We’ve finally reached the finish line in the college lacrosse season, as Maryland meets Denver in the Division 1 Championship game Monday at Lincoln Financial Field at 1 PM. Maryland comes in as the #6 seed and has been impressive this season, especially at defense, led by goaltender Kyle Bernlohr, a 1st Team All-American. Denver comes in as the #4 seed and has dominated their opponents for the most part all year with their efficient offense, led by Tewaaraton Finalist Wesley Berg.
But there are other storylines that you should follow as well:
Face-offs: Charlie Raffa vs. Trevor Baptiste
This should be an entertaining battle for the entirety of the game. The young blood newcomer in Baptiste, who won 15-of-24 draws against Notre Dame on Saturday in the semifinal, takes on the veteran Raffa, who won 14-of-26 draws against Johns Hopkins and even scored in the 1st quarter. My gut feeling is that Baptiste will win the majority of the face-offs, but by a very slight margin. This will be a tough and important battle, which might come down the play of the wingers on the draws, something that has become of an importance in the new age of face-offs in college lacrosse.
Connor Cannizzaro
It came as a shock when the budding freshman decided to transfer from Maryland to Denver, where his brother Sean, a senior, is a midfielder. And under Tierney’s system, he has thrived, leading the team in goals (56), assists (33), and points (89) for the Pioneers. He’s been the biggest transfer addition for any team this season, even beating Syracuse and the arrival of Ben Williams for face-offs. It would be interesting if Cannizzaro had some inside access from his year at Maryland, which would be put to good use.
New breed vs. Blue blood
This was how the bracket looked from when the field was announced. In the top portion, you had teams that, for the most part, have never won a college lacrosse championship, with the exception of Duke. In the bottom portion, you had the teams that used to be in the Final Four nearly every year, from Maryland, to Johns Hopkins, to Syracuse and North Carolina, to Virginia. Denver looks to create history and send the Division I championship out west to Colorado, while Maryland looks to keep the trophy towards the eastern part of the country.
First chance vs. Title drought
This will be Denver’s first appearance in the National Championship, appearing in the semifinals multiple times before this year, while Maryland looks to snap a 40-year title drought.
Game tempo
Both teams are not speedsters like Brown or even Tufts from yesterday’s Division III final. Both teams like to take their time and find the best opportunities to shoot. Right now, I’m not expecting a shootout, but even though both offenses like to take their time, they are both explosive as well.
