The second wave of conference tournaments began on Thursday, with the Ivy League tournament beginning later this afternoon. Many dreams were shattered, while others kept their season alive and will play for a chance to get an AQ into the NCAA Tournament.
Big Ten
Johns Hopkins beats Penn State 14-9
Ohio State upsets host Maryland 9-6
What does this mean: Hopkins and Ohio State still have a shot of making the big dance, while Maryland will most likely not host a 1st round game, which is big. In some recent Bracketology articles, Maryland was going to be a #6 seed, but with how they’ve been playing in the past few weeks, yikes. We saw Charlie Raffa very late in the game trying to give the Terps a chance, but he couldn’t do anything at the x against Ohio State’s Christopher May. Hopkins has to win in order to get in, Ohio State might be fine, but last week’s loss to Rutgers doesn’t help them with the chance of getting an at-large bid.
CAA
Towson defeats Drexel 11-8
UMass upsets Fairfield 9-8
What does this mean: Tough loss at home for the Stags to a Minutemen team that hasn’t had the best of games this year. They lost to Fairfield by one in their regular season meeting, and lost to Towson 6-3 as well. Towson looks to be in a prime spot to get the CAA’s AQ. If they do win on Saturday, would that push Patriot League champion Colgate down to a play-in spot?
Big East
Georgetown beats Marquette 12-8
Denver beats Villanova 16-9
What does this mean: Marquette’s great season is done, Georgetown is still alive, and will most likely get defeated by Denver. The Pios had a slow start in the first, but bounced back to limit Villanova to four goals in the final three quarters, including a 2nd quarter shutout.
American East
Stony Brook defeats Vermont 16-13
Albany beats Hartford 15-6
What does this mean: We’re gonna get a rematch between the Great Danes and the Sea Wolves. They played to a 17-15 Albany win in mid-March, but I don’t think I see Stony Brook pulling off the upset against Lyle Thompson, who had 5 goals and 4 assists yesterday against the Hawks. But if Albany loses, where would they end up?
NEC
St. Joe’s beats Mount St. Mary’s 10-4
Bryant defeats Hobart 11-8
What does this mean: Bryant is hot after a very slow start. They lost to St. Joe’s at home 8-7 in late March, but since then, the Bulldogs have gone 5-2, with losses only coming against Albany and Brown. I smell an upset.
MAAC
Quinnipiac defeats Detroit 16-9
Marist defeats Monmouth 11-6
What does this mean: Marist and their very quiet season continue, but whomever wins tomorrow will still have to play in a play-in game. I like the Red Foxes in the title game.
SoCon
Richmond edges out Furman 8-7
High Point edges out Mercer 7-6
What does this mean: Both games were very entertaining to watch from one of the lesser-known conferences in Division 1 lacrosse. Richmond and High Point will meet in what should be another great SoCon playoff game.
