The lacrosse action has been crazy this college season!  Duke started out as a lot of people’s number 1 and a few weeks later they’ve already dropped a couple of games and in a free fall.  I still don’t see why everyone was so high on them.  A good deal of talent and even more question marks.  Another highly ranked team, Notre Dame, was looking super spicy until they lost to a good Drexel squad in OT on Tuesday.  Rough.

Virginia took out then number 1 Cuse in VA in one heck of a game last Sunday which featured some great shooting from both sides, physical play, and an nail biting finish.  There have been so many 1 goal games between these two squads in the past but UVA leads the all-time series with a 14- 12 record.

I watched the Hopkins-UMBC game, the Cuse-UVA game and the Duke-UNC game and there’s a lot to be said about all three match ups.

Hopkins showed that it can beat the teams that aren’t quite on their level by using their ball control, bore-me-to-death offense where they rely on middies dodging hard and then cycling the ball through and waiting for the D to make a mistake.

This offense has worked against teams where the Hop can create superior match ups (but only barely in the case of Siena).  This has not really worked against teams that are on Hop’s level, like Princeton.

If Hopkins wants to go anywhere beyond the quarter finals this year, they will need to make some changes, allow their middies to dodge more creatively and set up more off ball movement.   Sometimes on O, their top 6 look like they’re just standing on the sideline.  They seem to lack a fire in their bellies… but I’m sure Petro will scream at them enough to change it.

UMBC is scrappy and in some places they have some size or athleticism but they rarely have players with both.  They have middies that can run but most are on the smaller side, including Kyle Wimer, who is really what gets the Retriever O moving.  Wimer will dodge against the pole (and shows no fear) and will shoot from 12 yards plus.

Without Wimer, UMBC would be a much worse team.  The Hop D looked good against UMBC but not great and if the Blue Jays are NOT going to change up their O, their D will really have to step up even more.

Cuse-Virginia was a totally different scene.  You’ve got poles on both ends of the field that play physical, throw checks and extend out to pressure ball carriers all over the field.  Virginia got called for a lot of penalties and sometimes that’s the price you pay for being aggressive sometimes but they’ve been able to bail themselves out with good offensive production.

Virginia has a nice face off guy in Ryan Benincasa and while he did well against most of the guys Cuse sent out there, Jeremy Thompson really gave him some trouble.

I LOVED watching Thompson play.   Guys got a really good stick, he’s VERY unselfish, he can face off, play D, play O and shoot the lights out.  His righty no angle man up goal was a great example of this.  On top of that he can run all day and showed some nice dodges both in the open field and in settled offense.  All that and he uses a traditional stick and has a 2 foot long ponytail.  Deal with THAT, flow-impostors!  I think Thompson will play a bigger role for the Orange as the season progresses.

Traddy wand, braided ponytail, sick lax skills. Respek. (Photo: Lax.com)

Attack Steele Stanwick is a real leader out the for the Wahoos and has fully stepped in to the role of offensive quarterback.  Some questioned is he step into Glading and Billings’ shoes but he’s done so very well and has to be a legit player of the year candidate at this point.

The UVA middies looked good and although I think Rhamel Bratton isn’t quite the dodger that his bro Shamel is, Rhamel does seem to find the back of the net a bit more and the back of the goalie’s stick a bit less.  It will be interesting to see how this pans out later.

UNC-Duke was also a really good game.  UNC sort of ran away with it in the end but the first half was really exciting and the action in the second was still really good even though the game was getting out of reach for the Blue Devils.  Whatever the outcome a few things are certain:  Duke’s helmets and gloves are AWESOME but those are STILL some of the ugliest uniforms I’ve ever seen.  Just awful.  Boo them.  Boo.

Helmet? Sick. Gloves? Sick. Uniforms? Barf. Notice the thumbing. (Photo: Lax.com)

I still believe Duke’s Max Quinzani is sort of thumbing the ball and Lax.com has more photographic evidence of this maneuver and it’s much better than any Zapruder film.  However, Max isn’t alone this week because I found another player that may be using the thumb a bit much and it’s everyone’s favorite Chapel Hill DJ,  Billy Benz Bitter.

Like I’ve said before, I don’t either of these guys are really getting any advantage from this but at the same time, they might be and refs need to start looking for this and calling it.  Still haven’t seen a “thumbing” or withholding call this year and I won’t hold my breath.  It would be nice though!

Anything Max can do, Billy can do Bitter. Awful pun. I'm sorry. (Photo: Lax.com)

UNC’s D looked really good by playing guys tight but not pressing as much as Cuse.  They lock down cutters and communicate and know when to try to take the ball away and when to slough off a bit.  Goalie Chris Madalon is a big target in net and does a good job of leading the D and making big saves when they’re needed.

I like UNC to make some waves this year and depending on their draw, they could do very well in the NCAAs and have to be a favorite to advance to the Final Four at the very least.  To compliment their stifling and disciplined D, the Tar Heel offense has numerous middies with size, speed and skill and Coach Breschi let’s these guys go to work.

Their attack is dynamic, filled with scorers in Bitter and Wood, and a very underrated quarterback in Gavin Petracca.  He runs the show back there and speeds things up when they need to run and slows it down when they’re switching personnel or when the D needs a breather.  UNC might not have the most depth in the country but their top 15-20 guys are as good as anyone’s.

In other news, Albany just keeps losing (I will never pick them again) but this time to UMass and Penn State is not doing any better.  Both of these teams seem to have fallen off of a cliff in 2010.  Brown beat Hartford in overtime and I got an excited message from D-III on my laxpower account that said, “(David) Hawley just won the game for Brown in OT.  NESCAC Represent!” Hawley transferred from Williams to Brown this past summer and has really been bringing the outside cannon this season.

In D2 action, Bentley beat NY Tech.  Tech is without longtime head coach, Jack Kaley now and maybe that’s the difference.  Tech never would have lost to Bentley with JK at the helm.  Just saying.  Merrimack beat Florida Southern by 1 then beat Rollins by 10.  Overall a successful Southern trip.

In D3 news, WAC is now officially awful.  They lost to a decent Hampden-Sydney team but losing wasn’t the bad part.  The bad part was losing by 9 goals and only scoring 8.  What is happening in Chestertown, MD?  Scranton beat Ithaca earlier this season but couldn’t sneak up on RIT and lost 12-8.

Union beat up on Ithaca 11-2 and everyday I am more proud of myself for not ranking them in my top 20.  Salisbury beat Cortland 12-11 (in a game that our newest poster Swanklax, called for Cortland).  My boys at Wesleyan kept up with their winning ways by downing SUNY Maritime 14-1.

In MCLA news, Stanford beat a really solid Texas State team 14-12, proving the LSA isn’t totally lame but also that it’s still a mid to low level conference.  Other than that, the MCLA hasn’t seen the upsets that NCAA D1 saw and most of the games worked out the way we thought they would.

Until next time!

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About the Author: Connor is a pretty average lacrosse player at this point who doesn’t know when to give up on the game.  He played and coached in the NESCAC and still plays for the Southampton LC in NYC.  Connor lives with his fiance in Brooklyn and thanks her for allowing him to keep the dream alive.

Contact him at connor@lacrosseallstars.com.

Note from Lax All Stars’ Connor Wilson: LAS is always adding more and more high quality contributors to our ever-growing stable of thoroughbreds and this new announcement is no exception!  Swanklax is a well known force on the Laxpower forum poll and he always brings a sense of total honesty, candor and humor to his posts.

I think you’ll see he once again accomplishes all three of those goals in his first post for LAS, so welcome Swank and try not to be too intimidated by his NESCAC education.  Which NESCAC you ask?  Well that’s a secret because unlike @connorwilsonlas/wheniwasakid…, Swank is actually able to control his bias!

That being said, Swank will also be picking some DIII games each week (since 412 is too scared) and I’ll be adding my picks to the posts as well.  Take it away, Swank!

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As my high school coach once infamously said, “I’m not much of a quotes guy but I think you guys should hear this.”  Naturally, he proceeded to give my high school team daily quotes for as long as I can remember. In that spirit, I give you the following slice of enlightenment.

“I know that I am intelligent, because I know that I know nothing.”
- Socrates

For all you meatheads out there, that just means that to really have a good grasp on the particulars of a given situation, it is imperative that you understand that there are certain things that you simply don’t know. This insight is especially relevant at this juncture in DIII lacrosse, where few games have been played and trying to draw season-long conclusions from such a limited sample is rather foolish. In recognition of this, I give you…

5 Things I Know I Don’t Know

1. I know I don’t know if the Empire 8 is really as bad as early results would indicate. Nazareth lost a tight one to Geneseo, Ithaca got caught with their pants down against Scranton, RIT remains winless after being spanked by Stevenson and being edged out by RPI and St. John Fisher has been plowing through cupcakes faster than Fat Albert at an all-you-can-eat dessert buffet.

Only Stevens has managed to stay unbeaten while simultaneously facing relatively stiff competition, taking care of business against the likes of Springfield and Endicott. Do these early struggles mean the E8 is doomed this year? It doesn’t look great, but the jury is still out on this one.

Swanklax' secret identity revealed?

2. I know I don’t know if WNEC is capable of coming back from two rough early losses to Cortland and Stevenson. Gettysburg showed that Cortland isn’t the unstoppable juggernaut that some thought they would be, and WNEC got absolutely worked by the Dragons, losing 12-2.

Even worse is that the only positive thing I can say about the Stevenson loss is that the Golden Bears sucked less than they did against Cortland. This team is seriously anemic on offense with Nick Jez and Joe O’Keefe both sidelined. Jez is reportedly done for the season but a return for O’Keefe apparently remains possible.

The only ray of hope for WNEC is that sophomore keeper Brewster Knowlton is probably the best goalie in DIII and the defense in front of him isn’t too shabby either. Throw in an easy route to the NCAA tournament with the Commonwealth Coast Conference AQ bid and all hope is not lost. If they gel at the right time, they could be dangerous come tournament time but that may be asking too much of this year’s team.

The 19th ranked Polar Bears

3. I know I don’t know if tradition matters anymore in DIII lacrosse. Sure, you have many of the same powers of the past decade residing near the tops of the polls, but I doubt we will ever see the dominance displayed in the past by Salisbury. The Gulls have their hands full in their own conference with the upstart ‘Stangs of Stevenson, who have looked far more impressive than the Gulls in the early going. In the North, Cortland faces a similar challenge from Geneseo, who just notched a hard-earned OT win over Nazareth.

Perennial NESCAC bully Middlebury appears to be ahead of this trend, having failed to even reach the NESCAC championship game in consecutive years after a long run atop the conference. 2010 won’t be any easier for the Panthers after losing as much as any single team in the country. They will face stiff competition from top to bottom in the NESCAC. Bottom line is that the competition in DIII lacrosse has never been tighter and faded glory matters very little between the lines.

4. I know I don’t know if Washington & Lee has what it takes to challenge Roanoke in the ODAC. I had hoped the Generals would recover from significant but not overwhelming losses to graduation and continue to make the ODAC a two team race. Unfortunately, W&L has been underwhelming against mediocre competition. Even beating Ohio Wesleyan 9-5 doesn’t blow me away as I expect the Maroons would put up far more than nine goals. The good news for W&L is that Roanoke is notorious for struggling when everything is on the line, as evidenced by their two losses to end the year after turning in an undefeated regular season. The Generals are definitely a team that merit further attention in terms of evaluating how good they really are.

5. I know I don’t know who is going to win the NESCAC this year. I think Tufts is going to bury most opponents in an avalanche of goals led by All-American D.J. Hessler, but their lack of an established goalie is cause for pause.

Wesleyan has the potential to repeat as champions but needs to integrate many new pieces on offense and defense. This is an unusually daunting task defensively given the quality of player that the Cardinals lost in Spike Malangone and the intricacies of playing a zone successfully. They might struggle early but I would put them neck and neck with Tufts as favorites come May.

Then there is Middlebury, a team that has lived mostly off of reputation the past few years, failing to step to the plate and deliver on the massive amounts of talent in their upperclassmen. Now, they must develop an identity without Mike stone and many of his running mates who dominated the field for much of their careers. There is some promising talent up in Vermont, but the Panthers talent advantage over the rest of the NESCAC has evaporated and I have serious concerns about how this team will fare with less talent in the past.

Bowdoin too has the potential to be a player in the NESCAC championship picture, though their daunting schedule and hot-and-cold play from goalie Jake McCampbell makes me temper my enthusiasm for a very big and athletic squad. Beyond this “Big Four,” Trinity and Colby have both been thrown around as darkhorse candidates. I honestly have no idea what will happen when conference play begins on Saturday.

D3 Games of the Week

Cortland v. Salisbury (@ The Haverford School)
This game is big for both teams for obvious reasons. Salisbury needs to make a statement win after mostly middling results versus inferior competition to open the season. On the other sideline, Cortland will have the pain of their loss at the hands of Gettysburg fresh on their minds when they take the field on Wednesday. Salisbury desperately needs a big game from midfielder Mike Von Kamecke, who has failed to live up his billing as a preseason All-American.

Further complicating things for the Gulls is the rumored loss of talented freshman attackman Eric Law, who supposedly fractured his collarbone and is lost for the season. Unless Von Kamecke is able to significantly raise his level of play (and don’t count that out), the once-potent Salisbury offense may struggle to pull away with this one. Other concerns for Salisbury include goalie Johnny Rodriguez, who is stopping barely 50% of the shots he faces, an unacceptable number for a goalie surrounded by the talent that Salisbury has. Against the talented attackmen of Cortland, this could be a fatal flaw.

In stark contrast, Cortland sports a talented young keeper in freshman Mike Kaminski, who was just named SUNYAC Goalie of the Week. Combine my concerns about Salisbury with the fire that Cortland will undoubtedly come out with after losing to Gettysburg and I think this will be Salisbury’s last week atop my DIII poll.
Swanklax’s Pick: Cortland
Connor’s Pick: Salisbury

Geneseo v. Ithaca (@ Onondaga CC)
It appears that Geneseo learned the importance of winning every game after sitting out the NCAA tournament last year due in no small part to their early loss to Nazareth. After trumping Nazareth over the weekend, Genny will turn their sights to Ithaca, a team that is coming off an embarrassing loss to Scranton. Granted, Ithaca was missing a few starters due to suspension against Scranton, but nothing excuses losing to a team that has never accomplished anything of significance in DIII lacrosse.

For Geneseo, the keys to their success lie in senior goalie Dennis Costanza and senior attackman Craig Lange. The play of those two will go a long way towards determining the outcome of this contest. Factor in the playoff mentality that Geneseo must approach every game with in order to secure a Pool C bid if they do not win the SUNYAC, and I don’t see the Blue Knights leaving the field as anything but victors. Sorry Ithaca, but losing to Scranton does little to engender confidence in your cause.
Swanklax’s Pick: Geneseo
Connor’s Pick: Geneseo

Bowdoin @ Wesleyan
This is the big game in the NESCAC this weekend, pitting two of the top four teams against each other in a nasty battle in the Bird Cage. Last year, this was a 3-2 slugfest up in Maine that eventually saw the Polar Bears come out victorious. The Cardinals will be looking for revenge at home.

Key to any plans of victory for Wesleyan will be attackmen Jon Killeen and Teddy Citrin, who combined for eight points against Salve Regina in Wesleyan’s season-opening win. Wesleyan will need more production out of lightning-fast midfielder Lonnie Blumenthal, who failed to tally a point in the opener. In order for Bowdoin to hang with the Cardinals, they will need a strong showing from inconsistent keeper Jake McCampbell, who stopped over 80% of Wesleyan’s shots in this game last year. Critical to Bowdoin’s chances for success is midfielder Kit Smith, who will be absent as the Bowdoin hockey team plays an NCAA tournament game on Saturday night. This is a serious loss for Bowdoin, for whom Smith is their top offensive threat with his excellent size and athleticism. With the glue of one game under their belt and the advantage of the best home field in the NESCAC, I predict the Polar Bears will be seeing a lot of red on Saturday.
Swanklax’s Pick: Wesleyan
Connor’s Pick: Wesleyan (How could I not when Wesleyan is so sweet? See? That’s my bias.)

Haverford @ Gettysburg
This is a meeting between one team, Gettysburg, that is riding high after a huge win over Cortland and another team, Haverford, that is reeling from a surprising loss to St. Lawrence. The implications of this game are huge as it will likely determine who hosts the Centennial Conference tournament, as well as set the tone in the struggle for the AQ that is handed out to the eventual champion.

By all accounts, Haverford’s offense is in a funk of sorts, with players playing selfishly instead of as a team. If they want to have a chance against a Gettysburg defense that dominated a talented Cortland attack, the Squirrels will need to break this trend immediately. Unfortunately for Haverford, unless Gettyburg struggles with a hangover from their Cortland win (which I doubt they will with Coach Janczyk), I don’t think the Bullets will come up short. This just seems like a case of two teams headed in opposite directions.
Swanklax’s Pick: Gettysburg
Connor’s Pick: Gettysburg

Up Next

I will be back early next week to recap this week’s games and preview next week’s. In the meantime, follow me at www.twitter.com/swanklax
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Got a question, something that deserves to be seen, or a hot tip?
Drop us a line at info@lacrosseallstars.com

Editor’s note: The following was written by Matt “Ramathorne” Ramsey of the Connecticut Valley Lacrosse Club, a competitive post-collegiate team competing in the American Lacrosse League.

What a weekend; it was sunny, warm and a great time to be outside playing lacrosse. On Sunday, March 7 most American Lacrosse League teams stepped on to the field for the first time this season. On the Connecticut Valley sidelines there was a overwhelming feeling of excitement mixed with anxiety to take charge of their first game versus HomeGrown Lacrosse Club out of Haverhill, Massachusetts.

CVLC vs HomeGrown

The game started off with a bang; Connecticut Valley took an early 2-0 lead on goals by former Skidmore College All-American Charlie McNeil and Eastern Connecticut legend Billy Mo. The play was sloppy, uncoordinated, and expected for the teams where most guys haven’t been on a lacrosse field since the prior year’s season. Face-Offs were key in this game and Connecticut Valley had no trouble securing 75% of them. Muff, an amateur diver, lost two face-offs the entire game and clearly desired those brews afterwards.

Once the team settled in the referees had as well. Soon the turf at Eastern Connecticut State University was yellow as our indecisive referees began agreeing on calls. Were we happy with these calls? Absolutely not. Did we pout and complain? Maybe a little bit, but that’s expected. Slight pushes were called as “roughing” and consequently because of our foul mouths a couple of guys were sent to the sin bin for “profanity”. The penalties we allowed ourselves to get caught up in also allowed HomeGrown’s Canadian duo the chance to even the score…but they didn’t. Connecticut Valley held a safe 7-5 advantage after two.

The second half, was not so great. In the American Lacrosse League quarters are 20 minutes long and running time. While that may have faired well for Connecticut Valley because of our deep bench, it didn’t change our complacency when it came to the short bench on the other side of the box.

HomeGrown had 2 subs for the entire game; CVLC had 18. HomeGrown was tired and running out of steam. CVLC was not. HomeGrown decided to score some goals. CVLC decided to let them and stop going to the cage. The third quarter was as sloppy as they get and the moral on the sideline went from cheery and excitable to “what do we do now”.

Going into the fourth quarter the game was tied 8-8, even though we had fresh legs we played down to the other teams level allowing them to take a commanding 11-8 lead with just 10 minutes remaining to play. For the last ten minutes we crawled back in with goals from former WNEC superstar Brian Praetorius, Greensboro sharpshooter Matt Perry, and Donny…who was clearly out of his element, but managed. He got lucky because Walter was just about ready to kill him.

With just one minute left to play Connecticut Valley took the lead 13-12 and ran the clock out to grab the “W”. It was a hard fought game and a great day to play lacrosse. Nobody was satisfied with the referees, but it happens in every sport…bad calls or good calls, you can interpret them any way you want and each time there is a chance that someone will be unhappy. HomeGrown is a solid team and played well; should they have had a deeper bench the result could have been different.

Crabs Next Week

Next weekend the stacked roster of Boston Crabs Lacrosse Club travels down to Eastern Connecticut State University’s turf field to battle Connecticut Valley in what is speculated to be not the best of conditions weather-wise.

With our first game out of the way we, as a team, know what to focus on and what will be our keys to victory. Although our keeper, Matt Hoffman, made some stellar saves and we peppered HomeGrown’s goalie with shots we cannot miss our chances and hope that our goalie keeps us out of trouble.

Around The American Lacrosse League

Around the league other teams got at it with some very close games and some not so close. Boston Crabs LC defended their home turf and pulled out a 9-8 victory over Bay State LC. North Shore LC also managed to steal a win from New Hampshire’s Warpigs LC. In New Jersey, Tri-State LC bested the Lurkers 18-5, HealthQuest stumbled against Bulls LC losing 9-7 and the Jersey Thunder beat up on South Jersey LC 8-4.

Other scores from Sunday included; Charm City Warhawks 16 Baltimore Fire 3, Delaware LC 18 Main Street Tower LC 2, Hagerstown Bud Light 11 Nobles LC 6, and Portside LC 14 North County LC 5.

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About the author: Ramathorne’s career took him from the Varsity fields of Southington High School and the Nutmeg Elite Lacrosse programs to Division III top 25 school, Eastern Connecticut State University. Ramsay played as a midfielder for the Warriors from 2005-2008 helping the team to a Little East Conference Championship in 2006 and a birth into the Division III National Championship Tournament.

After graduating from Eastern Connecticut Ramsay assisted with the Rip-It Lacrosse program and currently runs Connecticut Calley Lacrosse Club, a competitive post-collegiate team competing in the American Lacrosse League.

Contact Lax All Stars at info@lacrosseallstars.com

Yesterday the Southwestern Conference of the MCLA issued a press release announcing a disciplinary ruling on the University of Nevada Las Vegas men’s lacrosse team. The news leaves both a player and the head coach suspended for the remainder of the 2010 season and the entire 2011 season. The UNLV team is officially on probation until the end of the 2010 season. Below is the full release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
The Southwestern Lacrosse Conference’s (SLC) Executive Board and League Directors regret to inform that they have had to take immediate and swift disciplinary action against the UNLV Men’s Lacrosse program.

On March 5th, in a game against Utah, #4 Eric Jones was ejected from the game for his participation in a fight.

The next day, in a game against Arizona on March 6th, the same #4 Eric Jones was not held out of the contest by the UNLV coaching staff, as is required by Rule 5, Section 12 of the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Rulebook: The penalty for an expulsion foul shall be a three-minute nonreleasable penalty, ejection for the remainder of the game in which the foul occurred and suspension from the next intercollegiate contest of the team. Subsequently, to compound the mistake, #4 Eric Jones was involved in another altercation in this Arizona game as well, and was ejected for the second time in two days.

The Executive Board and League Directors would like to point out that they understand lacrosse is a physical sport. However, all of its participants are always expected to honor and play by the rules that govern our sport; there is a certain standard of respect and sportsmanship that is always expected to be demonstrated by all participants. We take these incidences very seriously, particularly the playing of an ineligible player. The Executive Board and League Directors would also like at this time to point out that #4 Eric Jones had began the season serving a 4 game suspension for his part in an
incident that occurred at the Best of the West Fall Ball Tournament. Head Coach Gary Campo had also begun the season serving a 4 game suspension for his involvement in this incident as well; and in addition to the 4 game suspension, was coaching under a two year probationary period by the SLC.

The SLC Board of Directors has come to a final ruling in regards to the UNLV Men’s Lacrosse Team and player actions during the March 5th and 6th regular season games, they are as follows:

Consecutive Game Expulsion of Eric Jones, #4, for Fighting
Eric Jones, #4 for UNLV Men’s Lacrosse, has been SUSPENDED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE 2010 AND ALL OF THE 2011 SLC/MCLA LACROSSE SEASONS. This includes all “Fall Ball” play as a member of the any SLC Team. This decision is final and a result of being kicked out of two games in a row for fighting. The Board strongly recommends that Eric Jones be given time to gain a better understanding of his actions and has requested that UNLV provide him with student counseling in this matter. Should Eric Jones wish to return his Senior year, and play in the 2012 season, he will be allowed to do so.

Head Coach Gary Campo & Playing of Ineligible Player
Coach Gary Campo, currently on SLC Probation from a November 2009 Infraction, is hereby SUSPENDED FROM COACHING ANY SLC TEAM FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE 2010 AND ALL OF THE 2011 SLC/MCLA SEASONS. This includes any “Fall Ball” activities representing an official member of the SLC. This suspension is the result of Coach Campo allowing an ineligible player (Eric Jones, #4) to compete in the March 6th game versus the University of Arizona, a violation of his probation.

UNLV Men’s Lacrosse Team
As a result of the infractions committed on March 5th & 6th, 2010, the UNLV Men’s Lacrosse Team has been placed on PROBATION BY THE SLC THROUGH THE END OF 2010 SLC ANNUAL MEETING. This is an SLC Administrative Probation, and if they qualify, they will still be allowed to participate in the play-offs. However, if the UNLV Team commits further actions deemed to be in violation of its probation during this time period, penalties MAY include: expulsion from the SLC, fines, deemed ineligible for Post Season Play, and/or other remedies that are decided upon by the SLC Board of Directors.

This is the ruling of the SLC Executive Board and its League Directors, it does not preclude further action being taken by the MCLA Executive Board towards the individuals involved, the UNLV Men’s Lacrosse team, or the Southwestern Lacrosse Conference.

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NEWS & NOTES

- Interesting feature on Coach Pressler and Bryant lacrosse

- Collin Finnerty, Reade Seligmann and David Evans: Where are they now?

- A look at the Chesapeake Bayhawks…

- Tufts lacrosse: Remarkable duo leading Jumbos, each other into history books

- UMBC tried their 3rd goalie in 4 games and lost to Hospkins

- Hoftra over Brown game recap

- Alpharetta lacrosse in Atlanta raised $2,750 for Wounded Warrior Project

- 1-on-1 podcast with Brodie Merrill

- Bandits-Rock game looms large for both National Lacrosse League teams

- Three Edmonton Rush players will compete for Team Canada

- Woodcreek High School (CA) won their first ever game 9-8 in OT over Oakland Tech on Sunday.

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Got a question, something that deserves to be seen, or a hot tip?
Drop us a line at info@lacrosseallstars.com

After last week’s long road trip over to Oregon, a week off before another road trip down to San Diego was welcomed with open arms. No games also meant we were able to catch all the D1 games on the tube this weekend, two overtime games on Saturday and my Hoo’s holding off ‘Cuse on Sunday. What a weekend!

We came to a decision on our patches; I don’t think there was a better place to put them.

Can’t wait for March 28^th on the Sprinturf, our first home game of the season.

Vandal basketball update? I’d love to. After a slightly disappointing season, we are sitting at 15-15 on the season, going 6-10 in the WAC, five of our losses being by three points or less or in OT. But the guys were able to guarantee themselves the 7^th seed in the WAC tournament with two home wins now have to travel to Reno to play the 2^nd place team in the WAC, UNR.

Intense dunk (Photo courtesy of Govandals.com.)

This week we are going to take a look at the defense a little more and check out the game ball recipient of last Sunday’s game vs. Portland State, sophomore net minder Blake Uphus. Also freshman defenseman/midfielder Dugan McDermott.

Pregame ritual after the midfield handshake

Blake has put up a solid 54% save percentage so far and has even snaked up 11 ground balls in our first three games. Last Sunday, Blake was one of the key contributors to holding off the Viking’s as they rallied in the second half, coming up with some very clutch saves in the waning minutes of the game.

MCLA Magazine worthy picture by Will Moss from last year

What Blake has lacked in experience with being a young goalie, he has made up for at practice with drills and a constant focus to elevate his game; working with our d-poles and becoming a bigger and bigger leader on the defense as the season progresses.

Gotta love a good face dodge

Freshman defender and midfielder Dugan McDermott has made an immediate impact on the team since his arrival in the fall, contributing both a wealth of skill and knowledge to the team. Hailing from Bainbridge Island, he started playing in the 5^th grade and has taken to learning every aspect of the game that he can. Thanks to this he now has all sorts of great information and strategy to share with the team.

Dugan taking the draw this fall against Montana State

Dugan is a good example of what West Coast lacrosse has become in recent years; people actually dedicated to living and breathing lacrosse and just becoming students of the game. While being hindered by several injuries, he has still been able to help the team out wherever possible, splitting face-offs, playing man-up offense and running some pole.

Dugan clearing the ball against Portland State

Look for great things from #37 if he can keep himself healthy enough to stay on the field.

Dugan in action this fall at the Gem State Tournament

Next Friday we start our departure south for a little fun in the sun in Southern California. I’ve already heard promises of short-shorts, Hawaiian shirts and gross mustaches, so this could make for a very interesting Spring Break. I’m putting my camera at the top of my bag to make sure I don’t forget it.
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Interested in spreading the gospel for your team? Want to contribute a weekly photo blog like the Vandals? Contact info@lacrosseallstars.com for more information.

Since the Indiscretions series has finished up, I’m changing things up to provide you with a new kind of D2 coverage every week. CWil and BruCrew came up with the idea of a “Game of the Week” feature where we highlight the top contests going on around the MCLA.

This segment will be a work in progress because I feel like we should expand upon that concept just a little bit so bear with me as things might change each week.

To start, we have a round robin of huge D2 games that will shake up the rankings a bit.

Davenport's Grant Hamilton

#3 Dayton at #2 Davenport
Friday, 3/12

This game is beyond huge. Not only does it have conference tournament implications for both teams, but you have seeding implications for Denver. Winner of this game likely becomes the #1 team in the country for the foreseeable future. Or at least until their next game vs St. Johns

#4  St. Johns vs #3 Dayton (at Davenport)
Saturday, 3/13

Oh excuse me, THIS is a big game. Actually, when is a game featuring two top 5 teams not a big game? Dayton will be looking for revenge on the UMLL after losing last year’s National Championship to St. Thomas.

#4 St. John at #2 Davenport
Sunday, 3/13

The final battle in this round robin. St. John’s could be spent after their game Saturday so watch out for Davenport in this matchup.  Homefield advantage, a day off, plus sleeping in their own bed should all be factors. If the Johnnies can win one game this weekend, they’ll stay in the top 5. Lose both and they’re out of the top 10 for the first time in years.

Player to Watch:

Tennessee Wesleyan's Ryan Horvath (© TWC Sports Info)

Ryan Horvath – Tennessee Wesleyan (Jr., Attack)
Ryan has 26 G and is ranked 4th in the nation in points per game. If he plays well today vs Citadel, I have a feeling he’ll carry that success into TWC’s last remaining tough D2 competition this Saturday at SCAD.

Jac Coyne even talked up Horvath and TWC in a piece for Lacrosse Magazine:

Complementing the strength in the defensive half that this trio provides Parker is one of the cagiest attackman in Division II. Ranked first in goals per game (5.2) in the division and second in points per outing (6.2), junior Ryan Horvath always delivers for the Bulldogs. Against Indiana, Horvath, a Wisconsin native, scored five of the six TWC goals.

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About the Author: The Lax picked up his first stick when he stepped on campus at MCLA D2 school UNC Charlotte. After taking a short break, he returned to the field for independent UNCG. The Lax enjoys flowers, pictures of unicorns, long walks on the beach, and above all else, beating people with his D-Pole. Want your team covered? Got news you think should be heard? Contact the team at info@lacrosseallstars.com

With GMODT down for the count, we’ve turned to another music aficionado in the LAS crew – KMac. The dude prides himself on knowing cool before it’s cool, and he loves leaking his new-found beats out to his friends. After all, he is the chairman of the Keeping It Real committee.

We’ve set up shop with KMac, building a pretty solid library of new tunes we’ll be delivering to you week-by-week. For now, check the two below and let us know what you think in the comments section.

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Phoenix, AZ Desert Storm kit:

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NEWS & NOTES

- Duke vs. North Carolina on ESPNU TONIGHT @ 7PM

- Lacrosse is exploding in SoCal, so naturally the recruiting scene is heating up. Check out Silverfin’s new recruiting camp.

- VMI has announced their involvement in the Wounded Warrior Project

- Cornell/Army game recap (Cornell Daily Sun)

- Maryland beat Bellarmine 12-7

- Arapahoe is looking to defend their Colorado State Championship.

- Lacrosse vets create North Shore youth program

- Brendan Mundorf and the Outlaws visited Baker Central School

- MIT Lacrosse Player Trades Stick for Coronary Stent Research

- Congrats to Knox on his first win!

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Got a question, something that deserves to be seen, or a hot tip?
Drop us a line at info@lacrosseallstars.com

Editor’s note: A couple of our writers had some free time. That free time resulted in them watching a Jersey Shore marathon. Why? Nobody knows. Somehow this post made it into the hopper.

MCLA D1 Conference Rundown: Jersey Shore Edition

We’re going to be honest. We miss the Jersey Shore. A lot. So in an attempt to recapture the greatest reality show known to man we’ve gone and compared each MCLA conference to some of our favorite Guido’s and Guidettes.

Without further ado…

RMLC = The Situation

Three perennial powerhouses with new head coaches. So this season each team has shown some promise, but CSU takes the cake. Gym, Tan, Lax. It’s what they do. The Ram have reloaded and are sitting pretty at 5-0 but the season is still young and their rivals, BYU and the Buffs, aren’t giving up without a fight. And like always we have Utah ready to play wing-man – could they crack the tourney as a sleeper? We have ourselves “The Situation”.

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CCLA = J-WOWW

We’ll call ‘em J-WOWW cause they’re top-heavy. To be short (like J-WOWW’s tiny skirts and barely there clothing) Michigan will run away with the conference crown again unless 412’s Pitt Panthers step up. Will Big Blue struggle in their remaining OOC one night stands with Simon Fraser, Oregon, Duluth, CU, or Colorado State? Don’t bet on it.

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GRLC = Angelina

Lindenwood, the diva of the GRLC, is stuck at 4-3 on the year, opening the door for someone new to take the reins of the conference. Anyone feeling the Illini or Mizzou? Not to be Staten Island brash but when the GRLC comes to the tourney they don’t tend to stick around for long. Sounds a lot like Angelina and her brief stint on the shore.

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LSA = T-Shirt Shop Owner Guy

Texas A&M coach and MCLA Prez Tony Scazzero runs this t-shirt shop that is the MCLA. Texas State is the top seller so far with a sparkling 7-0 record and a huge OT win over Cal out west.  If they keep it up tonight against Stanford, perennial LSA power Texas might have a challenger on their hands this year. Not a lot else to say…kind of like the t-shirt shop guy after Vinnie stole his cougar lady friend.
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PCLL = DJ Pauly D

DJ Pauly D hails from the Northeast and this conference will be mixing it up just like he does on the dance floor. Boston College will look to “beat up the beat” all the way to Denver. Will the entire team get matching “Cadillac” tattoos down their sides like Pauly? After starting the season 1-2 it sure couldn’t hurt as they try to right the ship. You never know.

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PNCLL = Ronnie

Here’s Ronnie. Ronnie the rhino faught his way through the shore. Left fist: Oregon. Right fist: Simon Fraser. These 2 teams duke it out every single year for the conference crown and this one will be no different. SFU has fallen on tough times in recent days and the Ducks are preparing to take on Michigan soon. The PNCLL could really use a big OOC win right about now. One shot!

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UMLL = Sammy Sweetheart

We love to see these teams succeed just like we love to see Sammy Sweetheart happy with Ronnie. UMD has the mindset, they just need to get a bigger chip on their shoulder and so far they’ve been crushing the hearts of everyone they meet (Wisconsin-Milwaukee took it on the chin to the tune of 28-2). Big game for Duluth against Arizona State next Monday. No more sweet talk.

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SELC = Vinnie

Vinnie… ladies love him, he’s always single and ready to mingle. So unpredictable he just might steal your date. Smells like Florida and Florida State to me. Big trips out West saw the Gators nab a W at Cal Poly and the ‘Noles play Chapman tight in a 9-13 loss.  Don’t sleep on the SELC.

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SLC = Snooki

Just like Snooki, they’re always the life of the party. Whether it’s cart wheels, bubble baths or 16-person slip n’ slides, 6-0 Chapman has owned SoCal this year. Can anyone touch Babe City? Will Snooki ever find a man? No one knows.

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WCLL = Snooki’s Mom

Snookie’s mom is her best friend. The WCLL has close ties with the newly formed SLC, but needs to make more of a name for itself. Cal Poly/ Cal/ Santa Clara, this is your opportunity. Cal can prove it against Noma (3/14) and Duluth (3/20) and the boys of SLO have a huge game against Florida State this Friday. Don’t let the kids have all the fun.

All-in-all, this is the MCLA Jersey Shore.

And just so you’ll stay entertained…here is a Jersey Shore quote board.  That’s one shot, bro!

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Want to contribute to Lax All Stars? Drop us a line at info@lacrosseallstars.com.

Mention in the local newspaper

When I was in High School, my coach used to tell us “Give back to the game.” I never really understood why he said that until last weekend. Maybe I could conjure up some response as to why, but I truthfully didn’t understand it.

Last week, the team I’m coaching in it’s first year of existence, Dutchtown Lacrosse Club, landed it’s first win. Our team is comprised of 23 guys who had never held a stick until January, and we were reminded regularly by a lot haters that “we probably won’t win a game for the first couple of seasons.” And for the most part, that’s a fair assumption. But I can honestly say I’ve never been around a team with the spirit and heart that these guys have. They truly love this game, and continue to surprise me on a daily basis.

Doing some coach stuff

Scrapping for that GB

Always a good picture when their feet are above their head

The final tally

They dumped the water jug on me

This was one of the most emotional moments of my life. It’s almost indescribable. During the fourth quarter, I could see the excitement in their eyes, hear it in their voices, and feel the energy in the air. At that moment, when you do something you were told was impossible, and when you’re part of these players’ unbelievable accomplishment, that’s when you realize that this is what lacrosse is really all about. This is what my coach meant when he said “Give back to the game.”

It’s not really about winning or losing any more. At least not to me. It’s about giving moments like that somebody else. It’s about that moment when a kid realizes he can do something that he was told he couldn’t.

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About the author: Knox is a 24 year old High School Head Coach in a small area east of Baton Rouge. He played High School ball for four years, and college ball for about 1 week until he realized his collegiate priorities rested with more important things like partying and eventually trying to get his grades up. He enjoys things that most Louisiana people do – eating boiled crawfish and alligator, a cold Abita Amber, anything LSU, his dog, and his beautiful girlfriend, Audrey. Lacrosse is not listed because most Louisiana people have no idea what lacrosse is.

Questions? Want to contribute to the Lax All Stars Network? Hit us up at info@lacrosseallstars.com

Highlights from Joe Paoletta’s 2009 Landon season and summer. Landon was IAC co-champions in 2009. Paoletta was All-IAC and Landon’s leading goal scorer. He’s committed to play at Cornell next year.

A great place to check out more high school highlight reels: Lacrosse Recruits’ featured highlights page
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BHSvideodad is back with a recap of the Oregon/Santa Clara game from last week:

The undefeated Oregon Ducks take on the Santa Clara Broncos, who are coming off a big win against Sonoma State.  The match features Oregon head coach Joe Kerwin against his former assistant coach at NDNU, James Blocho.  It’s the packed in, early slide defense of Santa Clara against a full field ride by the Ducks and for awhile the Ducks offense is held down.  After Santa Clara pulls to within three goals at  7-4 in the third, the Ducks go on to win convincingly 15 to 4 for their fifth win of the season.

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NEWS & NOTES

- US Lacrosse has announced finalists for the 2010 Hall of Fame.

- Bill Belichick’s daughter is making it on her own as coach of the University of Massachusetts Minutewomen.

- Another Tierney is making her mark as a lacrosse coach at LVC.

- Quint Kessenich’s D1 Top 20 analysis

- DC Sports Box: Catalino Clutch as Maryland Downs Duke in OT

- Ivy League Weekly Report

- The Penn State Nittany Lions host Villanova tonight.

- The Virginia Cavaliers host VMI tonight.

- Wesleyan’s defense helped lead the way to a victory over Salve Regina.

- NLL Power Rankings: Week 9

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Got a question, something that deserves to be seen, or a hot tip?
Drop us a line at info@lacrosseallstars.com