By NoontimeSports.com
Earlier this afternoon, Matt Noonan and Josh Blumenthal (head coach of Regis College men’s lacrosse) discussed the current men’s lacrosse season, as well as Endicott College’s big win against No. 4 Tufts University earlier this week on Noontime Sports The Podcast.
Excluding Endicott-Tufts, both men chatted about the various conferences and teams to watch during the final few weeks.
Kerry Eaton’s four goals helped Tufts defeat Wheaton! (Photo Credit: Matt Noonan for NoontimeSports.com)
By Matt Noonan
MEDFORD, MA – Coming off a conference setback to Middlebury College, Tufts University’s women’s lacrosse team rebounded with a 13-4 victory against Wheaton College on Thursday afternoon at Bello Field.
Kerry Eaton and Caroline Ross paced the Jumbos with four goals, respectively, while Eliza Halmo registered two strikes.
“We talked about making a statement at the beginning of the game,” said Tufts coach Carol Rappolli, whose team improves to 6-4 on the season.
“The first 10 minutes are really important and making sure the shots that we took were going to move the goalkeeper, and we added a little tweak to our motion offense and the kids responded and did exactly what we asked them to do.”
Tufts jumped out to an 8-0 lead and never looked back, but Wheaton trimmed the deficit with two tallies – one from Allie Bush and one from Leila Mills, which were both set up by Charlotte De Santis.
The Jumbos, who led 8-2 at the break, padded their lead with five more goals in the second to seal the win and earn their fourth victory at home.
“I think it’s still a great opportunity for us (to play Tufts), but I was disappointed with our first 10 minutes of the game and you can’t get down 7-0 against a nationally ranked team and think you can stay in the game,” explained Wheaton coach Emily Kiablick.
“This is a hurdle that we have to get over and so we can’t get over it unless we keep playing, so that’s what we’ll do.”
Wheaton Plans To Improve: Kiablick admitted there were some positives from her team’s fifth setback of the season, but she also eyed some areas the Lyons needs to improve prior to their conference tilt against Mount Holyoke on Saturday.
“We absolutely will build off this,” said Kiablick. “We’ve done a really good job all season of looking at parts (of our team’s game) and focusing on what aspects we really need to improve and for us it was really the opening 10 minutes and we were just playing a little scared coming out of the back and on attack, so that’s what we’ll talk about and that’s what we’ll focus on tomorrow.”
Prior to today’s game, Wheaton defeated Wellesley on Tuesday, 17-4, and according to their coach, there were a lot of positives from that game she plans to build on, too.
“There were some positive things to build off the Wellesley game, so we won’t get bogged down by this, but we’ll just talk about it, address it and move on.”
Tufts Returns To NESCAC Play On Saturday: With their final non-conference game in the books, the Jumbos will return to conference play on Saturday when they welcome Amherst College to Medford for a 12 p.m. face-off.
Tufts, who is 2-4 in a very competitive conference, plans to build off their 15-8 loss to Middlebury last Sunday against the Lord Jeffs, who’re 6-4 overall and 3-4 in the conference.
“I thought that the first half against Middlebury was terrific,” said Rappolli. “We could have been a little bit closer then we were, but you’ve got a young team against a very experienced team and we’re down 8-5 at the half, and then their experience came through and we were a little bit sloppier with the ball in the second half, but I would like to play that team again because I think that we can beat that team in a NESCAC tournament situation, I really do.
“If our kids played like they did on Saturday (against Williams College) and really the first half on Sunday – that was a good weekend for us even though we were just 1-1.”
The Jumbos lost to Amherst last season, 12-4, but beat them the prior year, 14-13.
Leila Mills Continues To Fuel Wheaton’s Attack: Mills, who ranks first on her team in goals (24), netted only one of two shots this afternoon, but despite a quiet day, the junior attack has been an important asset to Wheaton’s success this season.
“Leila was probably the best player coming out of Maine her senior year, so we knew she had it in her, but she’s certainly not the type to force a situation, she’s just going to wait until the opportunity is there and that’s what makes her so strong,” said Kiablick.
“She’s catching more and shooting better, and all the freshmen that she’s playing with love passing to her because they know it’s an assist on the (stat sheet) because she’s going to take a smart shot”
Mills’ best game of the season occurred two days ago against Wellesley as she netted five strikes. She’s recorded at least two or more goals in 11 contests this season, and is on part to match her goal total from last year of 28.
Merrimack’s Corey Lunney has been a big part of the Warriors success on offense! (Photo Credit: Matt Noonan for NoontimeSports.com)
By NoontimeSports.com
This week’s United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) poll was released yesterday and a few local teams earned spots in the Division II and III polls.
* Merrimack College (6-1, 5-0 NE-10) – For the second week in a row, the Warriors remain the fourth best team in Division II. They haven’t lost since their season opener against Limestone and will be on the field this evening when they host Bentley University for a 7 p.m. face-off. Corey Lunney continues to lead the Blue and Gold with 32 points (26 goals, six assists), while Greg Melaugh has registered 25 points (21 goals, four assists).
* Tufts University (8-2, 4-2 NESCAC) - The Jumbos winning streak extended to eight on Sunday as they defeated Middlebury College in Medford. Their slate doesn’t get easier as they’ll travel to Endicott College this evening for a big non-conference match. The Jumbos defeated the Gulls last year, 11-5. Cole Bailey was named the NESCAC Men’s Lacrosse Player of the Week on Monday and currently leads the Powder Blue and White with 31 points (14 goals, 17 assists).
By NoontimeSports.com
Here are some photos from today’s NESCAC men’s lacrosse match between Middlebury College and Tufts University. The Jumbos used a variety of runs to defeat the Panthers and improve to 8-2 overall and 4-2 in conference play.
Chris Schoenhut’s diving goal helped spark a Tufts first half run! (Photo Credit: Matt Noonan for NoontimeSports.com)
By Matt Noonan
MEDFORD, MA – If there were one word to describe Tufts University’s men’s lacrosse team it would be resilient.
Trailing Middlebury College for a majority of the first half, the Jumbos rallied to even the score at the break before netting seven strikes in the second, which was just enough to defeat the Panthers, 14-13.
“The guys…they’re tough,” explained Tufts coach Mike Daly. “Up at Colby and in a tough situation we go down 6-0, and the Babson game (we were) down 3-0, and we’re down today, 4-1, (but) they just keep rolling and they really have a lot of trust and respect for each other and we just keep grinding on the game plan.
“We just got a great group of guys and we believe in each other and we stick together too.”
Middlebury wasted little time securing a three-goal advantage thanks to their defense, which forced seven turnovers in the opening session before Tufts’ offense came to life following a diving strike by Chris Schoenhut that sparked a 3-0 run, which spanned into the second quarter and tied the game at 4-4.
Andrew Metros and Jon Broome each recorded an unassisted strike early in the second, which halted the Jumbos run and pushed the Panthers ahead by two, but Peter Bowers sliced the deficit three minutes later to bring Tufts within one.
Joel Blockowicz registered his team’s third consecutive unassisted goal roughly two minutes later, but Tufts answered with Bowers and Andrew Fiamengo to tie the game at 7-7 heading into intermission.
“We were just really struggling with some of that pressure, so more of a credit to them and their speed, their tempo and they were making the plays and we weren’t,” Daly said of Middlebury’s first half effort.
Cole Bailey echoed his coach by saying, “Yeah, stick skills got us in trouble.”
Bailey extended Tufts run from the second into the third when he dodged by his defender at the top of the half circle and whipped a shot past Nate Gaudio (11 saves) before Dan Leventhal and Beau Wood registered back-to-back strikes.
Mike Giordano halted the 5-0 run with a goal midway through the third, but Tufts answered with a 4-0 run that went into the fourth and provided the Jumbos with a six-goal edge with 9:43 remaining.
“We came out firing and I think a bunch of people got in the point column, so that’s good, but that was huge and it ended up making the difference in the end of the game,” Bailey said of his team’s third quarter effort.
Middlebury stormed back with five goals – two on the man-up – but after Stew Kerr netted the Panthers 13th tally on the left side of the half circle with 24 seconds remaining, Tufts’ Brian Ruggiero won his 16th face-off, which sealed the win.
“We knew there were going to be runs back and fourth, knew it was going to be a game like that, but we just honestly get frustrated when we’re helping those teams make those runs at us, but they’re a good team and it’s in the win column and we’ll take it,” said Daly.
Leventhal led all scorers with four strikes, while Bailey and Wood combined for nine points (five goals, four assists).
“It’s awesome playing with (Beau),” stated Wood. “When he’s open I try to find him and just have trust in him throwing it into the back of the net.”
This afternoon’s victory marks Tufts’ eighth consecutive win since Mar. 16 against Stevens.
Tufts will return the grass on Tuesday when they travel to Endicott College for a 7 p.m. face-off, while Middlebury returns to action Saturday against Trinity College at home.
By NoontimeSports.com
Here are some snapshots from last night’s Amherst-Endicott men’s lacrosse game. The Gulls used a second quarter rally to earn the lead for good as they defeated the Lord Jeffs at Harvard University’s Soldiers Field, 13-9.
By Matt Noonan
CAMBRIDGE, MA – Before Endicott College commenced their non-conference match against Amherst College on Wednesday evening, the Gulls endured two back-to-back losses to St. John Fisher and RIT, two of Division III’s stronger units. And even though Sean Quirk’s squad saw its three-game winning streak conclude, he certainly believed both setbacks prepared his team for the Lord Jeff.
“The thing we just told our team is that loss against Fisher, who’s a great team, and RIT, (who’s fourth in the nation), helped us prepare for tonight,” said Quirk.
Endicott jumped out to an early lead, which Amherst erased, and then rallied to retain it by netting four strikes in the second session as the Gulls defeated the Lord Jeffs, 13-9, at Harvard University’s Soldiers Field.
The win marks the first time Endicott has defeated Amherst since the 2006 season.
“(It’s) great to get back in the win column, especially (against) a good team like Amherst. We came out and gave it our best and got the (win),” said Endicott’s Nick Pinciaro, who finished with three points (two goals, one assist).
The Gulls jumped out to a 4-1 lead, but the Lord Jeffs responded with strikes from Patrick Moroney, Devin Acton, Quinn Moroney and Connor Crump, which provided the visitors with a two-goal cushion.
Ryan Sutherland, who netted his first goal of the season, sparked a four-goal rally for Endicott after he deposited his shot past Amherst’s starting goaltender Rob Dickinson (nine saves) at 11:00 in the second quarter. Connor McCormack and Pinciaro each registered back-to-back man-up goals in a span of 22 seconds.
Pinciaro doubled his goal total with a strike at 2:35, which provided the Gulls with an 8-6 lead at intermission.
“(We) were basically just running our sets,” Pinciaro said of his team’s second quarter rally. “(We) just ran the sets well and everything went our way.”
Chris Murphy increased the Gulls lead on an unassisted strike before Amherst answered with Acton, who whipped the ball past Cameron Bell (13 saves) to bring the Lord Jeffs within two.
Following Acton’s goal, Endicott make sure Amherst wouldn’t get any closer as Harrison Cotter and Murphy pushed the hosts ahead by five before Kyle Weber sealed the win by wrapping around the left post and rifling his shot past Thomas Gilligan (10 saves), who replaced Dickinson in the second frame.
“Our guys came out strong tonight, we told them in the locker room that our game plan coming into it was we’ve got to jump on these guys early. Amherst is a very well coached team by Jon Thompson, they’re disciplined, they’ve got a lot of horses out there, so we knew we had to come out strong right away and our guys did that,” said Quirk.
“When Amherst came back, they responded with a few back-to-back goals, but our guys just got right back up and kept punching, so it was a big win for us, I’m proud of our guys the way they played tonight.”
Both squads will return to the grass on Saturday as Endicott will host Springfield College in Beverley, while Amherst will travel to Albany to face-off against Nazareth.
Amherst College will attempt to earn its third consecutive win against Endicott College this evening! (Photo Credit: Matt Noonan for NoontimeSports.com)
By NoontimeSports.com
Noontime Sports will be in Cambridge this evening covering Endicott College’s men’s lacrosse game against Amherst College, which begins at 7 p.m. The game will be played at Soldiers Field, which is located on the campus of Harvard University.
Follow the game on Twitter (@NoontimeSports) and check for updates on Facebook (Facebook.com/NoonSports), too. We’ll have photos, as well as a recap posted later this evening, so make sure to circle back after the match concludes.
For more information on this evening’s tilt, here’s a quick preview:
Last Meeting: The Lord Jeffs defeated the Power Gulls last season, 15-7, in Amherst.
Endicott’s Two-Game Skid: The Power Gulls began their season winning three of their first four contests. However, their three-game winning streak concluded with a 13-10 defeat to St. John Fisher last Friday. Endicott tried to rebound on Sunday against RIT, but lost, 17-5. The Power Gulls have won two of five non-conference games.
Amherst’s Two-Game Winning Streak: The Lord Jeffs began their season with two back-to-back overtime losses to Bates College and Colby College before they mustered their first win against Eastern Connecticut. Last Saturday, Amherst doubled its win total with a victory against Bowdoin, a squad that appeared in last season’s NESCAC (New England Small College Athletic Conference) championship against Tufts University.
Players To Watch: The first player to watch is Devin Acton (Amherst), who ranks fourth in points per game (4.33) and goals per game (3.33) in the NESCAC. The former Lincoln-Sudbury Warrior leads the Lord Jeffs in points (16), goals (11) and assists (5). His two best outings occurred against Bates and Eastern Connecticut as he finished each contest with five points (four goals, one assist).
The second player to watch is Kyle Weber (Endicott), who leads the Power Gulls in points (16) and goals (16). Webber tied a program record for most goals in a single contest when he netted eight strikes against Eastern Connecticut in his team’s 16-12 victory. Excluding his epic performance against the Warriors, Webber also recorded his first hat trick of the season in a 14-3 win against Gordon College.
Conference Notes: Acton is tied in second with 11 goals in the NESCAC, while teammate Quinn Moroney is tied in first with nine assists and Rob Dickinson ranks third with 40 saves.
As a team, Amherst ranks third in goals (41), tied for second with 25 assists, sixth in shots (139) and sixth in ground balls (109).
Webber currently leads the CCC (Commonwealth Coast Conference) in goals, while teammate and goaltender Cameron Bell ranks second in saves (60).
As a team, Endicott ranks second in the conference in goals (63), fourth in goals per game (10.50), third in shots on goal (139) and second in ground balls (243).
For more information on Amherst College’s men’s lacrosse team — HOP HERE
For more information on Endicott College’s men’s lacrosse team — HOP HERE
By Matt Noonan
The USILA (United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association) unveiled its most recent coaches poll today and a few local squads earned spots.
Division I Breakdown: No Massachusetts team appeared on this week’s list, but UMass was mentioned as one of five teams that’s currently receiving votes. The Minutemen, who haven’t appeared in the win column since defeating Harvard on Feb. 23, have dropped their last four contests, which included its Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opener this past weekend against Penn State. UMass can even its record with a win against Lehigh tomorrow.
Division II Breakdown: Merrimack College, who is ranked seventh, evened its record at 1-1 with a victory this past weekend against Lake Erie. Jamie Shand netted the game-winning strike against with 4:18 remaining, while teammate Corey Lunney led all scorers with four goals. Merrimack opens Northeast-10 Conference play on Saturday when they travel to American International.
Division III: Tufts University snapped their two-game skid with an 18-14 victory against Stevens this past weekend. The Jumbos, who are ranked ninth this week, will attempt to continue their momentum against the Mustangs of Stevenson, who’re riding a six-game winning streak.
The 15th ranked Western New England Golden Bears picked up an impressive win against Nazareth on Sunday thanks to four goals from Corbett Corrigan Harreys. WNEC will have a few days off before they travel to Medford to face-off against Tufts.
By NoontimeSports.com
Courtesy of the Springfield College sports information department, here’s this evening’s release from the women’s lacrosse game. the Pride, which started the season on a four-game winning streak, fell to Williams College, 9-2. Here’s the recap:
Springfield, Mass. – March 12, 2013 – Despite jumping out to an early 2-0 lead, the Springfield College women’s lacrosse team surrendered the next nine goals to lose for the first time this season to visiting Williams, 9-2, on a rainy Tuesday at Stagg Field.
Williams improves to 2-0, while the Pride drop to 4-1.
Both Michelle Dorsey and Connie Nielsen scored the Pride, while Ellie Getchel had a standout game defensively, causing eight turnovers. Anne Versprille was tested all night between the pipes, making 14 stops for the home squad. The Pride struggled on its clears all night, going just 13-for-28, including just 5-for-14 in the second half.
Williams held a 33-12 advantage in shots, including an 18-3 cushion in the second stanza. Rebecca McGovern led all players with five points on two goals and three helpers. Nancy Palmer, Sam Weinstein, and Emily Whicker each scored twice, while Weinstein caused five turnovers and McGovern won four draws. Ali Piltch needed to make six saves to earn the win.
The Pride opened up a 2-0 lead, scoring a pair of goals 11:43 thanks to a free-position goal from Nielsen and an unassisted strike from Dorsey.
However, Williams closed out the half scoring four unanswered goals to head into the break with a 4-2 advantage. Weinstein kick started the run, scoring after she caused a turnover on a Springfield cleary at 17:32, before Palmer converted on the crease off a great look from McGovern at 14:19.
Goals from Whicker and Bridget Malicki at 5:09 and 2:31 completed the first-half scoring as Williams was able to take advantage of the Pride converting just 8 of its 14 clear attempts.
McGovern continued Williams scoring burst, netting a free position goal just 1:06 into the second stanza. The Ephs put the game away for good with three goals in a 4:44 span as markers from Weinstein, McGovern, and Palmer put the visitors up 8-2 with 12:42 left in regulation. Whicker tacked on the game’s final goal at 4:09.
Springfield will next play when it travels to Florida for Spring Break. The Pride will play Oswego on Sunday at 10:00 am before battling William Smith on Tuesday, March 19.
