Traveling across the country and opening the season at the No. 5 team in the country can be a daunting task. But when you return the preseason player of the year and a 100-goal scorer from two years ago, you’re more than prepared.

No. 2 Stony Brook is out of the gates unblemished after a 14-10 win against No. 5 USC on Friday before backing that up with a 15-9 victory at Stanford. 

“It speaks about the evolution of our program,” coach Joe Spallina said. “I’m not sure if I would have always wanted to play the No. 5 team in the country right away, but we’re a veteran squad. We didn’t want to do a lot of first-game things against that type of team. It’s a tribute to our team that we made a ton of really good plays and we didn’t beat ourselves.”

It took just four minutes for Courtney Murphy to get Stony Brook on the board in her first appearance in nearly a year after an ACL tear. That goal was the first of four and the first point of eight in a dynamic season debut when the Seawolves never trailed. 

Spallina attributed her attention to detail last season on the sidelines to her hot start.

“Obviously she’s a prolific, but the time down allowed her to look at the game a little better through a coach’s eyes,” Spallina said. “We have a great friendship and relationship as a coach and mentor and believing in her when no one believed in here. She’s emerged into this tremendous player. She’s a tough kid. She doesn’t mess around.”

The dynamic Stony Brook offense has a true triple threat in Murphy, this week’s Brine/US Lacrosse Player of the Week, and the Ohlmiller sisters, Kylie and Taryn. While Kylie earned plenty of preseason attention, it was Taryn that matched Murphy’s goal output against the Trojans with four and was just one point shy of Murphy’s game-high eight. 

Kylie Ohlmiller added a goal and a pair of assists against USC. She lit the lamp six times against the Cardinal two days later.

“Give me a team full of Kylies,” Spallina said. “When you have your best player setting the example it’s hard to fail. I love watching how excited she gets when she sees other teammates score.” 

| Highlights from our win over Stanford last night in California #NCAALAX #AEWLAX pic.twitter.com/F8138ZXh4Q

— Stony Brook WLAX (@StonyBrookWLAX) February 20, 2018

Looking forward, the Seawolves are positioned well to be a serious contender for a national title. Their difficult schedule continues on Sunday when Denver visits before a Big Ten weekend at No. 15 Northwestern and Michigan. The non-conference schedule also features teams like No. 9 Towson, No. 17 Cornell, Johns Hopkins and No. 18 Penn State. 

The hope by scheduling tough is that the selection committee provides a reward in a high seed if Stony Brook has success. Last year, Stony Brook earned a No. 8 seed and a tough quarterfinal matchup at Maryland.

“The seeding is going to be a very important part of how this thing shakes out with so many good teams,” Spallina said. “This year more than any other year you could ask the 10 people what their final four is and you might get 10 different selections.”

Even with that long-term planning, Spallina has emphasized with his team that immediacy needs their attention.

“We’re 2-0 after two tough games, we have a lot of work to do. We can’t get caught up looking at the finish line.”

THE WEEK THAT WAS:

Whittle Surges Maryland Past Florida 

Three successive Megan Whittle free-position goals were part of a decisive 5-0 run as top-ranked Maryland eased by Florida. Whittle had five goals and Sydney Pirreca scored a game-high six as the Gators were unable to keep pace. Despite losing the draw control battle, 19-14, Maryland was efficient on the 8-meter, scoring 7 times in 11 attempts.

Duke Upends Northwestern

The Blue Devils (3-0) withstood a wild final minute as Gabbe Cadoux made three of her 10 stops in the one-goal win over Northwestern. Duke won the battle in the circle, 12-7, paced by Olivia Jenner’s eight controls. Jenner has 29 draws in three games for Duke. Freshman Charlotte North’s hat trick paced the offense.

ACC Rolls

The Atlantic Coast Conference went 9-1 over the weekend that featured some big wins (see above). Notable among the nine victories was Virginia’s dismantling of Elon, 17-4, which featured eight different Cavaliers getting on the ledger.

Welcome to the Show 

Cornell sophomore Katie McGahan made the most of her first career start by making 18 saves in a 13-7 win over Villanova. McGahan and the Big Red head to Happy Valley to face Penn State on Saturday.

It’s Snow Problem

By the end of Sunday’s game, Towson and Georgetown were very familiar with one another. Due to a pair of stoppages because of snow, Saturday’s contest was cut short just 14:16 away from being official as the Tigers held a 9-3 lead. The game was replayed Sunday with Towson coming out victorious, 21-13. In the end, the two teams battled for over 100 minutes of competition and 46 goals, although none of Saturday’s stats count. 

Denver Dodges Snowflakes, Cardinals to 2-0 Start

Louisville played host to Denver on Saturday afternoon in another snowy affair. Riley Eggeman’s four goals helped the Pioneers cruise by the Cardinals, 12-5.

Pirates Take Home the First Victory

East Carolina is on the board. The Pirates won their first game in program history in dramatic fashion on Saturday as Megan Pallozzi’s fourth goal of the day came in overtime for a 15-14 win over Gardner-Webb. Mackell Schultes forced the extra session with an unassisted tally in the final minute.

Nielsen Earns First Victories at Michigan

Hannah Nielsen’s Wolverines opened their new digs with dominating wins over Butler (12-2 on Friday) and Canisius (14-3). Nielsen will look for the first win over a ranked foe in her coaching tenure on Sunday at Navy.

MID-WEEK GAMES:

Several mid-week battles among regional rivals take place today. Let’s take a look at a few.

Battle of Charles Street

Johns Hopkins (2-0) hosts Loyola at 4 p.m. The Greyhounds are one of nine teams yet to play this season (more on that below). This game could have an NCAA tournament feel to it: gametime temperatures will creep to nearly 80. 

Big Five Battle

Saint Joseph’s (1-1) heads to Temple (2-1) for a 3 p.m. matchup looking for its first win over the Owls since 2009. The Hawks poured in 21 goals against Central Connecticut on Saturday led by Hayley Sabol’s seven. Temple is coming off a 17-4 defeat to Princeton.

Granite State Rivalry

Dartmouth (0-1) hosts its home opener against New Hampshire (1-1) at 3 p.m. Dartmouth is 25-16 all-time against the Wildcats, winning the last six matchups and 21 of the last 22.

I-91 Showdown

Yale (1-0), coming off a surprise 12-10 win over Albany, will take the 10-mile trip north to Quinnipiac (0-1) for a 3 p.m. game in the Bobcats’ new lacrosse stadium. The Bulldogs and Bobcats have met in each of the past five seasons with Yale going 5-0.

Bay State Showdown

No. 19 Massachusetts will travel down the Mass Pike to face No. 4 Boston College for Bay State supremacy. The Minutewomen are looking for a signature win at 3 p.m.

THE WEEK TO COME: 

USC’s Gauntlet Continues

The eighth-ranked Women of Troy will have a Midwestern double of ranked squads this weekend when it faces No. 16 Notre Dame (Friday, 6 p.m. ET) and No. 15 Northwestern (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET). Beyond the two tough opponents, USC will have to adjust to the rare back-to-back set that features an indoor game (at Notre Dame) before playing outdoors (at NU).

Tar Heels Look to Play Spoiler

No. 11 North Carolina welcomes No. 1 Maryland to Chapel Hill on Saturday after its 23-4 mid-week drubbing of Liberty. UNC’s Marie McCool and Jamie Ortega combined for 12 goals against the Flames and will need that type of firepower to appear to top the Terrapins. 

Princeton Set for Cavaliers

The 38^th meeting between the No. 10-ranked Tigers and 14^th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday (1 p.m.). This series has been evenly competed over the years with the Cavs holding a slim 19-18 advantage, but the Tigers have won the past two meetings.

Nittany Lions, Big Red Face Off in Happy Valley

Saturday’s game between No. 18 Penn State and No. 17 Cornell in University Park has important implications for both teams. The Nittany Lions are coming off an unconvincing victory at Lehigh, while Cornell could add an important piece to its NCAA resume before Ivy League play starts. Opening draw is set for 3 p.m.

ODDS & ENDS:

Pride Nearly Pitch a Shutout

Hofstra was just eight minutes from securing the season’s first shutout of the year when it hosted Bucknell. The Pride won 13-1. 

Off the Blocks

Nine teams have yet to play an official game this season and four of them are in action today: George Mason, Loyola, UMass-Lowell and Siena. 

Bryant and Coastal Carolina get started on Saturday, while Hartford’s inaugural game on Saturday is against fellow season-opener, Delaware State. Howard will be the last Division I squad to play, which will be next Wednesday against American.

Division II Rematch

No. 1 and No. 2 faced off again in Division II. No. 2 Florida Southern came out on top, 17-16, in a NCAA final rematch from last season over No. 1 Adelphi. Dani Bursinger’s five goals and 10 draw controls led the Mocs to victory over the Pantehrs.