Championship Weekend might have been the best in a long time. Two semifinal games that were games defined by runs and one goal wins, thrilled audiences everywhere. Wes Berg sending his team to the title game and Maryland holding on to the win over Hopkins were extraordinary showcases for the game and its national audience. Now after the climax, we have a summer to reflect on the season.
The New Face-Off Rule:
This was a success as players weren’t running around with the ball lodged and good players found a way to adapt to the rule. The pinch-n-pop technique didn’t go the way of the dinosaur and wing play existed again after years of being dormant. Henry Schoonmaker was valuable to Syracuse on the wings when Ben Williams wouldn’t win the draw cleanly.
The Top 20:
Welcome to the new faces in the Top 20. The work has showed and more teams are fighting to crack the Top 20, some even for the first time in their program’s history. Marquette started strong. High Point almost found a home in the rankings, receiving votes. Marist finished the season in Top 20 as well and found themselves in the Carrier Dome during the NCAA Tournament.
Albany and Yale both packed their bags and parked it in the Top 10. Yale was a disallowed goal from pushing Maryland into overtime and maybe into a run to Championship Weekend. Albany gave all it could on another NCAA Tournament run, but just fell short of Championship Weekend after running into Notre Dame.
Can these programs, and others, keep the current pace and continue their respective quests to Championship Weekend?
ACC Compared to Everyone Else:
The ACC did dominate the talk to the regular season. Sixty percent of the ACC reached the number 1 ranking in the polls during the year, with Duke and Virginia treading water in the Top 10. Duke gave Syracuse all it could handle in the ACC Tournament, which gave people the idea that Duke might just make it a ninth straight trip to the Final Four.
The Big Ten regular season was rather dull in comparison. Ohio State started with a loss to Detroit, Hopkins was 4-6 at one point, and Maryland looked like the runaway favorite of the league. In the end, three teams made the field for the tournament, two making it all the way to Championship Weekend.
Virginia lost for the second straight season to Hopkins in the playoffs, injuries battered the Cavaliers. Duke lost to Ohio State to end their quest for the Final Four, losing handedly to the Buckeyes. Maryland dismantled North Carolina to reach the Final Four, after winning a nail biter to Yale.
The Big East took home the title as Denver made the celebratory march around Lincoln Financial. Denver took down Notre Dame in the first semifinal game and Duke to start the season. North Carolina did get a two-goal victory over the Pioneers, so the champs were 2-1 against the ACC this year.
The question now posed is: does the ACC beat up each other all season and fall victim to the late days of the season? Or are these conferences that good? We need 2016 to add to the sample size.
Storylines:
Tierney Takes the Title West – Bill Tierney might be the best coach in the sport’s history. After speaking with a Princeton alumnus the year Tierney left, he thought that the game had passed him by. He thought that there were new school coaches making more moves to set the bar higher and he might fall behind. Guess Tierney had something to say to those who doubted him.
Hopkins Tragedy to Triumph – Watching Final Four Weekend, one thing became apparent; Johns Hopkins has been through a lot during the 2015 season. Coach Pietramala gives his heart and soul to his team each year and this year was as difficult as any a person can imagine. The team returned with a dedication to each other in that locker room and played as a single unit with 59 important pieces. Congrats to the Blue Jays for their run, but most importantly for being there as a family for each other.
UNC Doesn’t Reach Championship Weekend – Remember when Georgetown’s number 1 recruiting class never made it to the Final Four? People said that would be the end of Georgetown and until recent changes, it looked like it was. UNC has continually raked in the top recruiting classes, but none have been able to get them to Championship Weekend. What will it take for them to finally get back to a place where they haven’t been since 1991?
Championship Weekend 2016 – Where will it be held? The attendance numbers are showing a sharp decline. The rising ticket prices and national television coverage make the choice obvious: back to campus. Rutgers and Maryland were home to the most recent championships before the NFL stadiums came on board. ESPN would play the championship game on its network and now it’s been downgraded to ESPN2. The NCAA needs to come up with a remedy to get more tickets out the door and into the seats.
So heading into the summer recruiting season and summer league fun, be excited for lacrosse. New teams are being introduced, with Hampton and Cleveland State being the most recent. More schools are approaching the sport to increase its appearance, athletics, and the institution itself. Now in one year, which team will be hoisting the trophy?
