Typical Lax Dad wrote: ↑Wed Oct 20, 2021 8:33 am
FannOLax wrote: ↑Tue Oct 19, 2021 10:23 pm
MDlaxfan76 wrote: ↑Tue Oct 19, 2021 9:24 pm
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I don't think there's a lot of preseason rankings published yet, but none are likely to have Dartmouth in the Top 20. I wouldn't. I'd need to see it on the field first, not based on recruiting hopes. But if you asked me what I think will happen in the next few years, my money (and heart) is on us breaking in to the hunt in due course.
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Pre-season ranking generally use the previous season as a starting point, and as the Ivies didn't play in 2021 I expect the IL to be under-represented in pre-season rankings. Yale will be there, based on 2018, 2019 and the fact that key players from those title-game teams remain in New Haven. Maybe another Ivy or two will be ranked pre-season, but not Dartmouth; obviously. If 2020 had played out, or if the Ivies had played in 2021, Dartmouth might have.... but it didn't, and we didn't. A few posts back, MDlaxfan76 pointed out that it took Shay a long time to turn around Yale. There were some very lean years under Shay. He was in his 10th year at Yale when the Bulldogs won their first NCAA tourney game under him; his 15th year was the national championship. Nobody really knows how the extra year away will affect the Ivies in 2022, how much Harvard might improve under Byrne, etc. The IL looked so good as the 2020 season got going, but... It's been some years now since Dartmouth has won an Ivy game, but that will change. Unless Columbia unexpectedly makes it eight soon, it will be no mean feat for Dartmouth to get that IL win, those Ivy wins. Okay, enough (or too much?) from me. Good luck to the Green, and to the rest of the Ivy League.
You know, Dartmouth lost to Penn in OT in 2018. It was a heartbreaking loss.
When you need to accumulate wins every OT one is heartbreaking. Look at Hobarts D1 record in OT games form BJ OHara through Kerwick when we were trying to build credibility at that level coming off unprecedented NCAA era domination in D3. Those 1 hola games make or break a season and can crush a program for extended periods if not converted to Ws which is about depth of talent usually.
(cue somebody bringing up Kenyons swim team or perhaps Trinity in Squash):
95 - W v PSU (9th in country) 13-12 (1 goal regulation L to Cuse as well)
96 - L v ND (12th) 5-6; L v GT 10-11 (17th)
97 - L v ND (12th) 9-10; L v PSU (20th) 11-12 (*2 OT), L v Syracuse (4th) 15-16
98 - None, at large NCAA bid
99 - None, whole lot of 1 goal games
2000 - None, 1 goal losses to GT and Harvard (we were up 9-3 in 3rd on GT), NCAA AQ for PL
2001 - None
2002 - L v PSU (18th) 10-11 (followed by 1 goal L in reg to #4 GT); NCAA AQ for PL
03 - None but lot of 1-2 goal losses to ranked teams
04 - W v PSU 8-7; L v OSU (13th) 12-13 (another huge Q3 lead blown), lot of 1 goal losses incl PL championship to Navy but got an AL for thrashing AL Army and beating Cornell down the stretch only to get sent back to Ithaca the following week for Rd 1)
05 (joined ECAC after getting booted from PL) - None (1-2 goal losses to 3-4 ranked teams)
06 - L v Rutgers (w Havilchuk) 7-8 - was at that game we got boned on a interference call on Veltman late and must’ve hit 10 pipes.
07 - L v Bucknell 10-11 (no Veltman bc of NCAA issue), L v Rutgers 11-12 (*2OT)
08 - L v GT (13th) 12-13 (*2OT), L v UMASS 7-8
2-10 in OT, probably my guess is like 8-25 in 2 goal or less games to ranked teams over that stretch.
BJ fired after 1999, Kerwick after 08 (being named EVAC coy and the same day he beat ranked Loyola at the Boz) all under AD Hanna.
Point being the difference between being a very competitive, sometimes ranked and occasionally getting into playoff level team is these close games. And I ignored a ton of 1-2 goal regulation losses to ranked teams in that stretch and we were ending up around .500 most years. But if you know BJ and Matt they were good coaches but weren’t Xs and Os guys. That and depth are critical to getting regularly into the 15-25 world of lacrosse I’ve lived with for two decades now.