Making Sense: Home Sweet Dome
by Jac Coyne
| Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff | Coyne Archive | Twitter
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It cost $3.6M to build, but the bubble at the University Center Rochester Regional Stadium is a godsend for college lacrosse programs in the state of Minnesota. Without this venue, and the 10 others like it in the state, "There is no college lacrosse in Minnesota," said Duluth head coach Rob Graff. © Jac Coyne |
As Rob Graff, the head coach of the seventh-ranked
Minnesota-Duluth team, stood underneath the protective bubble of
the University Center Rochester Regional Stadium wearing a
lightweight warm-up jacket on Saturday, the benefit of having a
covered field available for early season contests was obvious.
Without this option?
"There is no college lacrosse in Minnesota without domes," said
Graff, bluntly.
The game between the Bulldogs and Upper Midwest Lacrosse League
(UMLL) foe Wisconsin-Milwaukee certainly would not have
happened.
Although the talking heads on the local television station labeled
the 30-degree weather in Rochester - located about an hour south of
Minneapolis - as "unseasonably mild" and "a warm snap," the two
feet of snow on the ground would have made the game an
impossibility without coverage.
Since UMD beat Milwaukee by a count of 28-2 even though the
Bulldogs had four starters out because of injury, one could argue
the game probably didn't need to be played. But the availability of
the Rochester venue, located on the campus of the Rochester
Community and Technical College, made it a reality.
And the facility, which was built last year at a cost of $3.6M, is
a marvel.
During the sunny months in Minnesota, the field is an open-air
site, with a large grandstand on the west side of the multi-use
field - it's lined for soccer, lacrosse and football - and lights.
When the mercury dips, the bubble is bolted together with six-inch
metal clasps and inflated, with banks of indoor lights illuminating
the field.
I wouldn't go as far as to say it's warm inside the dome, as
they're called in Minnesota, but it is manageable in a
medium-weight fleece.
Fortunately for the college teams in The North Star State,
Rochester is just one of 11 facilities used by UMLL teams during
the early months of the season. There are numerous high schools in
and around the Twin Cities areas that have domes, such as Eden
Prairie, Minnetonka, Shattuck-St. Mary's and the "Stardome" at the
Academy of Holy Angels.
Augsburg, Concordia and St. Cloud State are three colleges that
have indoor field space and there are also municipal bubbles in
Plymouth, Rosemount and Edina. Almost all of the domes are lined
for lacrosse.
The advent of the bubble is relatively recent phenomenon, but it
is no secret what it has meant to the UMLL.
"We've had domes, but the explosion has happened in the last seven
to 10 years, and that has coincided with Minnesota lacrosse on a
national basis," said Graff.
Duluth is the poster child for what the domes have allowed
Minnesota college lacrosse teams to accomplish. Located at the "beak" of Lake Superior, UMD has emerged
as a program ranked consistently in the MCLA's Top 10 and a
perennial tournament participant with a little domed help.
"We can't get outside to play games until late March or early
April," said Graff. "Without these, we don't get our
out-of-conference games because we wouldn't get our conference
games done early to free up a weekend in April to go somewhere like
Colorado, which we're doing."
St. Thomas, the MCLA Division II defending champs, rents practice
space at the Stardome, which is right next door to the Tommies' St.
Paul campus. Graff sees that as a reason why the UST is always
contending on a national basis.
Because of the importance of the domes, much of the UMLL dues paid
by each school goes toward renting the facilities. The league will
buy time at the domes in bulk and then set the schedule for league
competitions. Those conference teams that want to play
non-conference games in a dome must pay for it themselves.
The UMD-Milwaukee game was paid for, and it did more for the
Bulldogs than just eliminate a pesky - and predictable - conference
game from the schedule. With Duluth heading to Arizona next week to
play No. 3 Arizona State and No. 16 California, this was a key
evaluating session.
"We were able to use a lot of players in this game," said Graff.
"We're still checking out some depth chart issues and this helped
resolve a lot of those issues, so that's important."
Behold the power of the Minnesota dome.
Weekend Game Balls
The Cortland Defense
We had heard a lot about WNEC goalie Brewster Knowlton leading up
to Saturday's game, but it was the Cortland defense - led by junior
pole Justin Schneidman and rookie goalie Mike Kaminski (7 saves) -
that stole the show. The Golden Bears will prove to be a decent
offensive team as the season matures, but they were absolutely
stifled on Saturday. With Gettysburg and Salisbury up next for the
Red Dragons, Steve Beville has to be absolutely thrilled with the
opening day performance.
Paul Larson,
Attack, Colorado State
The Rams traveled to Missouri and took down a pair of nationally ranked teams -
No. 14 Texas and No. 21 Lindenwood - by a combined score of 29-10
and Larson played a big role. The junior scored six goals and set
up three others, helping CSU improve to 3-0 heading into Friday's
game against No. 3 Simon Fraser.
Rob Lutin, Attack,
Skidmore
The Thoroughbreds are one of the teams that could give St.
Lawrence some trouble in the Liberty, and they jumped out to a
strong start with a 16-4 victory over Babson. Lutin, a senior, scored three goals and dished
out a pair of assists to lead the effort.
Jud Hall, Goalie,
Ohio Wesleyan
Despite watching his teammates rack up 12:30 minutes of penalties
and give Lynchburg 11 EMO chances, Hall stood tall, making 10 saves
and allowing just 10 goals in the Bishops' 13-10 victory over the
No. 17 Hornets. Hall made four of his saves in the pivotal fourth
quarter when OWU swatted away a comeback bid by LC.
Dan McQuade,
Whittier, Attack
The Poets have raced out to a 3-0 start to the season on the Left
Coast helped by McQuade. In the 2-0 weekend for Whittier, the
sophomore from British Columbia scored 10 goals and set up three
others in wins over Southwestern and D-II Grand Canyon. The
competition level goes up, however, with Drew, St. Lawrence and
Ithaca coming to town in the next three games.
Katharine Farrar,
Goalie, Washington & Lee
Farrar, a junior, helped the Generals rebound
from the opening day loss to Salisbury by turning away 10 St.
Mary's shots and allowing just six goals in W&L's 14-6 win on
Saturday. After playing two high-end teams to start the season,
Farrar has a 52.9 save percentage and an 8.00 GAA.
What's On Tap
There are all sorts of tasty midweek games, including
one of the more anticipated games in the MCLA.
No. 15 Geneseo
(0-0) at Union (0-0), 4 p.m. (at Syracuse, N.Y.), Tuesday
Two tournament contenders from the Empire State open the season
against each other. Union, like Skidmore, is eyeing the Liberty
league crown while Geneseo is hoping that a beefed up schedule will
propel the Blue Knights into the dance if they can't catch
Cortland. Should be a dandy.
W: No. 8 Union (0-0) at No. 11 Babson (0-0),
5 p.m., Tuesday
The Union women start their brutal non-conference march against a
tournament-caliber Babson squad. This will be a good test for the
Dutchwomen as the Beavers have a good goalie, capable scorers, and
young talent in the midfield.
RIT (0-0) at No. 2
Stevenson (2-0), 3:30 p.m., Wednesday
They have a new coach and they're playing as a lame duck in
the Empire 8, so this should be an interesting season for the
Tigers. We'll see exactly where they stack up after they visit the
surging Mustangs. A win would probably be a bit ambitious, but this
game could pay dividends if RIT can keep it relatively close.
FDU-Florham (0-2) at No.
10 Haverford (1-0), 7 p.m., Wednesday
The so-called "trap game" for the Black Squirrels. They subdued
No. 12 Cabrini by a goal on Saturday and have No. 18 St. Lawrence
lurking this weekend. As W&L found out last year in the
tournament, the Devils are no slouch. It will be easy for Haverford
to look past FDU because Cabrini already trounced them, 16-7 last
week.
No. 20 Endicott (0-1)
at Springfield (1-1), 4 p.m., Wednesday
The Godfather of the Springfield Mafia, Keith Bugbee, takes on one
of his protégés, Endicott skipper Sean Quirk. Both of
these teams are coming off disappointing performances this weekend,
but it's Endicott that must have this win. There is no evidence
that Springfield won't roll again to the Pilgrim AQ, but the Gulls
have to amass all of the resume help they can get in case they
don't solve WNEC in the Commonwealth Coast.
Eastern Conn.
(0-0) at Stevens
(2-0), 4
p.m.,
Wednesday
Is Eastern Conn. on the same ascendant plane they were on a decade
ago? Can Stevens win a game by more than one goal? This one is
worth watching if you're in the area.
W: LaGrange (0-0) at
Agnes Scott (0-0), 4 p.m., Tuesday
Georgia women's lacrosse bragging rights on are on the line when
these two start-ups take to the field. There probably won't be much
clinic footage shot at this contest, but it's a big step for the
Peach State and our sport.
W: No. 17 St. John Fisher (0-0) at No. 18 Roanoke (0-0), (at Orlando), 11 a.m., Wednesday
Fisher and ‘Noke kick off the Spring Break season
when they square off in the shadow of Disney. Both of these teams
are going to receive strong competition in their respective
conferences, so a win here will be a nice Pool C resume
builder.
No. 1 Michigan (1-0) at No. 3 Arizona State (3-0), 7 p.m. CT, Wednesday
A lot of people thought this was going to be last year's
championship game until the Sun Devils had their season terminated,
but the tilt hasn't lost any luster a year later. The two teams
have contrasting styles - methodical Michigan against the
loosey-goosey Devils - and loads of talent, making this the game of
the mid-week in the bushes.
The Power Fives
Men's Division
III
1. Cortland
(1-0) - A frighteningly efficient display against WNEC.
2. Stevenson
(2-0) - We'll see what the ‘Stangs are made of this week.
3. Gettysburg
(2-0) - Nice rally for the Bullets over Sydney.
4. Salisbury
(3-0) - Gulls drop a spot after the unimpressive win over
Widener.
5. Middlebury
(0-0) - Will the Panthers ever play?
Women's Division
III
1. Franklin
& Marshall (0-0) - Champs open this Saturday against
W&L.
2. Salisbury
(4-0) - Two nice wins over W&L and Etown.
3. Gettysburg
(1-0) - Two more cupcakes left before Catholic.
4. Hamilton
(0-0) - Another two weeks before Ham Tech hits the fields.
5. TCNJ (0-0) -
Lions kick it off against Ramapo Thursday.
MCLA Division I
1. Michigan
(1-0) - Efficient win over Arizona sets up ASU game.
2. Chapman (4-0)
- Not the most dominant weekend in Chapman history, but two
wins.
3. Simon
Fraser (1-0) - Olympic break is over. Big Colorado trip up
next.
4. Florida
State (7-0) - Chapman awaits this Saturday on the Left
Coast.
5. Brigham
Young (3-1) - Clinging to the fifth spot after barely handling
D-II UVU.
MCLA Division II
1. St.
Thomas (0-0) - Tommies finally get rolling this Sunday against
Eau Claire.
2. Dayton (2-0)
- They might be in this spot strictly because of last year.
3. Utah
Valley (3-1) - The Wolverines gave BYU a run.
4. Davenport
(5-0) - Tune up with Hope this Thursday.
5. St.
John's (3-0) - Still preparing for Dayton/Davenport weekend on
March 13-14.
Slides & Rides
MD3 Notes
- No. 3 Gettysburg appeared to be headed to a brutal,
early-season loss at the hands of Hampden-Sydney, falling behind
6-0 and trailing, 7-3 at the half. Final score: Bullets 17, Tigers
10. It was an important comeback for a team obviously still trying
to fill the massive holes left by last year's graduating class.
Gettysburg will have to get better play in goal, where sophomore
John LeClerc made six saves, and just two in the first half. The
defense in front of LeClerc likely shares some of the blame for the
bad numbers, however. Even with a test against a dangerous Goucher
team on Wednesday and then the national championship rematch with
Cortland on Saturday, the Bullets are in a good spot right now.
- The Skidmore men are going to be a team to keep your eye on this
year. Not that Babson is terribly strong, but the 16-4 win was a
solid start to the season...looks like it's going to be one of
those types of seasons for Stevens. They pulled out another
one-goal win, this time on the road against a highly regarded
Endicott squad....comparing scores is a dangerous enterprise, but
one can't avoid looking at Stevenson's 15-3 destruction of Widener
and Salisbury escaping with a 9-7 victory over the Pride on
Saturday...the Mary Washington men are really struggling after
losing the big senior class in '09. The Eagles lost to Oneonta on
Saturday, 12-5, to drop to 0-3...good win for Naz over Springfield,
but they'll need stronger face-off play.
WD3 Notes
- A lot of people will look at the 20-8 victory by
Salisbury over Elizabethtown and think business as usual, but both
teams showed us a great deal on Saturday. First, the game was 8-6
in favor of the Gulls at halftime, which is a testament to the
Etown program. Mike Faith is still trying to build the Blue Jays
brand, and staying with Salisbury for a half was a good sign he's
making progress. Etown just doesn't have the depth yet to play with
the big girls for 60 minutes. For Salisbury, it was impressive for
them to shrug off a difficult first half and close out a nagging
foe. Good on both of those teams.
- It hasn't been against the most stellar of competition, but the
Stevenson women have raced out to a 3-0 record...count me as
surprised that Lynchburg dispatched Adrian as easily as it did. I
thought the Bulldogs would make a bigger leap this year, but they
still may be a year off...good work by Michelle Uhlfelder and
Occidental staying within four goals of Whittier, which is a
relatively established program on the West Coast.
MCLA Notes
- The MCLA tournament may have to do without one of its
staples for the past decade. After an 8-6 setback to UC Davis on
Saturday, Sonoma State - which has an MCLA national championship to
its credit - is now 0-2 with a brutal schedule still to play.
Without the WCLL automatic qualifier, which appears remote at this
point, the Seawolves would realistically have to finish with a 7-2
record in its final nine games and make an appearance in the
conference finals to get an at-large bid. That would mean beating
two of the following clubs - UCSB, Cal, Cal Poly and SDSU.
- After hammering No. 5 Emory on Saturday and following that up
with a 6-5 win over Division I Indiana on Sunday, Tennessee
Wesleyan is emerging as real contender in the MCLA D-II ranks. The
Bulldogs have several difficult games left, including Division I
foes Clemson, Vanderbilt and Tennessee, but this weekend's effort
shows that TWC could very well finish the season undefeated. Tenn
Wes could a scary first round draw in the tourney.
- Arizona State is really getting into the meat of their schedule
now. Over a 12-day period, the Sun Devils will play No. 1 Michigan,
No. 10 Colorado State and No. 7 Minnesota-Duluth. Duluth is one
team especially looking to get a crack at ASU. The last time the
teams met was in the quarterfinals of the 2008 MCLA tournament in
Dallas when the Devils rallied to bounce the Bulldogs. I'm
currently operating on the assumption that ASU is overrated, but if
it can post a 2-1 record or better during this stretch, I'll be a
believer.
- North Carolina State is quietly putting together a solid season
in the SELC. They are 4-1, with the loss a one-goal setback to
Vandy...one of the bigger conference tournament upsets last year
was Buffalo unseating Michigan State in the CCLA. The Bulls started
their season by dismissing conference foes Pittsburgh (8-5) and
Ball State (10-4) in the same evening.
