For the most part, we got what we bargained for on Wednesday with a full slate of Division III conference semifinal matchups. Top seeds advanced to the finals to face No. 2 seeds in almost every conference that played yesterday, making Franklin & Marshall‘s 11-9 win over Dickinson that much more of a highlight.
The Diplomats could have asked for a better start, falling behind 4-1 after the first quarter, but strong games from Will Ballantyne and Michael Bossidy helped F&M recover in time to eventually take the lead on a Phillip Gamble goal with 6:01 to play. Ballantyne finished with five goals and an assist while Bossidy poured in three with a helper.
The loss puts a disappointing period on the season for Dickinson who had overcome a three-game losing streak early in the year to win five of its last six games and secure the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. After 2013 was such a banner year for the Red Devils, it is disappointing that we will have an NCAA Tournament without them as they can now look forward to fall ball with the motivation of a 9-8 season that left a lot on the table.
For the Diplomats, however, this win keeps them alive for an at-large bid should things go south against Washington College in Saturday’s final. They improve to 13-4 having won six of their last seven contests and enter the final with the knowledge that they hung with the Shoremen back on March 29 in a 9-6 loss. An experienced bunch, F&M is poised to make its case for one of the Pool C bids, but only in the event that they can’t knock off Washington.
Photo credit Facebook/Franklin & Marshall Men’s Lacrosse
Empire 8 Stays Chalk
Two games saw two teams emerge victorious by a combined margin of three goals. Ithaca and Stevens battled to a 9-7 final that saw the Bombers blow open a 4-4 game at the half with a 4-1 run in the third quarter. Ithaca got goals from eight different players, led by John Januszkiewicz’s two goals and one assist.
Ryan Burns, Brandon Henne and Justin Bird netted back-to-back-to-back goals to open the third quarter scoring to give Ithaca all the breathing room it needed. A late push from Michael Maroon and Andrew Scrutchfield brought Stevens back to within two with under two minutes to play. The Ducks would win the ensuing faceoff and get two cracks at the goal, but Charlie Cronin missed both times, Ithaca cleared, and the Bombers marched into the Empire 8 final.
In the other semifinal, second-seeded St. John Fisher scored six goals in the third quarter to turn a 5-3 Nazareth lead at the break into a 9-6 deficit heading into the fourth quarter. The Golden Flyers battled back to tie the game at nine apiece, but a pair of goals from SJF’s Gary Bova and Nick Rossi stretched the Cardinals’ lead to 11-9. Troy Haefele netted the ultimate goal with 1:13 left.
Naz would get one more shot at it, though. Two, actually. After Drew Simoneau won his 16th faceoff on the day (16-for-24, 14 ground balls) and Nazareth called timeout with 1:04 to play, Collin Clark got two shots to tie the game, but each went wide as the Cardinals survived to fight another day.
The Golden Flyers got solid production from its offense and strong ground ball and faceoff work from Simoneau, but they were ultimately done in by a poor performance in the net by Scott Brown, who saved just four of the 15 shots he faced on the day. SJF only got 19 shots off for the game, which speaks to both their efficiency shooting the ball and quality of Nazareth’s defense.
Ithaca and SJF will run back a March 26 won, 11-9, by the Bombers thanks to a 4-2 run in the final quarter.
Other Results
Commonwealth Coast Conference
Endicott 25, Salve Regina 5
Western New England 16, Roger Williams 12
Landmark Conference
Susquehanna 9, Drew 4
Goucher 8, Scranton 4
Midwest Lacrosse Conference
Aurora 15, Augustana 6
Carthage 10, Concordia 5
North Eastern Athletic Conference
Keuka 17, Medaille 7
Morrisville 9, Hilbert 4
NEWMAC
Springfield College 13, Clark 3
Babson 10, MIT 6
North Atlantic Conference
Castleton 17, Husson 7
New England College 17, Maine Maritime 9
Ohio Athletic Conference
Otterbein 16, Baldwin-Wallace 10
John Carroll 8, Mount Union 5
Skyline Conference
Montclair State 18, Richard Stockton 7
Farmingdale State at Kean PPD
SUNYAC
Cortland 15, Oneonta 3
Plattsburgh 11, Potsdam 6
