All those tight games between top teams can mean only one thing: it’s tournament time.
Defensive slugfests. Offensive shootouts. Game-sealing goals involving a one-on-one dance session with the goalkeeper. A future Tewaaraton finalist getting ejected. Yes, it’s safe to say that the conference tournaments have had plenty of action. And the Ivy League and Big 12 tournaments haven’t even started yet! Postseason lacrosse is fully in form, and it’s been a tremendous ride so far. Let’s get right into it.
1. North Carolina (18-0, 9-0 ACC, ACC Champions)
Movement: none
Last Week: W vs. No. 16 Clemson 17-7, W vs. No. 2 Boston College 14-12
This Week: none
The last time North Carolina didn’t run the clock against a non-Boston College opponent was March 27 against Northwestern. The Tar Heels ran through the first two rounds of the ACC Tournament by a combined score of 36-16, with neither opponent reaching 10 goals. In the Boston College rematch, North Carolina actually went into the fourth quarter trailing 9-8. But a four-goal run midway through the final frame sealed the ACC for the Tar Heels. Chloe Humphrey was “held” to three goals and two assists, but got a huge boost from Eliza Osburn’s hat trick. UNC is still the team to beat for the rest of the nation.
2. Boston College (17-2, 8-1 ACC, ACC Runner-Up)
Movement: none
Last Week: W vs. No. 13 Stanford 16-9, L vs. No. 1 North Carolina 12-14
This Week: none
Both of the ticks on the wrong side of the win-loss ledger for the Eagles are courtesy of North Carolina. Boston College had a great run to the ACC final (including running the clock on Virginia), but just couldn’t topple North Carolina in Charlotte. Rachel Clark only took five shots in the ACC final, her lowest mark since she only took three shots on April 5 against…North Carolina. The Tar Heels have also put up an average of 13 goals per game on Shea Dolce, double Dolce’s season average in goals allowed per game. But the Eagles have had the victory right there for the taking in both losses so far, and they’ve got a massive advantage for the NCAA Tournament. Unlike the ACC title game, the national title game is going to be right in BC’s backyard, in Foxboro, Massachusetts.
3. Northwestern (16-2, 8-0 B1G, Big Ten Champions)
Movement: none
Last Week: W vs. No. 9 Johns Hopkins 16-15, W vs. No. 7 Maryland 8-7
This Week: none
Well, you can’t say the Wildcats aren’t ready for postseason intensity. After a streak of six straight games in which Northwestern won by at least eight goals, the Lake Show narrowly escaped a pair of top-10 squads to clinch its third straight Big Ten Tournament. The Hopkins game was marred by a lack of focus — the Wildcats committed 18 turnovers, picked up just 13 ground balls, and tallied just two draw controls in the final quarter. Ironically enough, the Maryland game was marred by too much focus — Northwestern took 41 shots but converted on just eight, partially because the team was pressing too much. On the bright side, the Wildcats’ record and resume is still right up there with the best in the nation. The question now is whether these close calls were the scare the team needed to kickstart a dominant NCAA Tournament run.
4. Florida (15-2, 5-0 Big 12)
Movement: none
Last Week: W vs. Arizona State 17-5
This Week: vs. UC Davis (Big 12 Semifinal), Big 12 Final
The Gators have dominated the Big 12 at a frankly disturbing level. Sure, the level of competition isn’t the same as the Ivy League, let alone the ACC or Big Ten, but a +53 point differential in five conference games is nothing to sneeze at. The defense is starting to really step up (11 goals allowed in the last three games), and Elyse Finnelle has had a save percentage of 50% or better in her last six games. Not coincidentally, Florida is 6-0 in those contests. Also, Clark Hamilton should be a lock for the national All-Freshman team. She’s third on the Gators in points despite coming off the bench in eight contests.
5. Princeton (13-2, 6-1 Ivy)
Movement: none
Last Week: W at Dartmouth 15-11
This Week: vs. No. 17 Brown (Ivy League Semifinal), Ivy League Final
The Ivy League’s regular season champion heads into the postseason feeling REALLY good about the offense. The Tigers are scoring 15.87 goals per game, less than a goal per game behind both Florida and Northwestern. The main concern with Princeton is the defense — at 10.60 goals per game allowed, the Tigers are below Yale, Penn and Brown in the Ivy League rankings. Those three teams are the other three in the Ivy League Tournament. If Princeton is going to complete the Ivy League double, a big weekend from McKenzie Blake (66 goals, tied for seventh nationally) is paramount. Improving in the draw circle (the Tigers are 50th nationally) would also be a massive help in that endeavor.
6. Maryland (14-5, 7-1 B1G, Big Ten Runner-Up)
Movement: up one spot
Last Week: W vs. No. 12 Michigan 13-10, L vs. No. 3 Northwestern 7-8
This Week: none
The Terrapins finally came out on the wrong side of a tight defensive struggle in the Big Ten title game, but there’s a lot to be encouraged by. And keep in mind, in the first two games of the Big Ten tournament, an offense outside of the top 50 in scoring put up 30 goals. That total includes 13 goals against Michigan, which is seventh in scoring defense. The big takeaway from the tournament run is this: get JJ Suriano and Kori Edmondson some help. Edmondson scored 11 goals in the Big Ten Tournament, and Suriano put up a mind-boggling 37 saves. If Maryland could get some big-time performances from players like Chrissy Thomas and Neve O’Ferrall, the Terrapins could make a run.
7. Yale (12-3, 5-2 Ivy)
Movement: down one spot
Last Week: W vs. Cornell 16-15 F/OT
This Week: vs. No. 12 Penn (Ivy League Semifinal), Ivy League Final
The Bulldogs are the 2 seed in the Ivy League Tournament, but they should be counting themselves lucky. The only reason they’ve got the tiebreaker over Penn is because of a double-overtime victory back on April 12. And the only reason that tiebreaker was initiated is because Yale came back from a 13-8 second-half deficit against Cornell in a game that went to overtime. The X-factor for the Bulldogs is probably Sky Carrasquillo — she scored a combined three goals in the losses to Brown and Princeton, but put up four goals (including the game-tying shot) against Cornell. She also had a clutch goal in the first matchup against Penn, so Yale is probably hoping for history to repeat itself.
8. Johns Hopkins (12-6, 5-3 B1G)
Movement: up one spot
Last Week: L vs. No. 3 Northwestern 15-16
This Week: none
Doing THAT without Ashley Mackin deserves a lot of praise. The Blue Jays’ former leading scorer (she’s still second on the team in goals and points despite missing six games) is gone, but the rest of the offense has stepped it up in her absence. The Northwestern game was truly a by-committee approach: Ava Angello and Samantha DiCarlo had hat tricks, three players had two goals, and three more players scored once. It also helps to have arguably the best defender in the country on your team. Reagan O’Brien put up 14 ground balls and 17 caused turnovers in the Big Ten tournament. She played two games. With a player like O’Brien, Johns Hopkins could give any offense in the nation a lot of trouble.
9. Virginia (11-6, 5-4 ACC)
Movement: down one spot
Last Week: none
This Week: none
Nothing new for the Cavaliers this week, who fell to Boston College eight days ago in the ACC Quarterfinals and haven’t played since. The rest could be both a blessing (16 days off doubles their longest break of the season) and a curse (how rusty will the team be after over two weeks without live competition?). The best shot for Virginia is dominating possession — led by Kate Galica, the Cavaliers are a top-20 squad in draw control percentage and a top-10 squad in turnovers given up. If Virginia is able to control games, the question becomes taking advantage of that control — the nation’s 31st-ranked scoring offense might not be able to make it very far in the NCAA Tournament.
10. Stanford (14-5, 7-2 ACC)
Movement: up three spots
Last Week: L vs. No. 2 Boston College 9-16
This Week: none
As evidenced by the Boston College defeat, this offense has a tendency to hit the wall in big games. The Cardinal have failed to crack double digits in five of their last nine games, and have a 1-4 record in such contests. This isn’t that much of a shock, given that Stanford is just 30th in goals per game, but it’s notable given that this squad also has a top-10 defense. Lucy Pearson, the goalkeeper who’s 17th nationally in goals-against average, has a chance to put this team in position to make a run. If Aliya Polisky and Ava Arceri (145 combined points) can take advantage of that, then Stanford could recapture the form that saw it start the season 9-1.
Just missed the cut: Michigan (10-13 loss to Maryland in Big Ten semifinal), Penn (four-game win streak, plays Yale on Friday), James Madison (plays Vanderbilt this afternoon)