1) Maryland (7-0)—The Terps survived Villanova’s second half push to remain undefeated. With five games to go before the ACC Tournament, Maryland faces North Carolina, Virginia, Robert Morris, Johns Hopkins and Notre Dame—do not be shocked if Maryland suffers their first loss. They have looked good but each week teams are inching closer to nipping them off. Something tells me the offense is due for a bad week.
2) Loyola (7-1)—Likewise, Loyola was nearly knocked off but came out on top against bubble teams in Army and Georgetown. Jack Runkel stood out against the Black Knights with 19 saves while Joe Fletcher did a good job limiting John Glesener to two goals on 22 shots. On Tuesday, Nikko Pontrello’s third goal with under a minute left proved to be the game winner against the Hoyas.
3) Cornell (7-0)—The Big Red is 7-0 to start a season for the first time since the 2007 campaign. The latest victory comes from Tuesday at Colgate. Matt Donovan and Connor Buczek combined for five goals and four assists. Good game for Dan Lintner as well (5 G, 1 A). The road trip continues with a matchup down in Philadelphia against Penn.
4) Duke (7-2)—The Blue Devils have responded from back-to-back loses to Maryland and Loyola with three straight wins. Saturday’s overtime win over North Carolina was hard earned and fun to watch between the local rivals. Jordan Wolf was the hero with five points, including the overtime game winner. The midfield finally saw someone step up with Kyle Keenan adding a hat trick, including the equalizer that sent the game to overtime. Syracuse is up next.
5) Denver (6-2)—The Pios are on a roll winning three straight games against quality opponents. They dispatched Ohio State on Saturday behind freshman Zach Miller’s big day (5 G, 2 A). Jamie Faus and Ryan LaPlante combined to make 11 saves while the defense limited the Buckeyes to five goals. Big East play begins this weekend against Rutgers.
6) North Carolina (7-2)—The Tar Heels let go of another fourth quarter lead and fell to Duke in overtime. UNC looked in control of a well fought game for much of the day. Freshman Michael Tagliaferri stepped up by scoring three goals while Jimmy Bitter and Joey Sankey combined for five. Kieran Burke made 15 saves in the effort. UNC avoided a scare on Tuesday by Harvard, but must play on short rest against the top team in the land in Maryland.
7) Syracuse (4-2)—A lot of people (myself included) had this game pegged for the Blue Jays based off possession. But John Desko’s team proved once again they can find ways to win despite being outmatched on faceoffs. They cherished the ball and finished with precision (sank 12-of-30 shots) when the shot clock was turned on. Outside of Ryan Brown, the Orange backfield made life tough for the Hopkins offense. The next ACC foe approaches with a trip to Duke on Saturday.
8) Johns Hopkins (5-1)—Lost in all the talk leading up to the Syracuse game was the fact that this Hopkins squad has yet to play a Top 10 team. Despite dominating the draws (21-of-25), old problems emerged for the Blue Jays. Ryan Brown’s eight-goal day was overshadowed by the team’s shooting woes, especially at the midfield. Turnovers on offense were another issue. The defense looked frustrated by the Syracuse sharpshooters.
9) Notre Dame (3-2)—Notre Dame won because they shot the ball well. They picked their targets and finished with balanced scoring across the roster. A 9-3 run in the fourth quarter was a good example of that. The defense did their job, holding Virginia to only 26 shots while Liam O’Connor won 22-of-30 faceoffs. The Irish are off this weekend before tackling Ohio State and Syracuse on the road next week.
10) Virginia (6-2)—The Cavaliers tried to fight back in this one but were unable to halt Notre Dame in the second and fourth quarters. They conceded a combined 16 goals in both periods. All you can do if you are coach Dom Starsia is burn the tape and move on. UVA returns to action on Saturday in the quest for the Doyle Smith Cup when Johns Hopkins comes to Klöckner Stadium.
11) Princeton (4-2)—Chalk that win to the Princeton blueprint. A 15-12 victory is how the Tigers saw themselves winning games this year. Their scorers were too much for Penn’s backfield to contain. An important factor was that the Tigers won the momentum battles: goals, groundballs, and saves all at the right time to keep rolling. Tom Schreiber, Mike MacDonald and Ryan Ambler combined for 10 goals and seven assists. Goaltender Matt O’Connor was pivotal with 13 saves.
12) Penn (3-2)—While the offense found the back of the net, the defense was unable to stop Princeton’s overwhelming offense. Those key moments in the game, a goal, faceoff or loss of possession, all swayed in the Tigers favor. Still a good showing by Isaac Bock (4 G, 1 A) and Drew Belinsky (1 G, 3 A). The Ivy League grind continues on Saturday in upstate New York against the surprising Cornell Big Red.
13) Penn State (4-3)—The Nittnay Lions are now in a precarious situation with Saturday’s loss to UMass. The offense was stymied by Zach Oliveri and his defense, along with 15 turnovers and going 1-for-5 on the EMO. Saturday’s match against Albany is as much the biggest game of the season. Another loss or two may effectively spoil their chances for an at-large bid.
14) Bryant (5-2)—With their win over Albany, the Bulldogs are now for real. The defensive effort was solid holding the nation’s best offense at bay while they cherished the ball and took advantage of possession. From here on out, Bryant faces no other Top 20 opponents on the schedule but should be the favorite to win the NEC conference.
15) UMass (6-2)—The Minutemen are a curious team of late. On Saturday, they picked up their first CAA win over Penn State and another Top 20 victory. How do they follow that up? They lose convincingly to Fairfield. Zach Oliveri did not have his best performance (only five saves), but UMass could never close the gap any closer than three goals all day. Hartford will serve as the final tune-up before the CAA stretch of Towson, at Drexel, Hofstra and at Delaware.
16) Yale (3-2)—Tough outing against Cornell in what proved to be a dogfight. Trailing 10-5 at halftime, they were still in the game. The defense shut down the Big Red scorers, but their offense could not score enough. With Brandon Mangan held in check, Sean Shakespeare and Conrad Oberbeck each scored thrice. It was not enough as Cornell’s defense made some key stops in the fourth quarter.
17) Fairfield (5-2)—An excellent performance by the Stags who have now won three straight. After dispatching Stony Brook in a high scoring affair, Fairfield handled a solid UMass program. They never trailed and played well on both sides of the ball. Eight of the 13 UMass turnovers on the day were caused by Fairfield. No one should sleep on this team. They will be there on the bubble come selection time.
18) Colgate (6-2)—A good effort on Tuesday against Cornell. Ryan Walsh continues to dazzle with 28 points, but the secondary scorers Brendon Mccan and Kevin Adams have done a good job taking some pressure. From here on out, it is all Patriot League games, starting with Navy this weekend before the Greyhounds come upstate. Yale now takes on Princeton in a rematch of last year’s Ivy League title game.
19) Albany (2-3)—Unlike Penn State, Albany has the safety of the America East automatic bid. There are still plenty of chances to earn a higher seed and avoid a potential play-in game, but Scott Marr must address his team’s deficiencies in his own zone. Saturday against Penn State should present a good firework show.
20) Lehigh (6-2)—The Mountainhawks dismantled Navy 13-2 and look to get back into an at-large discussion. They are 2-1 in the Patriot League, but will face an Army team that is chopping at the heels of the rankings. Lehigh’s six wins come against teams with a combined 11-32 record. They will not face another Top 20 contender until April so a win this weekend is imperative.
