We are five weeks into the NCAA lacrosse season, and things are already crazy. Cornell is without its star player, Maryland has lost to UMBC and the champion Virginia has defeated the powerhouse Syracuse. Let's take a look at the games around New England this weekend.
Division One
UMass Minutemen (5) 5-0 vs Hartford Hawks 1-3 - Saturday 1pm
Massachusetts has been a good team for several years, but they have taken the leap this year to be an elite NCAA lacrosse program. Ranked fifth in the country, perennial power houses Maryland, Cornell, Johns Hopkins and Virginia rank ahead. With a few more wins, and if some of those teams fall off (Cornell could without Rob Pannell), UMass could become one of the teams to beat. Hartford defeated Brown on Wednesday.
Holy Cross Crusaders 3-2 vs Colgate Red Raiders 4-1 - Saturday 1pm
Holy Cross has defeated Hartford, Jacksonville and Mercer this season. Not bad, but they have lost to St. Johns and Harvard, better teams. Colgate is the best team they have faced so far this season, and will be at home for the chance to beat the Red Raiders. Holy Cross beat Mercer on Tuesday, while UMass beat Albany.
Harvard Crimson (20) 2-1 vs Georgetown Hoyas 1-1 - Saturday 1pm
Harvard goes into this week as the last ranked team, ranking 20th in the country. They've beat teams like Vermont and Holy Cross, but fell last week to a good Hofstra squad. Georgetown is a decent team, but I expect that Harvard gets their third win.
Vermont Catamonts 0-4 vs Fairfield Stags (17) 5-0 - Saturday 1pm
Fairfield is one of the best teams in the country this week, while Vermont hasn't won a game all season. The Catamonts have struggled mightily in those losses, and there really does not seem to be much hope for them. If Fairfield lost, it would be stunning.
MCLA
Boston University Terriers 0-0 vs Virginia Tech Hokies 4-0 - Friday 8pm
The Terriers are set to play their first game of the MCLA season, and face a tough game against the undefeated Virginia Tech Hokies. Boston University has only two more years left in MCLA, so watch for some improvements.
Northeastern Huskies 3-0 vs Arizona State Sun Devils 4-1 - Sunday 1pm
Northeastern has gotten off to a great start this season, with wins over Vanderbilt, LSU, Alabama and Arizona. The Sun Devils will be tough, especially on the road.
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