2024 FanLax Forum Poll

[Bridgerbowl]

the last ranking posted does look unusual. but this was really a tough week. many of the top 20 teams suffered a loss this week. some(union) lost twice. but how far can they really be dropped? CNU losing to Williams. but can we really move williams above CNU? probably not. the dust will settle as the season goes on.
i do think IL is just in cruise control this season for D3. the polls and coverage have been unimpressive. for example. Union lost both games this week, and they stayed at #8 in the poll. Bowdin went 1-1 this week and dropped 3 spots. seems odd.

dickinson ahead of cnu and tied with slu is definitely off

[Laxattackjack]

the last ranking posted does look unusual. but this was really a tough week. many of the top 20 teams suffered a loss this week. some(union) lost twice. but how far can they really be dropped? CNU losing to Williams. but can we really move williams above CNU? probably not. the dust will settle as the season goes on.
i do think IL is just in cruise control this season for D3. the polls and coverage have been unimpressive. for example. Union lost both games this week, and they stayed at #8 in the poll. Bowdin went 1-1 this week and dropped 3 spots. seems odd.

dickinson ahead of cnu and tied with slu is definitely off

that was my first thought. cnu beat dickinson pretty good. but dickinson only has one loss. cnu has three. neither team has any really impressive wins. maybe CNU has the advantage with dickinson and Lynchburgh. but guessing who the potential regionally ranked or tourney teams will be, dickinson has wins over stevens, york, roanoke and SMCM. CNU has Dickinson and Lynchburg. but the time the season ends, CNU could have 5 or 6 losses and Dickinson might only have one. it’s a tough week to rank teams.

[StevieUAlum]

1 Salisbury
2 RPI
3 RIT
4 Tufts
5 Dickinson
5 St Lawrence
7 CNU
8 Union
9 Babson
9 Endicott
11 Amherst
11 Stevens
13 Bowdoin
14 Wesleyan
15 Gettysburg
16 Williams
17 Swarthmore
18 Lynchburg
19 Hamilton
20 Washington and Lee
21 Middlebury
22 Grove City
22 Roanoke
24 HSC
24 RMC
24 York

Tomorrow is Aprils fools, not today!

Or were you not joking?

Chcocohighway Charlie must have missed your list. Speak, you clown, what are you trying to say?

ok SKUM. went ahead and bolded every team you have ranked in a manner that calls your judgement in to question. either too high or too low. 12/24. it ain’t good.

Ranking Babson, Endicott & Union m that high is such a Northern bias move. They aren't nearly that good, they belong somewhere between 13-20.

CNU is done unless they beat Bury twice to get the AQ. Tough go for those boys. Would drop them into the same bracket 13-20. RMC and York don't belong period, irresponsible having them in here. I was wrong about both of them this year, oh well.

[SixBySix]

Honestly it feels like the entire middle of the pack (#8-#40 or so) is somewhat down relative to both the top teams and the next 40. Makes it really hard to say, "well who have they beaten? How is that a top 20 resume?" when the counter argument is, "name 20 teams that should be ahead of them."

[Laxattackjack]

1 Salisbury
2 RPI
3 RIT
4 Tufts
5 Dickinson
5 St Lawrence
7 CNU
8 Union
9 Babson
9 Endicott
11 Amherst
11 Stevens
13 Bowdoin
14 Wesleyan
15 Gettysburg
16 Williams
17 Swarthmore
18 Lynchburg
19 Hamilton
20 Washington and Lee
21 Middlebury
22 Grove City
22 Roanoke
24 HSC
24 RMC
24 York

Tomorrow is Aprils fools, not today!

Or were you not joking?

Chcocohighway Charlie must have missed your list. Speak, you clown, what are you trying to say?

ok SKUM. went ahead and bolded every team you have ranked in a manner that calls your judgement in to question. either too high or too low. 12/24. it ain’t good.

Ranking Babson, Endicott & Union m that high is such a Northern bias move. They aren't nearly that good, they belong somewhere between 13-20.

CNU is done unless they beat Bury twice to get the AQ. Tough go for those boys. Would drop them into the same bracket 13-20. RMC and York don't belong period, irresponsible having them in here. I was wrong about both of them this year, oh well.

CNU is still alive for at large. and should get one unless they get crushed by SU and lost to W&L. both need to happen for CNU to not make it.
York is definitely still in play. 6 losses, but 5 of them to top 7 teams and 3 of the losses by 1 goal. the only questionable loss is Grove city. but even GC is much improved over 2023
RMC still has a shot to win the ODAC. as someone said, teams 4-30 are all getting watered down and blending together. they are all getting better and more similar.

i would say CNU and York making, and winning the first round is better odds than NESCAC or LL having 4 teams in the tourney.

[pcowlax]

Polls are very hard (I wouldn't call anyone's rankings irresponsible) but important to remember that rankings have nothing to do with getting selected for tournament and therefore things like margins of victory and who you lost to don't really matter much. You need regionally ranked wins, high SOS and for your opponents to do well. A team like York has indeed lost a ton of game and to mostly strong teams but needs some regionally ranked wins. Liberty is a slam dunk for 3. Interesting question will be if Union runs rest of table except for RPI and RIT, do they get in? I think they would be just about last in or last out in that scenario.

[Laxguy703]

1 Salisbury
2 RPI
3 RIT
4 Tufts
5 Dickinson
5 St Lawrence
7 CNU
8 Union
9 Babson
9 Endicott
11 Amherst
11 Stevens
13 Bowdoin
14 Wesleyan
15 Gettysburg
16 Williams
17 Swarthmore
18 Lynchburg
19 Hamilton
20 Washington and Lee
21 Middlebury
22 Grove City
22 Roanoke
24 HSC
24 RMC
24 York

Tomorrow is Aprils fools, not today!

Or were you not joking?

Chcocohighway Charlie must have missed your list. Speak, you clown, what are you trying to say?

ok SKUM. went ahead and bolded every team you have ranked in a manner that calls your judgement in to question. either too high or too low. 12/24. it ain’t good.

Ranking Babson, Endicott & Union m that high is such a Northern bias move. They aren't nearly that good, they belong somewhere between 13-20.

CNU is done unless they beat Bury twice to get the AQ. Tough go for those boys. Would drop them into the same bracket 13-20. RMC and York don't belong period, irresponsible having them in here. I was wrong about both of them this year, oh well.

CNU is still alive for at large. and should get one unless they get crushed by SU and lost to W&L. both need to happen for CNU to not make it.
York is definitely still in play. 6 losses, but 5 of them to top 7 teams and 3 of the losses by 1 goal. the only questionable loss is Grove city. but even GC is much improved over 2023
RMC still has a shot to win the ODAC. as someone said, teams 4-30 are all getting watered down and blending together. they are all getting better and more similar.

i would say CNU and York making, and winning the first round is better odds than NESCAC or LL having 4 teams in the tourney.

Agreed. As long as CNU doesn’t lose to any team other than Salisbury, they will have a win over the ODAC(HSC, LYN, W&L) champ, the likely Centennial champ(Dickinson), the PAC(Grove City)champ, and two potential conference champs in Stevenson and OWU. Only losses would be to #5 SLU in OT, #4 Tufts, #1 Salisbury, and top 20 Williams.

A 14-5 CNU team with that resume will 100% get in and I’d bet my mortgage on that.

Whether they succeed in the tournament is up to them… They have been struggling lately. They show signs of their potential in games but can’t consistently dominate their matchup these last few weeks.

If this CNU team can find their confidence back and hit their groove, I definitely wouldn’t want to play them. That’s a big IF.

[D3LaxFan2]

Can someone make an argument for Bowdoin to even be included in the top-20 at this point, that doesn't start with them being ranked top ten in the preseason?

[D3LaxFan2]

Agreed. As long as CNU doesn’t lose to any team other than Salisbury, they will have a win over the ODAC(HSC, LYN, W&L) champ, the likely Centennial champ(Dickinson), the PAC(Grove City)champ, and two potential conference champs in Stevenson and OWU. Only losses would be to #5 SLU in OT, #4 Tufts, #1 Salisbury, and top 20 Williams.

Putting aside that "wins over conference champions" is not a criteria for NCAA selection, most or all of the teams quoted in this post will be regionally ranked. That should be plenty for CNU to get a Pool C bid. What will they do with it? Who knows.

[choochooCharlie]

Can someone make an argument for Bowdoin to even be included in the top-20 at this point, that doesn't start with them being ranked top ten in the preseason?

Careful now, this is a sensitive topic…

[Laxguy703]

Agreed. As long as CNU doesn’t lose to any team other than Salisbury, they will have a win over the ODAC(HSC, LYN, W&L) champ, the likely Centennial champ(Dickinson), the PAC(Grove City)champ, and two potential conference champs in Stevenson and OWU. Only losses would be to #5 SLU in OT, #4 Tufts, #1 Salisbury, and top 20 Williams.

Putting aside that "wins over conference champions" is not a criteria for NCAA selection, most or all of the teams quoted in this post will be regionally ranked. That should be plenty for CNU to get a Pool C bid. What will they do with it? Who knows.

Couldn’t agree more with your last sentence. The ceiling for this CNU team can be a final 4 trip, the floor can be a loss in the first round. Which one will it be? No clue

[SixBySix]

Can someone make an argument for Bowdoin to even be included in the top-20 at this point, that doesn't start with them being ranked top ten in the preseason?

Sure! Two good wins, no bad losses, only two total losses, and most importantly you can't name 20 teams with a better resume.

[EasternShoreLaxGuy]

Agreed. As long as CNU doesn’t lose to any team other than Salisbury, they will have a win over the ODAC(HSC, LYN, W&L) champ, the likely Centennial champ(Dickinson), the PAC(Grove City)champ, and two potential conference champs in Stevenson and OWU. Only losses would be to #5 SLU in OT, #4 Tufts, #1 Salisbury, and top 20 Williams.

Putting aside that "wins over conference champions" is not a criteria for NCAA selection, most or all of the teams quoted in this post will be regionally ranked. That should be plenty for CNU to get a Pool C bid. What will they do with it? Who knows.

Couldn’t agree more with your last sentence. The ceiling for this CNU team can be a final 4 trip, the floor can be a loss in the first round. Which one will it be? No clue

Does it get interesting if they drop 2 to Salisbury and 1 to W&L? Not saying it’ll happen but doesn’t seem like they should just be expected to win out besides Salisbury with the performance against msu. I expected the ship to be corrected by now but Saturday may have been their worse performance yet even though it was a win

[choochooCharlie]

Can someone make an argument for Bowdoin to even be included in the top-20 at this point, that doesn't start with them being ranked top ten in the preseason?

Sure! Two good wins, no bad losses

Endicott was a bad loss, period.

[StevieUAlum]

Babson, Union, Endicott, Bowdoin, Williams, Wesleyan. This is list of Northern teams who are middle of the road top 25 at best but are getting some serious (biased) love. Unions two losses are to two top 5 teams by a combined 19 goals. That doesn't equate to a top 15 ranking. All the rest are NESCAC schools with a soft OOC schedule. Gotta have some perspective.

[pcowlax]

Babson, Union, Endicott, Bowdoin & Williams. This is list of Northern teams who are middle of the road top 25 at best but are getting some serious (biased) love. Unions two losses are to two top 5 teams by a combined 19 goals. That doesn't equate to a top 15 ranking. All the rest are NESCAC schools with a soft OOC schedule. Gotta have some perspective.

The whole idea that the north is and always has been superior still blows my mind, at least try to post on here in a way that isn't biased.

Have you followed lacrosse this year? In matchups between upper level (for the region) teams, the north has won the vast majority of games this year. This isn't some sort of subjective opinion.

[BigMoose9]

Agreed. As long as CNU doesn’t lose to any team other than Salisbury, they will have a win over the ODAC(HSC, LYN, W&L) champ, the likely Centennial champ(Dickinson), the PAC(Grove City)champ, and two potential conference champs in Stevenson and OWU. Only losses would be to #5 SLU in OT, #4 Tufts, #1 Salisbury, and top 20 Williams.

Putting aside that "wins over conference champions" is not a criteria for NCAA selection, most or all of the teams quoted in this post will be regionally ranked. That should be plenty for CNU to get a Pool C bid. What will they do with it? Who knows.

Couldn’t agree more with your last sentence. The ceiling for this CNU team can be a final 4 trip, the floor can be a loss in the first round. Which one will it be? No clue

Does it get interesting if they drop 2 to Salisbury and 1 to W&L? Not saying it’ll happen but doesn’t seem like they should just be expected to win out besides Salisbury with the performance against msu. I expected the ship to be corrected by now but Saturday may have been their worse performance yet even though it was a win

Based on the past few years it seems as though the selection committee doesn’t take what happens in the conference tournament games too much into effect besides who gets the AQ. It’s almost like they have it decided beforehand. I think it all depends on the performance CNU puts up on Saturday. If they lose by 10 and also lose to W&l they’re out. But if they keep it a relatively close game (4-5 goals) and beat W&l and every other team they play I would say they are a lock to make it.

[richard]

Salisbury
RPI
RIT
SLU
Tufts
Dickinson
Stevens
CNU
Endicott
Union
Swarthmore
Babson
W&L
Amherst
Gettysburg
Bowdoin
Lynchburg
Williams
Noke
Naz
Hampden Sidney
Grove City
York
Cortland
Cabrini
Ham Tech
Randy Mac

[SixBySix]

Can someone make an argument for Bowdoin to even be included in the top-20 at this point, that doesn't start with them being ranked top ten in the preseason?

Sure! Two good wins, no bad losses

Endicott was a bad loss, period.

Endicott is 8-1, only loss to Union by 2. #20 by Massey, #9 by Laxpower. Another team that clearly has a Top 20 resume right now, like it or not.

[CentennialPundit]

Can someone make an argument for Bowdoin to even be included in the top-20 at this point, that doesn't start with them being ranked top ten in the preseason?

Sure! Two good wins, no bad losses

Endicott was a bad loss, period.

Endicott is 8-1, only loss to Union by 2. #20 by Massey, #9 by Laxpower. Another team that clearly has a Top 20 resume right now, like it or not.

I think most the arguments in this thread stem from whether you’re ranking the 20 best teams, or the 20 teams with the best resume. In D3 lax, where there is such a big discrepancy in teams, those are very different things. e.g I think York is one of the 20 best teams, but should they be ranked in the top 20- idk.