There’s a big three in men’s college lacrosse. No. 4 is anyone’s guess.
Maybe in previous years, it would be easy to predict a Final Four in men’s college lacrosse. With three weeks left in the regular season, the top three appear set with Notre Dame, Duke and Virginia, but that fourth position is wideopen.
It could be Johns Hopkins (8-3), Maryland (7-3) or one of several Ivy League teams, but that’s what makes the next couple of weeks so interesting.
And some people aren’t even penciling in the No. 4 ranked Blue Devils (10-3).
“I’m not sure Duke is up there,” said Mark Dixon, a lacrosse analyst for both the Big Ten Network and ESPN. “The gap between the rest of the world isn’t as wide with UVA and Duke as it was last year, and that’s the reality of the top 10-12 at this point.”
Just about everyone is in agreement that No. 1 Notre Dame (7-1) is at the top of the class until proven otherwise. The Fighting Irish are sound up the middle with the Kavanaugh brothers, Pat (13 goals, 28 assists) and Chris (21 G, 17 A), and they have one of the best faceoff specialists in the country in Will Lynch (97for-156).
Both crease attackman Jake Taylor (26 G, 3 A) and midfielder Jordan Faison (14 G, 3 A) have added to the offense, and then there is 6-foot-3, 203-pound goalie Liam Entenmann (.535 save percentage).
These Fighting Irish are more intimidating than the school’s football team, but the other top teams aren’t as dominant.
Duke has perhaps the game’s best attackman in Brennan O’Neill (38 G, 21 A) and the Blue Devils have outscored their opponents 199-121 this season. Surprisingly, the defense has been a major staple with long poles Henry Bard, Kenny Brower and Jake Wilson, long-stick midfielder Tyler Carpenter and goalie Patrick Jameison (.576 save percentage).
But there have been times when the offense has struggled, and Jameison is only a freshman.
“Only four goals against Syracuse?” asked Dixon about the Blue Devils’
10-4 loss to the Orange on March 20. “And can a talented, yet young freshman keeper lead them to the promised land?”
Questions, questions, so many questions. There are some about No. 2 Virginia (10-1) as well. The Cavaliers average 15.2 goals a game while allowing 9.7, and their famed 10-man ride has created 129 turnovers.
They have come prolific scorers in attackmen Connor Shellenberger (20 G, 33 A), Payton Cormier (41 G, 10 A) and McCabe Millon, (28 G, 17 A), but Virginia has struggled on faceoffs (163-for-309) and there are doubts about whether coach Lars Tiffany can come up with a second quality midfield.
At this point, No. 3
Johns Hopkins would be the fourth team in the Final Four, even though the Blue Jays’ game against No. 5 Maryland on April 20 will have a major impact.
The Blue Jays are gritty. They find ways to win games, and they have playmakers in midfielders
Dylan Bauer (9 G, 11 A) and Jacob Angelus (18 G, 20 A) and shooters in attackman Garrett Degnon (34 G, 4 A) and midfielder Matt Collison (16 G, 7 A).
Hopkins always gets better by the end of the season under fourth-year coach Peter Milliman, but the Blue Jays lost to Navy, 10-9, in overtime on March 15.
Like the Blue Jays, Maryland always peaks at the right time under coach John Tillman, but the Terps don’t have a big scorer on their offense like O’Neill or Shellenberger. When Maryland starts giving away the famed No. 1 jersey to a defensive player instead of a star attackman like Matt Rambo, that’s when you know the offense is in trouble.
The Ivy League can’t be left out. No. 9 Yale (7-2), No. 8 Cornell (7-3) and No. 14 Penn (7-4) are tied for first place with 3-1 records in the conference. It seems as if each year there is always an Ivy League surprise, but will there be one in 2024?
“The Ivies have great offenses, but they also give up goals,” Dixon said. “Right now, Hopkins fits the bill
(at No. 4), but they lost to Navy. Penn State or Maryland? Both have holes but are talented.
“Is it a Big East team in Georgetown or Denver? They’ve gone under the radar after early season battles. It’s all kind of jumbled right now.”