NESCAC

[ah23]

I don’t think the ‘debate’ is ever about a full comparison of the two anyway, the NESCAC is always much deeper. It’s more about the top 3-4. As always, both conferences will send a ton of teams to the NCAA tournament and likely make some noise.

For the Amherst-RPI game - rough time for arguably the best goalie in the country to have by far his worst game of the season. Also thought it was surprising that RPI dominated faceoffs as much as they did. Venuto is very good, but Kopp isn’t some rando off the street. RPI also won non-FO FBs 2:1, cleared well, etc. Played cleaner than they have this season in some ways and Amherst still pulled out the win. The Engineers will be fine, their schedule is brutal and they were bound to drop one given how many close games/comebacks they’ve had. Great game overall, high-level midweek lacrosse is fun.

[callaxdad]

I don’t think the ‘debate’ is ever about a full comparison of the two anyway, the NESCAC is always much deeper. It’s more about the top 3-4. As always, both conferences will send a ton of teams to the NCAA tournament and likely make some noise.

For the Amherst-RPI game - rough time for arguably the best goalie in the country to have by far his worst game of the season. Also thought it was surprising that RPI dominated faceoffs as much as they did. Venuto is very good, but Kopp isn’t some rando off the street. RPI also won non-FO FBs 2:1, cleared well, etc. Played cleaner than they have this season in some ways and Amherst still pulled out the win. The Engineers will be fine, their schedule is brutal and they were bound to drop one given how many close games/comebacks they’ve had. Great game overall, high-level midweek lacrosse is fun.

I think that's spot on ah23 re your first statement, both conferences have talented teams who can go deep come tourney time.

Didn't see Amherst-RPI game so can't comment directly on that one. However, I'm certain they are two very solid teams!!

[Nescac12001]

I get the desire to debate this CAC vs LL. Clearly the best conferences in the country where the talent goes deeper to the lower seeded teams than any other conference in the country. Enjoyable to watch all these teams play each other and battle it out for Kings of the North. Obviously Salisbury took the cake last year, but more often than not I’m taking the north to beat up on any of those teams down south

[DeepPocket]

Might need an updated version of that heat map of the conferences to have this sorted out.

[Motorman]

I get the desire to debate this CAC vs LL. Clearly the best conferences in the country where the talent goes deeper to the lower seeded teams than any other conference in the country. Enjoyable to watch all these teams play each other and battle it out for Kings of the North. Obviously Salisbury took the cake last year, but more often than not I’m taking the north to beat up on any of those teams down south

Yes. Between your 19 teams in 2 leagues you will knock off Salisbury about half the time in a final. Why not put and All- Star team together and increase your odds. Know your history.SU in final 20 of last 30 years, 13 wins.

[SaltCounty]

However Liberty has had the edge all year

If that’s true, as he said, it’s now paper thin. All we’ve heard is how down the NESCAC is, yet these out of conference wins:

Amherst over #2 RPI, #6 Swarthmore (the only loss for either), #19 Gettysburg

Tufts over #8 CNU, #9 Union, #11 Babson, #13 Stevens

Midd over #5 St. Lawrence (only loss)

Hamilton over #16 Lynchburg

Wesleyan over #20 Roanoke

Williams over #8 CNU, #11 Babson

No other conference, including the Liberty has 6 teams with a top-20 win. Most conferences have 1 or maybe 2 teams capable of that. Good thing it’s a down year….

This is great insight.
Amherst may have secured the league a 4th bid with that win last night (I still think the LL gets 4)
Which means Centennial or ODAC may have one less than they think they deserve.
And teams like York/Stevenson, Stevens Tech, Denison/Kenyon (missing someone) need to lock up their AQ and control their fate.
If Babson were to lose in NEWMAC final - they are in. If Endicott were to lose in CCC final - they are out.

I would say Amherst & Tufts have the strongest case for an At-Large if they need one (Although Amherst needs to avoid a Trinity upset)
Wesleyan to follow (wins over Amherst and Tufts) and Bowdoin as well (win over Amherst, can still earn wins over Wesleyan & Tufts)

Despite their Top 10 wins, I think Williams or Midd would have to reach the NESCAC final to swap places with one of the four.
Their Quarterfinal / Semifinal could be games against Top 10 teams.

A lot can change between now and then.
Does anyone see the (potential) 4 bids looking differently?
If Williams or Midd, who do you see them replacing?

[choochooCharlie]

It would really be something is the NESCAC gets 4 bids after the year they’ve had overall.

[bonesnjnts]

I love how everyone keeps ignoring Trinity.
But right now tied with Middle and Amh for 3rd in the NESCAC. Winners of 6 in a row, 9 out of 10.
And about to play those 2 teams next so , yeah, I get it. It's time to show if they are real or not.
Middlebury at home this Sat night, last home game of the season.
Go Bants!

[Can Opener]

If Amherst and Midd are both bubble teams, that means they really are not looking forward to playing Trinity over the next two games. From the little I have seen of the Bants, they seem to be peaking at the right time. My impression is that the coaching staff gives the players a lot of leeway on the field. This translates to some big hits on defense and some creative risks on offense. FO and goalie play seems to be gaining confidence weekly, with their goalie winning NESCAC POTW honors last week. Midd in Hartford on this Saturday night should be a pretty wild atmosphere. With a good weather forecast, I imagine the student section will be lubricated and loud. Huge game for both teams.

[ToeDipper78]

Tufts, Bowdoin have spots locked up
Wesleyan, Amherst will be in if they win rest of regular season games, otherwise they are on the bubble and only 1 gets in unless both make NESCAC finals
Trinity needs to win out and then get a W in NESCAC tourney to have a chance to jump Amh or Wes
Middlebury and Williams are out unless they win conf tourney

Too many other spots are going to be eaten up, led by Liberty who will get 4 spots.

[shorelax12]

I love how everyone keeps ignoring Trinity.
But right now tied with Middle and Amh for 3rd in the NESCAC. Winners of 6 in a row, 9 out of 10.
And about to play those 2 teams next so , yeah, I get it. It's time to show if they are real or not.
Middlebury at home this Sat night, last home game of the season.
Go Bants!

You are certainly not wrong about that, but I guess the consensus is, for whatever reason, that the next two games are the litmus test. I think that they are a tough team to face right now with their momentum, hopefully they can keep their heads clear and make a push. Not a Trinity supporter, but I love the story.

[STICKIT]

Congratulations to Amherst on a solid win over RPI.

[SaltCounty]

I love how everyone keeps ignoring Trinity.
But right now tied with Middle and Amh for 3rd in the NESCAC. Winners of 6 in a row, 9 out of 10.
And about to play those 2 teams next so , yeah, I get it. It's time to show if they are real or not.
Middlebury at home this Sat night, last home game of the season.
Go Bants!

They are currently tied for 4th.
Wesleyan has the advantage at 6-2 (the other 3 are 5-3).

I think a storyline not getting a lot of attention is that the MA teams (Tufts, Amherst, Williams) have owned the Top 4 spots the last few years.
There's been at least two MA teams in the Top 4 since 2017 (Bates, Wesleyan, Amherst, Bowdoin)

There hasn't been a Top 4 with 2 CT teams since 2013 (Middlebury, Conn, Tufts, Wesleyan)
Trinity was Top 4 in 2012 (Tufts, Trinity, Bowdoin, Conn)

So if Trinity can get these next two - April 27th will be a great day in CT with 2 NESCAC Tournament Games about 30 minutes apart !
Hopefully the league staggers start times.

[callaxdad]

However Liberty has had the edge all year

If that’s true, as he said, it’s now paper thin. All we’ve heard is how down the NESCAC is, yet these out of conference wins:

Amherst over #2 RPI, #6 Swarthmore (the only loss for either), #19 Gettysburg

Tufts over #8 CNU, #9 Union, #11 Babson, #13 Stevens

Midd over #5 St. Lawrence (only loss)

Hamilton over #16 Lynchburg

Wesleyan over #20 Roanoke

Williams over #8 CNU, #11 Babson

No other conference, including the Liberty has 6 teams with a top-20 win. Most conferences have 1 or maybe 2 teams capable of that. Good thing it’s a down year….

CAC LL debate is a fun one to have, IMO. If you look at games with the top half of the LL vs the top half of the CAC this year, the record is 3-3. The cut off for the top half of the CAC being Midd (that was before yesterday, you can add Trin now if you want, doesn't change the numbers) and Union for the LL. A tie. I guess the tie breaker would be the above, the non conference top 20 wins for the CAC. I think one could argue cogently for either conference....May is not too far away!!

[ah23]

Wesleyan, Amherst will be in if they win rest of regular season games, otherwise they are on the bubble and only 1 gets in unless both make NESCAC finals

I don’t think winning out is a requirement for either team. Neither is on cruise control, but unless they both completely flame out (as in: lose out and then lose early in the tourney) I think they’re in a good spots. They each have a good amount of regionally ranked wins, plus a number of wins over solid teams that aren’t regionally ranked (e.g., Hamilton, Trinity) but nonetheless factor into resume comparisons. To put it another way, good win quality and good win depth. I do think Wesleyan is a bit shakier with Amherst closer to being a lock; the RPI and Swarthmore wins are massive. How many teams in the country have two wins like that? Does anyone? (This is actually a question). Definitely makes up for their blah conference resume.

Middlebury and Williams would be the two teams who need help to grab the fourth spot. I think they’re in the situation you described for Amherst/Wesleyan; unless they win out and then make a tourney run, they’re watching NCAAs at home. That would make Williams @ Middlebury on 4/24 an elimination game and put a lot of pressure on the winner to win multiple conference tourney games (in theory including beating either Amherst or Wesleyan H2H).

Finally…Trinity. I don’t think anyone is disrespecting Trinity or dislikes them (outside of the coach-bashing). It’s just hard to put much stock in wins over Conn/Bates/Colby/Clark/Scranton/WestConn/Coast Guard. The Wesleyan win was huge, and Hamilton is a solid win as well, but I do think the context of how soft their schedule has been is pretty relevant here. Think they need to win out and make a tourney run to have any shot. Would be a crazy story if they pulled it off!

[bonesnjnts]

So you’re saying…..there’s a chance.

[pcowlax]

Great to see the Fighting Chickens playing with confidence and very excited to see how they close out the year. As ah23 wrote, in regards to at large bids, they have pretty much no hope with probably only 1 regionally ranked win but who knows, make the CAC tourney and it’s in their hands.

[Laxguy3]

Saturday Lines (nice):

Ham @ Conn +5.5
- Give me Ham. Need a win to secure a spot in the playoffs

Colby @ Williams -2.5
- The Mules have been competitive all year (minus the Bowdoin game). They will be contenders shortly, but don't have the roster depth atm. Give me the purple Cows by 3

Amherst @ Tufts -6.5
- Great win by the Jeffs on Wednesday following a tough showing at Bowdoin. Amherst is dangerous but will be unable to handle the pressure in between the midfield lines. Give me Tufts by 10

Bowdoin @ Wes +1.5
- Bowdoin is rolling... and they will keep on rolling. Give me the bears by 4.

Midd @ Trinity +3.5
- Midd has been up and down all year and Trinity still needs to prove themselves. I think Trin takes it in OT 14-13.

[UpperCorner22]

Great to see the Fighting Chickens playing with confidence and very excited to see how they close out the year. As ah23 wrote, in regards to at large bids, they have pretty much no hope with probably only 1 regionally ranked win but who knows, make the CAC tourney and it’s in their hands.

Angry Chicken parents smoking some serious ganja!

[callaxdad]

After some casual Friday afternoon analysis of the Bo’s next opponent, I’m going on record to say Amhurst is a lock for a bid! They are 9–4 and are currently #17 in the nation with three top 20 wins including two in the top 6! All 4 losses are to teams ranked between 11-16. A loss to Tufts would not hurt them whatsoever. Prolly need to win first CAC tourney game to be an absolute lock. Even a loss to upstart Trinity the last game of the regular wouldn’t be a killer considering the Mighty Chickens recent success…..Amherst a lock I say!!! Go Bos!!