How do you replace one of the best players in the history of your sport?
Well, quite simply you don’t. But the University at Albany men’s lacrosse team is enjoying a successful campaign nonetheless following the departure of two-time Tewaaraton Award winner and all-time collegiate scoring leader Lyle Thompson.
The sixth-ranked Great Danes are 9-2 and once again top the America East Conference standings heading into a key non-conference road contest at No. 4 Yale at noon ET Saturday.
“So far it’s been great,” says coach Scott Marr of the Great Danes’ season. “These past couple of years we’ve created such a good, positive culture. We’ve just developed confidence and our level of play from five years ago to now has really improved. I think we’ve learned a lot from those guys.”
‘Those guys,’ of course, is a reference to the members of the Thompson family who brought a lot of excitement to the state capital with their crafty stick work and joyous approach to the game. Lyle Thompson, the last of the trio along with his brother Miles and their cousin Ty, graduated a year ago with his second Tewaaraton Award and 400 career points, shattering the collegiate record.
But there are still plenty of talented players at both ends of the field for the Great Danes. They’re averaging a healthy 12.9 goals a game, good for ninth in the country in 2016. Sophomore Connor Fields (29 goals, 17 assists) and junior Seth Oakes (30 goals) lead the attack, and senior goalie Blaze Riorden backs the defense.
“I think Blaze is kind of carrying that leadership torch,” Marr says. “We’re playing as good on defense now as we ever have.”
Another postseason appearance is likely for the Great Danes, but a win in New Haven, Conn., Saturday against a top-five opponent would make that more of a certainty.
The Bulldogs, of course, will have other ideas coming off their first loss of the season at Brown a week ago. Despite surrendering 14 goals to the potent Bears, Yale can still counter Albany with a sound defense.
“There are similarities between us and Brown. We both like to play at a fast pace,” Marr says. “Given today’s technology we’ve been able to see a lot of that game, but I’m sure Yale has seen a lot of our games as well. When you look at Yale over the last four seasons Andy (Shay) has done a great job. They’re very well-coached. It’s going to be a battle.”
Sowing the seeds: Only one regular-season contest remains in Atlantic Coast Conference play. But the matchups for next weekend’s ACC tournament are set, regardless of the outcome of top-ranked Notre Dame’s date at North Carolina Saturday (noon ET, ESPNU).
With a win, the Fighting Irish will complete a conference sweep and claim the top seed. The Tar Heels, who are 2-1 in the league entering the Notre Dame game, can claim the top seed with a head-to-head victory. But the Tar Heels will be pitted against Syracuse in the tournament either way, as the Orange would lose a head-to-head tiebreaker with Duke and fall to the fourth seed should the Heels win. A UNC loss would create a three-way tie for second at 2-2, in which case Syracuse would receive the No.-2 seed on tie breakers and be matched up with the Tar Heels at No. 3. Similarly, Notre Dame will play Duke no matter how the game in Chapel Hill turns out.
Now, having said all that, Notre Dame coach Kevin Corrigan isn’t all that concerned with seeds. “We don’t talk at all about seeding and the playoff stuff,” he says. “The way I look at it, when you get into tournaments at the end, everybody’s good and you’ve got to beat good teams. ... We just want to get ourselves to be the best team we can be and playing as well as we can be. We do know how well we prepare for other teams and at this time you know more about the teams you play. So you have a chance to be better if your team has learned how to prepare. That’s what we worry about and talk about, as opposed to where we sit in the ACC.”
Duke, meanwhile, secured its spot in the ACC tournament with last week’s win against Virginia. But the Blue Devils could use a non-conference victory Friday night against Marquette to bolster their resume. But that game also marks a key finishing stretch for the Eagles, who might be on their way to the program’s first NCAA tournament appearance. After the trip to Duke, Marquette finishes its regular season at defending national champion Denver prior to the Big East tournament.
Other games to watch: Navy’s overtime win against Army at West Point last week secured the regular-season title and hosting privileges for the Patriot League tournament for the Midshipmen. But there is still plenty to be decided in the league Friday. The Black Knights head to Loyola, with the winner guaranteed second place and a first-round bye. Holy Cross and Boston U square off for the sixth and final PL tournament berth. ... With Yale’s defeat last weekend, the longest active winning streak in Division I is now owned by Air Force. The Falcons’ 11-game run gets a big test Saturday at Richmond, with first place in the Southern Conference at stake.
