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May 23, 2008
Take a Cue from 'Cuse
Here's a trend that you won't like if you're a Virginia fan. Since John Desko took over at Syracuse in 1999, the Orange has had two or fewer regular season losses four times. They made it to the NCAA finals each of those four seasons, winning national titles in 2000, 2002 and 2004. After going 22-19 over the last three seasons, Syracuse's turnaround has been one of the biggest stories of the year.
 Brian Logue  |
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Semifinals
Duke def. Hopkins
Syracuse def. Virginia
Championship Game
Duke def. Syracuse
Division I Women
Semifinals
Northwestern def. Syracuse
Penn def. Duke
Championship Game
Northwestern def. Syracuse
Division II Men
Championship Game
Le Moyne def. NYIT
Division III Men
Championship Game
Cortland def. Salisbury
Times to Remember
While championship weekend is exciting for players of all 
ages, it has special meaning for seniors. Win or lose, many will never 
play the game on a competitive level again, and none will compete
 alongside college teammates that have become family. Regardless of what 
has transpired in earlier seasons, it's the senior year that they will 
remember most vividly in the future - either the unbridled jubilation of
 victory or the harsh bitterness of defeat. The precious few who will
 leave the field for the last time while clutching the championship 
trophy will have a sweet memory that will last a lifetime.
 Paul Ohanian |
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Division I Men
Semifinals
Duke def. Hopkins
Syracuse def. Virginia
Championship Game
Duke def. Syracuse
Division I Women
Semifinals
Northwestern def. Syracuse
Penn def. Duke
Championship Game
Northwestern def. Penn
Division II Men
Championship Game
Le Moyne def. NYIT
Division III Men
Championship Game
Salisbury def. Cortland
Picture Imperfect for Syracuse's Hardy
When Syracuse and Virginia met in the Face-Off Classic, Syracuse's Dan Hardy was stripped by Virginia's Mike Timms in overtime, and Brian Carroll scored the Cavs' game-winner on the ensuing possession. Many thought Timms fouled Hardy on the play and that the Orange should have been man up. Hardy says that his father has a picture of the crucial play as the wallpaper on his computer "to give me a little motivation."

 Clare Lochary |
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Division I Men
Semifinals
Duke def. Hopkins
Syracuse def. Virginia
Championship Game
Duke def. Syracuse
Division I Women
Semifinals
Northwestern def. Syracuse
Penn def. Duke
Championship Game
Northwestern def. Penn
Division II Men
Championship Game
NYIT def. Le Moyne
Division III Men
Championship Game
Cortland def. Salisbury
Familiar Faces Offer Little Intrigue
We picked the complete brackets for the NCAA tournaments just prior to their beginning (much to the chagrin of Matt). I don't remember who I picked at this point, and I don't want to know. Because chances are, they were wrong (witness my pathetic fall from atop the "10 to Watch" series to a place of uninspiring mediocrity). So I may have changed some of my picks. It doesn't matter. These will probably be wrong, too, anyway.
I do know this: I'm glad I'm not going to Foxborough, Mass. (however you spell it), and it has nothing to do with bias against what I'm sure is a quaint little New England town, nor is it a slight at the players on these teams that have worked hard to get their teams to the pinnacle. I actually love Boston.
But I'm glad I'm not going this time because I have seen essentially these same four Division I semifinalists for at least the last seven years. It's the same final four as it always is. Sure, every now then, a legitimate underdog puts it together and breaks into the final four (Delaware, UMass), and every now and then Maryland makes it -- and gets ran in the semis. (Why do the Terps get such a pass, by the way, for not winning the national title since 1975?) But by and large, the final four is largely dominated by teams wearing orange or blue and coaches who absolutely love one another. I've seen and heard it all before.
The only things I'll miss are some authentic clam chowder and my usual fun time strolling the parking lots to take in the tailgating scene. Luckily Mark Dau, editor of thetailgater.com Web magazine, has me covered on the latter and will report on the festivities in the Parting Shot of our July issue. We'll see if the crowds reflect my cynicism, or if they show up in large numbers to validate the NCAA's decision to return the event to Foxboro (however you spell it) in 2009.
Four intriguing teams have made it to the women's final four. Duke can finally put its semifinal horrors to bed. Penn has a chance to prove it was not a one-year wonder. Gary Gait can add to his legend by winning a national championship in his first season as a collegiate women's head coach. And, of course, Northwestern can continue its dynasty by winning a fourth straight title.
As hot as the Blue Devils are playing now, the Quakers have consistently been "steady Eddie" all season, so I like Penn in that match-up. I'm picking Northwestern over Syracuse only on the basis that winning can't possibly be that easy for Gait, even though he's made it look easy time and again. But there's no way a rookie head coach in women's lacrosse can come into a solid program and turn it into a national champion in his first season, right? Then again, a few years ago I would've said there's no way a team from the Midwest would ever rule the sport like the Wildcats have.
In the final, I like the odds of a dominant Northwestern program winning a fourth straight title more than the odds of the Wildcats losing twice in one season to the same opponent. Penn's proven it can score and contain the Wildcats, but I think their desire for revenge and big-game experience carries them in this rematch.
And with that, another season is over.
 Paul Krome |
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Division I Men
Semifinals
Duke def. Hopkins
Syracuse def. Virginia
Championship Game
Duke def. Syracuse
Division I Women
Semifinals
Northwestern def. Syracuse
Penn def. Duke
Championship Game
Northwestern def. Penn
Division II Men
Championship Game
NYIT def. Le Moyne
Division III Men
Championship Game
Salisbury def. Cortland
The Buck Stops Here
You heard it hear first: every NCAA defending champion is going to make the finals again. And lose.
C.W Post and Franklin & Marshall have already fallen into place in Division II and III women's lacrosse, respectively. Salisbury and Le Moyne will follow suit Sunday. Northwestern will advance to the finals, only to lose to Penn - the lone team to beat the `Cats this season - while Johns Hopkins will pull the upset of the tourney by beating Duke on Saturday, only to fall to Virginia in the finals.
 Jac Coyne |
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Division I Men
Semifinals
Hopkins def. Duke
Virginia def. Syracuse
Championship Game
Virginia def. Hopkins
Division I Women
Semifinals
Northwestern def. Syracuse
Penn def. Duke
Championship Game
Penn def. Northwestern
Division II Men
Championship Game
NYIT def. Le Moyne
Division III Men
Cortland def. Salisbury
Don't Overlook Duke's 'D'
Reporting live from the Danowski-Greer love fest...
Seriously, Matt Danowski and Zack Greer are the greatest attack combination of all-time. And as much as Max Quinzani, a native New Englander, has improved as a sophomore in 2008, I'm not so sure he puts up such gaudy numbers next year or the year after without their presence on either side of him.
But has anyone stopped to think about Duke's defense? All three attackman say Tony McDevitt, Ryan McFadyen and Mike Manley push them harder in practice than some opponents do in games.
Of the three teams that practiced Friday at Gillette Stadium (Virginia bumped its practice up to Thursday afternoon), Duke was the only one to use its entire time allotment (one hour, 15 minutes).
I admire those guys greatly. They don't get as much notoriety as our offense," Greer said. "The media likes to play up the Matt-Zack combination. As we see it, that's not how it plays out here. We're at our best when everyone on our team's making plays, much tougher to defend than Matt and me."
McDevitt agreed.
"We get after each other so hard in practice," he said. "I remember in the beginning of the year, the first three weeks of training camp, we'd be going one-on-ones, we'd be getting after each other, and I thought, `Wow, we could have something special here.'"
It's Duke's world. We're just living in it.
 Matt DaSilva |
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Division I Men
Semifinals
Duke def. Hopkins
Virginia def. Syracuse
Championship Game
Duke def. Virginia
Division I Women
Semifinals Northwestern def. Syracuse
Duke def. Penn
Championship Game
Northwestern def. Duke
Division II Men
Championship Game
NYIT def. Le Moyne
Division III Men
Championship Game
Cortland def. Salisbury
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