No. 7 Virginia Tech Club and No. 8 BC Club are among the Top 10 teams playing in Georgia's Big Dawgs Classic this week.
Sun Devils Turning Up the Heat
With three straight trips to the USA Lacrosse WCLA National Championships over the past three years, No. 11 Arizona State has enjoyed its most successful stretch in club history. ASU also seems poised for another strong spring after a 3-1 start at last weekend’s Santa Barbara Shootout, including wins over No. 17 Colorado and WWLL rival Cal Poly. Their only blemish was a competitive 12-9 loss to top ranked UCLA.
“We had a great weekend and it was exciting to see our team come together with a new group of players and a new coach,” said ASU club president Briana Gardiner. “We were eager to compete. Being in the WWLL with UCLA, we know they have a strong program and every game against them is a battle. We’re looking forward to the possibility of facing them again later in the season.”
Bruins Are Not Hibernating
Playing just an abbreviated slate of two games in Santa Barbara, defending Division I champion UCLA had an impressive showing, defeating No. 11 Arizona State Club, as noted above, as well as No. 12 Virginia Club, 15-5. Including their win earlier this month over Grand Canyon, the No. 1 ranked Bruins now return to Westwood with a 3-0 record to host their own six-team Golden State Invitational (GSI) this week, with four games in three days.
Although this year’s GSI is missing some of the traditional powerhouses (Michigan, Pittsburgh, Georgia) that have participated in past years, there’s still some good competition on hand. No. 6 Utah, No. 13 Florida State, No. 15 Utah Valley, No. 16 San Diego State are all formidable programs that bring lofty expectations into the 2025 season.
The action begins with four games on Friday, including the host team taking on No. 13 Florida State. The event continues with five games on Saturday, and two more on Sunday morning.
Let the Big Dawgs Run
One of the reasons that the Golden State Invitational is missing some of its past attendees is the allure of the Big Dawgs Classic, now in its second year. Hosted by No. 3 Georgia this weekend, the tournament is a more convenient travel option for East Coast schools, and is loaded with teams ranked in the preseason Top 20. Scheduled participants include No. 2 Florida, No. 4 Northeastern, No. 5 Pittsburgh, No. 7 Virginia Tech, No. 8 Boston College, and No. 9 Michigan.
No Seminoles Satisfaction
Coming off a 14-4 season and a third straight appearance in the National Championship Tournament in 2024, Florida State brings a 2-1 record to California. The Seminoles launched their season at home last weekend by beating both Auburn and Alabama but suffering a narrow 9-8 loss to No. 2 Florida Club.
“Although we lost to Florida, it was an extremely close game and our team was proud of our performance against such a tough team,” said FSU club president Maria Lovelace. “But we are not satisfied because we know we need to work and play harder to win these close games.”
Lovelace says that the Seminoles are ready for the challenge of facing defending champion UCLA this week. Last year’s victory over Boston College Club, the 2023 defending champion, gives the team a boost in confidence.
“Last year’s win over BC started with believing in ourselves,” she said. “We know what we can achieve. The first aspect of playing the defending champs is believing that we can win.”
D2 Spotlight
Concordia, Cal State San Marcos, and Cal Poly ‘B’ - all ranked in the Division II preseason Top 15 – were the standouts in Santa Barbara last weekend. No. 11 Concordia finished 4-0 in the event while No. 1 San Marcos and No. 3 Cal Poly were both 3-0. After posting all four wins against non-ranked opponents, Concordia will get a truer test this week with a matchup against No. 9 UC San Diego.
