrence. Kieran McGovern scored the game-winner on his third tally of the day, while Jack Santilli made 11 saves. The Liberty League is still RIT’s until proven otherwise, but this pesky Union side sure has a fighting chance, too.
Lynchburg (+1)
The bread and butter of the Hornets’ schedule – read: ODAC play – is here. That’s translated to five straight wins in conference play. The latest high mark was a 23-4 demolishing of Virginia Wesleyan that saw three different players record at least three points. The leader, though, continues to be midfielder Kevin Rogers. He has a career-high 53 points through just 13 games.
Ursinus
One of the early-season buzzworthy topics was Ursinus and its rise back to Centennial Conference relevancy. After talk cooled off some, it might pick up steam yet again with Saturday’s 16-15 overtime win over Franklin & Marshall. The Bears, whose only loss has come against Gettysburg, completed the comeback with a game-winner from Sam Mutz. It was just his eighth goal of the year.
Not
Amherst (-4)
It’s probably a bit harsh for Amherst to drop this far, but then again the NESCAC program fell to Williams (13-11) and Tufts (15-14) in the span of a week. The margin of error is so thin at the upper end of Division 3, so it’s not like the Mammoths are a bad team. They’ll close out the regular season with games against Bates and Trinity, then likely make some noise in the national tournament.
Dickinson (-4)
The Red Devils scored a 19-4 win over Swarthmore on Saturday, but it’s what came before that spells cause for concern. Dickinson lost back-to-back games against Haverford (12-9) and Gettysburg (11-8), making the odds of repeating as Centennial Conference champions all that much smaller. It’ll be interesting to see how this group responds to adversity.
New
Stevenson
Don’t let the Mustangs 7-6 record fool you; they encountered a who’s who of Division III with their first seven games of the season, beating just Denison. Since, the hosts of the Mustang Classic have rattled off six straight wins, with the latest a 18-9 defeat of Widener last Friday. The MAC Commonwealth powerhouse benefitted from six-point days from Ethan Christensen and Jacob Tatum, as well as four goals from Cam Leydig.
Out
Cortland
Through no fault of their own, the Red Dragons are narrowly bumped out of the Top 20 this week. The SUNYAC powerhouse beat Geneseo (13-10) and Oneonta (17-5) last week. Thus, this small shuffle speaks more to Stevenson’s rise than it does any shortcomings by Cortland.