THE WEEK THAT WAS

CAA Roars into the National Discussion

The Colonial Athletic Association will look to evolve from spoiler to contender in 2018, and victories by James Madison (over North Carolina) and Towson (over Penn State) validate that claim. Wins over top 4 opponents jolted JMU and Towson to 8^th and 9^th, respectively, in this week’s Nike/U.S. Lacrosse Rankings.

The Dukes completed its ACC sweep by taking out Virginia Tech Wednesday afternoon, while Towson looks to continue its winning ways against a dangerous Georgetown team on Saturday. The 1-2 punch of Kristen Gaudian (11 goals) and Elena Romesburg (9) have combined for 20 of JMU's 31 goals.

Conference Opener

It’s rare to leap into first place on opening day, but Boston College did just that by knocking off Notre Dame, 13-11, in Indiana. The Eagles will sit alone atop their ACC perch until February 24 when Duke and Virginia Tech play the conference’s second game in Blacksburg, Virginia.

BC has one of the busiest early schedules in Division I by playing five games in the first two weeks of the season. The quirky schedule doesn’t see another ACC game until March 17 when the Eagles visit Louisville.

Blue Bloods Take Care of Business

Maryland, Florida and Northwestern opened their seasons victoriously, winning their games by a combined 88 goals. Maryland dispatched William & Mary by 11 and Florida took care of Colorado, 16-9.

Meanwhile, Northwestern crushed its foes, Canisius (18-7), and Detroit Mercy (21-2), by 30 goals. The Wildcats’ 39 goals came from 16 different scorers, led by Selena Lasota’s six tallies.

Program Debuts

Three of the four newest Division I programs made their debuts this past weekend. Arizona State is 2-0 after road wins over Atlantic Sun programs Kennesaw State (14-6) and Stetson (15-13).

East Carolina carded an 18-7 loss to George Washington and Wofford dropped a 21-11 contest to Gardner-Webb. The fourth newcomer, Hartford, will play its first game on Feb. 24 against Delaware State.
 

THE WEEK TO COME

Murphy Returns to Action

No. 2 Stony Brook nearly turned the upset of the year last season, falling by a goal at Maryland to be denied the program’s first NCAA semifinal appearance. The remarkable season was largelydone without 100-goal scorer Courtney Murphy, who played in only four games.

Now Murphy is back and she’ll be paired with Kylie Olhmiller, a 78-goal scorer from a year ago. The senior duo and their teammates are set to open their season at No. 5 USC on Friday.

Ivy League Joins the Fray

All eight Ivy League squads lift the lid on the 2018 campaign this Saturday. Three Ivy League teams are ranked in this week’s Nike/U.S. Lacrosse Rankings: Princeton (10^th), Penn (14^th) and Cornell (17^th). Penn hosts Delaware and Cornell welcomes Villanova.

Princeton has one of the toughest challenges with a road trip to a youthful Temple (2-0) squad that features 20 players who are sophomores or younger. The Owls will look to start the season with a third straight win over a New Jersey school after beating Rutgers and Monmouth.

Mid-Week Matchup to Watch

No. 13 Northwestern vs. No. 18 Colorado: The Buffaloes head to Lake Michigan to face off against a potent Wildcat offense today. Last year, Colorado got its signature win on opening day with a 12-11 overtime victory against Northwestern. NU is looking to start 3-0 for the first time since 2014.

Ranked Matchup to Watch, Part I

No. 5 USC vs. No. 2 Stony Brook (Friday, 10 p.m. ET): The offensive firepower of the Seawolves will face the stellar goalkeeping of USC’s Gussie Johns. Stony Brook holds a 2-1 lead in the series including last season’s 9-7 victory in New York. Friday’s game is being played at Lebard Stadium in Costa Mesa, California, as part of the Orange County Lacrosse Showcase.

Ranked Matchup to Watch, Part II

No. 4 Florida vs. No. 1 Maryland (Saturday Noon ET): The Terrapins take their 24-game winning streak to Gainesville to face a Florida team that easily overcame Colorado, 16-9. The Gators are 0-3 all-time against Maryland and have been defeated by 10 goals in each of the three previous meetings. 

Under-The-Radar Game

Louisville vs. Denver (Saturday, Noon ET): Last season, Denver was a signature win shy of a potential NCAA tournament bid, while Louisville had that key win to earn an at-large berth. The Pioneers are coming off a 12-9 victory over Stanford, while the Cardinals are 2-0 in the early going in Scott Teeter’s first season.

Other Intriguing Matchups

No. 9 Towson vs. Georgetown (Saturday, 3 p.m. ET): The Tigers are looking to back up their 14-13 upset win over Penn State a week ago with another solid performance against the Hoyas.

No. 15 Virginia vs. Elon (Saturday, 1 p.m. ET): The Hoos kick off the 2018 campaign in search of a confidence boosting win. Rachel Vander Kolk will likely start her 59^th straight game in net for UVa.

No. 13 Northwestern vs. No. 20 Duke (Sunday, Noon ET): This is Northwestern’s only trip away from Evanston until March 30. The Blue Devils will warm up for Sunday’s matchup by first hosting the Fighting Camels of Campbell on Friday.

ODDS & ENDS

Variety at the Top

In this week’s rankings, the top six teams are from six different conferences and eight different conferences are represented in the top 10. The two conferences to have a pair of top 10 teams: ACC (No. 3 Syracuse, No. 6 Boston College) and the CAA (No. 8 JMU, No. 9 Towson).

The Extra Points are Good

Boston College’s Sam Apuzzo staked claim to the second 7-goal game of the year in a 20-2 win over Holy Cross on Tuesday. Apuzzo dished twice for a 9-point day.

In her varsity lacrosse debut, Arizona State’s Kerri Clayton poured in 7 goals in the Sun Devils’ 14-6 win at Kennesaw State. She followed that up with a 5-goal effort at Stetson.