Beast.
FINAL FOUR, BABY!
Just finished watching the game on the ol' DVR. Some thoughts:
- Steele Stanwick is amazing. 3 goals, 5 assists, and by far the best player on the field.
- Dom Starsia's 327th win gave him the most wins in D-1 lacrosse history. Congratulations, coach!
- The D was good today. Really good.
- Our 9-0 run over the course of 22 minutes in the first half was the best stretch of lacrosse I've seen us play against an elite opponent since the perfect season in 2006.
- Cornell's Rob Pannell might win the Tewaarton (college lax's Heisman Trophy), but I thought Bray Malphus ate his lunch today, and Stanwick really outshined him.
- We were much better getting to ground balls today. Chris LaPierre was outstanding.
- Matt White, Chris Bocklet, and Nick O'Reilly gave Stanwick a lot of scoring options in the attack. Good job by the entire group. Chris Bocklet in particular is just a monster finisher. I love that guy.
- I thought the middies were good today, too. Rob Emery and Colin Briggs played well; they were active and made some really good cuts.
- I now definitely think it was addition by subtraction with the Brattons. This offense is now varied, balanced, and unpredictable. Without Shamel Bratton dominating the ball, Steele Stanwick has been freed to really sparkle as a playmaker.
- 6-seed Denver upset John's Hopkins in the other quarterfinal game today. That means we get the Nugs/Broncos/Rockies/Avalanche/whatever their nickname is (just looked it up -- Pioneers) in the semis next Saturday. Bring 'em on!
- (1-seed Syracuse vs. Maryland and 4-seed Notre Dame vs. 5-seed Duke are the other quarterfinal games, played tomorrow afternoon. Pull against Duke --- they own us in lacrosse right now.)
- I love how our lacrosse team has come together amid a ton of adversity. It's a very easy team to pull for right now. Next Saturday on ESN2, check 'em out.
Great points, Kendall. I mentioned after watching the JHU game earlier in the season that the offense was very limited - it seemed that if the Brattons couldn't shake somebody or get loose in transition, we weren't gonna score. We definitely miss their speed a little bit, but this team is playing WAY better without them. Stanwick has been great the past few weeks at creating plays for his teammates, and also for himself. I love it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, what about that big run on the clear by Ghitelman (complete with a nasty spin move)? Badass!
If we can hold our own in face-offs then I think we have a very good chance of beating Denver (although I haven't seen them play). Coach Starsia probably won't admit it, but we really don't wanna see Duke on Memorial Day...