NESCAC

[NNELax]

The "Babson obviously isn't actually good because I'm not familiar with them" stuff from last season (edit: which is somehow still a thing this season!) continues to age like milk. They're legit.

Turns out, having ~23 seniors/grad students on the roster can be quite beneficial. Here's hoping that Uncle Rocky keeps the train rolling once all the extra eligibility runs out.

Yeah that's all it was...Just take the L buddy

[The12lov3]

I agree with that. The players on Salisbury and RIT can handle the pressure of the Tufts ride and get the ball into the attacking third quickly. Their skill and vision helped them pick apart the backside of the Tufts defense. That was the story in the first quarter of the RIT game this year and championship last year. Tufts didn't adjust at all and went down 4-5 goals, which is too much to come back from against elite teams.

Union and CNU turned the ball over due to the pressure and Tufts jumped down their throats. Not sure the Jumbos will face another big challenge until the semifinals, unless they encounter RPI or RIT in the quarters.

Totally see you points but to be fair to the Jumbos - a lot of those kids don't have the experience and playing one of the top 3 teams in the countries requires a level of experience to beat. The championship lose came more down to coaching and not making the adjustments necessary to beat Salisbury. The RIT game, I felt was experience. There is no excuse to get a two minute unreleasable penalty and to get an unsportsmanlike after scoring a goal. The RIT game came down more to discipline then anything else. That costed them two goals right there and took 3 minutes off the clock. Not to mention a number of terrible open field passes that were just thrown away where there was no pressure at all. I do think that the Jumbos are still a top team and if not this year, they have a bright future for the next few years.

[WoodStick]

solid win by trinity tonight in a tough season...

I am all for rose colored glasses and agree a win is a win, but "solid win", really. I think you are setting the bar just a little bit too low here. Clark is 3-7 with blowout losses to Wentworth and Salve Regina. That they only beat them by 8 (and by the way the game was 3-3 in the first quarter) should be cause for concern.

[WoodStick]

Do we agree now that Tufts has reloaded and there has not been really a hiccup from last year. You might call RIT a hiccup but I think that those two teams can beat each other on any given day. Compared to how they played against RIT vs CNU/Union, it was night and day. I think if Tufts plays there A game, they could easily beat RIT. Regenery looks to be the real deal and we are starting to see Freshman getting a lot more playing time. Emsing and Beyers looks like they are the next two impactful players. Lots to be excited about especially since their are a lot Sophmores getting a substantial amount of playing time.

I think Tufts thrives when they are the bigger faster team (as most teams do). The problem is that they don't get away with their run and gun game when teams can keep up with them (Specifically the other teams mids). CNU and Union don't have the athletes that SU and RIT have which allows Tufts to get up and down the field at a high rate of speed uncontested. Whereas when you have pressure at that rate of speed, they turn the ball over and look UGLY. Which leads you to say that they weren't on their "A" game. I will say they look like they have reloaded well. But they don't play many tight games due to this reason IMO

I completely agree. Am on record, love the way the Jumbos play, always have. When they are clicking they might be the most fun team in all of college lacrosse to watch. The problem is when you get a team that is also big, physical and has the speed to keep up their TO's come back to bite them in the a$$. The truly great teams can play multiple styles and can adjust, Tufts has not proven that of late.

[shorelax12]

The "Babson obviously isn't actually good because I'm not familiar with them" stuff from last season (edit: which is somehow still a thing this season!) continues to age like milk. They're legit.

Turns out, having ~23 seniors/grad students on the roster can be quite beneficial. Here's hoping that Uncle Rocky keeps the train rolling once all the extra eligibility runs out.

Yeah that's all it was...Just take the L buddy

Certainly will be an issue down the road, but should not be an excuse.

[SaltCounty]

The "Babson obviously isn't actually good because I'm not familiar with them" stuff from last season (edit: which is somehow still a thing this season!) continues to age like milk. They're legit.

Turns out, having ~23 seniors/grad students on the roster can be quite beneficial. Here's hoping that Uncle Rocky keeps the train rolling once all the extra eligibility runs out.

Yeah that's all it was...Just take the L buddy

Certainly will be an issue down the road, but should not be an excuse.

Babson has been doing this for 2 seasons now.
If they keep hitting on those transfers / grad students - it may never be an issue!

FWIW, someone could say that Bowdoin being down to 2 classes of Coach Archbell recruits (Jrs & Srs) could (potentially) be a factor.

The fact of the matter is, Babson has gotten better since they started and Bowdoin has not

[callaxdad]

Is it me, or does Bello field have a lot of guys slipping, not Jumbos players as much as opponents? Saw this in NESCAC semis last year too. I think the middle of the field might need more rubber.

I've seen quite a few games there the past 2 years and this season as well and haven't noticed that. However, FYI, it should be noted the turf is new this season so you can't compare the current conditions to years past.

[ah23]

Blanket statement…I don’t think someone talking about the factors that impacted a game (or even just bringing up something interesting they noticed) automatically means they're trying to make excuses for the result of that game.

[callaxdad]

Do we agree now that Tufts has reloaded and there has not been really a hiccup from last year. You might call RIT a hiccup but I think that those two teams can beat each other on any given day. Compared to how they played against RIT vs CNU/Union, it was night and day. I think if Tufts plays there A game, they could easily beat RIT. Regenery looks to be the real deal and we are starting to see Freshman getting a lot more playing time. Emsing and Beyers looks like they are the next two impactful players. Lots to be excited about especially since their are a lot Sophmores getting a substantial amount of playing time.

I think Tufts thrives when they are the bigger faster team (as most teams do). The problem is that they don't get away with their run and gun game when teams can keep up with them (Specifically the other teams mids). CNU and Union don't have the athletes that SU and RIT have which allows Tufts to get up and down the field at a high rate of speed uncontested. Whereas when you have pressure at that rate of speed, they turn the ball over and look UGLY. Which leads you to say that they weren't on their "A" game. I will say they look like they have reloaded well. But they don't play many tight games due to this reason IMO

I completely agree. Am on record, love the way the Jumbos play, always have. When they are clicking they might be the most fun team in all of college lacrosse to watch. The problem is when you get a team that is also big, physical and has the speed to keep up their TO's come back to bite them in the a$$. The truly great teams can play multiple styles and can adjust, Tufts has not proven that of late.

Heres the deal, last year Tufts beat RIT and lost to Salisbury, two years ago they beat Salisbury and lost to the eventual champ RIT. Bottom line, Tufts will most likely have to go through both of them in the playoffs this year if they expect to win it all. Can they do it? Absolutely. Those 3 and prolly one or two others are fairly evenly matched. It often comes down to who's healthy and peaking in May.

And I totally agree with you WS, a really, really fun brand of lax to watch! I never played the game but, I have to believe Tufts is a very attractive place for a HS lax recruit.

[TucoBPJMRamirez]

Blanket statement…I don’t think someone talking about the factors that impacted a game (or even just bringing up something interesting they noticed) automatically means they're trying to make excuses for the result of that game.

Indeed. Not a fan of either team, just making an observation. Surprised it touched a nerve, which was not my intent.

[choochooCharlie]

Tufts takes advantage of another mid week game with rain/cold conditions! Lynchburg, CNU, and now Union falls victim! It’s a Trap!

Wrong wrong wrong…..conditions had nothing, let me repeat, nothing to do with the outcome of this contest.

I agree - Tufts has really improved its settled 6v6 on both sides the last few seasons.
They were better on both sides of the ball.
I think Union scored 7 seconds in... 29:53 without a 1st half goal in a Top 10 matchup is impressive

As for Bowdoin - they are in a tough spot.
I thought Endicott snuck by them off a few key plays.
Babson was all around better.

Is it time to start thinking that Hamilton could be that 3rd team come selection Sunday ???

It absolutely wasn’t the conditions. Once Tufts settled in, it was over. Williams with a good 1st quarter down in VA, but I think the same might happen. I’m thinking CNU gets in it’s fast paced groove and runs away similarly.

Why are we even suggesting Hamilton as a third bid? Is there something that guarantees 3 bids to the NESCAC? If there are other teams with more RR wins, why would we search for a NESCAC team to shoe horn in ahead of them?

[shorelax12]

The "Babson obviously isn't actually good because I'm not familiar with them" stuff from last season (edit: which is somehow still a thing this season!) continues to age like milk. They're legit.

Turns out, having ~23 seniors/grad students on the roster can be quite beneficial. Here's hoping that Uncle Rocky keeps the train rolling once all the extra eligibility runs out.

Yeah that's all it was...Just take the L buddy

Certainly will be an issue down the road, but should not be an excuse.

Babson has been doing this for 2 seasons now.
If they keep hitting on those transfers / grad students - it may never be an issue!

FWIW, someone could say that Bowdoin being down to 2 classes of Coach Archbell recruits (Jrs & Srs) could (potentially) be a factor.

The fact of the matter is, Babson has gotten better since they started and Bowdoin has not

I agree 100% as to Bason vs. Bowdoin, but my point was that the number of available grad student will decrease dramatically when there are no more players with the extra year of eligibility. Sure there will always be the D1 kids who decide that life is better in D3, but you are not going to have a lot of kids like Jared Rainville knocking on your door.

[bonesnjnts]

solid win by trinity tonight in a tough season...

I am all for rose colored glasses and agree a win is a win, but "solid win", really. I think you are setting the bar just a little bit too low here. Clark is 3-7 with blowout losses to Wentworth and Salve Regina. That they only beat them by 8 (and by the way the game was 3-3 in the first quarter) should be cause for concern.

First game that all phases of team played well at the same time. They were actually down 3-1 early in the first Q. Clark is not good but it was a game Trinity has to win and they did. Clark had 3 shots on goal in the second half.

Lets see how the next 2 games play out. Then we can see if there is cause for concern. They need a bit more consistency going forward.

[Bilo]

Turns out, having ~23 seniors/grad students on the roster can be quite beneficial. Here's hoping that Uncle Rocky keeps the train rolling once all the extra eligibility runs out.

CNU (25) has entered the chat.

[pcowlax]

Williams laying a beating on Christopher Newport (with Williams goalie at 29% and CNU winning 68% of FO!!!) demonstrating again the weakness of southern lax this year outside of Salisbury. For all the talk of what good OOC wins NESCAC team have, what good OOC winds do any of those teams have? Teams such as Gettysburg, Lynchburg, CNU, W&L, previously York somehow are supposed to get credit for beating each other. Babson and Endicott are easily as impressive wins as any of those teams have vs each other. Total dominance for Liberty and for that matter CAC OOC vs southern teams this year.

[choochooCharlie]

Teams such as Gettysburg, Lynchburg, CNU, W&L, previously York somehow are supposed to get credit for beating each other. Babson and Endicott are easily as impressive wins as any of those teams have vs each other.

CNU over Dickinson
= not teams you mentioned playing against each other, and far better than Endicott and Babson.

#downyear

[Laxattackjack]

Do we agree now that Tufts has reloaded and there has not been really a hiccup from last year. You might call RIT a hiccup but I think that those two teams can beat each other on any given day. Compared to how they played against RIT vs CNU/Union, it was night and day. I think if Tufts plays there A game, they could easily beat RIT. Regenery looks to be the real deal and we are starting to see Freshman getting a lot more playing time. Emsing and Beyers looks like they are the next two impactful players. Lots to be excited about especially since their are a lot Sophmores getting a substantial amount of playing time.

I think Tufts thrives when they are the bigger faster team (as most teams do). The problem is that they don't get away with their run and gun game when teams can keep up with them (Specifically the other teams mids). CNU and Union don't have the athletes that SU and RIT have which allows Tufts to get up and down the field at a high rate of speed uncontested. Whereas when you have pressure at that rate of speed, they turn the ball over and look UGLY. Which leads you to say that they weren't on their "A" game. I will say they look like they have reloaded well. But they don't play many tight games due to this reason IMO

I completely agree. Am on record, love the way the Jumbos play, always have. When they are clicking they might be the most fun team in all of college lacrosse to watch. The problem is when you get a team that is also big, physical and has the speed to keep up their TO's come back to bite them in the a$$. The truly great teams can play multiple styles and can adjust, Tufts has not proven that of late.

Heres the deal, last year Tufts beat RIT and lost to Salisbury, two years ago they beat Salisbury and lost to the eventual champ RIT. Bottom line, Tufts will most likely have to go through both of them in the playoffs this year if they expect to win it all. Can they do it? Absolutely. Those 3 and prolly one or two others are fairly evenly matched. It often comes down to who's healthy and peaking in May.

And I totally agree with you WS, a really, really fun brand of lax to watch! I never played the game but, I have to believe Tufts is a very attractive place for a HS lax recruit.

i am not sure how you are saying tufts, salisbury and RIT are evenly matched. RIT dominated when they played tufts. lead the entire way. salisbury is a few steps above everyone else. and after today, watching CNU get manhandled by Williams, a 500 team barely ranked in the top 20. it makes the Tufts/CNU win, not as impressive.

at this point, it looks like Salisbury is the top team

RPI and RIT look pretty even. we saw it in the matchup. and we can see it with similar opponents scores.

tufts can beat most teams. and tufts likes to run on the score more than other teams do. but that doesn’t make them as good as salisbury.

will be interesting to see what happens in may. D3 lax is getting better each year. more and more teams can compete with the top teams. i expect to see several upsets in the tourney.

[smoova]

Williams laying a beating on Christopher Newport (with Williams goalie at 29% and CNU winning 68% of FO!!!) demonstrating again the weakness of southern lax this year outside of Salisbury. For all the talk of what good OOC wins NESCAC team have, what good OOC winds do any of those teams have? Teams such as Gettysburg, Lynchburg, CNU, W&L, previously York somehow are supposed to get credit for beating each other. Babson and Endicott are easily as impressive wins as any of those teams have vs each other. Total dominance for Liberty and for that matter CAC OOC vs southern teams this year.

Caught some of this game. Ephs appeared far more physical than the Captains all over the field. Nice win for Williams.

[pcowlax]

Teams such as Gettysburg, Lynchburg, CNU, W&L, previously York somehow are supposed to get credit for beating each other. Babson and Endicott are easily as impressive wins as any of those teams have vs each other.

CNU over Dickinson
= not teams you mentioned playing against each other, and far better than Endicott and Babson.

#downyear

Dickinson And they have beaten who? A classic one of your examples of a team ranked based pre-season hype and insular games. They beat 2-6 York. WOW! And Stevens…whose best win is over a team you say sucks. Dickinson was blown out by an obviously extremely overrated CNU. See how fun this is?!! All of the teams you hyped best wins are vs each other. #worthlesswins

[choochooCharlie]

Teams such as Gettysburg, Lynchburg, CNU, W&L, previously York somehow are supposed to get credit for beating each other. Babson and Endicott are easily as impressive wins as any of those teams have vs each other.

CNU over Dickinson
= not teams you mentioned playing against each other, and far better than Endicott and Babson.

#downyear

Dickinson And they have beaten who? A classic one of your examples of a team ranked based pre-season hype and insular games. They beat 2-6 York. WOW! And Stevens…whose best win is over a team you say sucks. Dickinson was blown out by an obviously extremely overrated CNU. See how fun this is?!! All of the teams you hyped best wins are vs each other. #worthlesswins

I believe you’re smarter than this.
CNU beat Dickinson
A. Dickinson beat a york who was 2-4 and top 15, and that was based on their actual play, such as a 1 goal losses to RPI and RIT (from the North). So York isn’t good because of their record? But Middlebury is good despite there’s?

B. Stevens was Dickinson’s first game of the season, so they had NO record, but Stevens went on to go 7-2 with only other loss to Tufts (from the North), And I never said Wesleyan (from the North)who they beat, sucks. Is that your position?

Look at your own list of south teams. The mere fact that these teams are playing RPI, RIT, St Lawrence, Wesleyan, Williams, Amherst, and Tufts defies your point. Bowdoin has the budget to travel and play. Middlebury has the budget to travel and play. They’re choosing not to, and continuing this circular scenario up North, likely because they’re benefiting from it ranking wise, and if they didn’t, they might get exposed. What exactly don’t you get?