Georgetown, ranked No. 3 in the country, faced off against the No. 9-ranked Minutemen in Amherst this past Saturday. The last time Georgetown was No. 3 in the country was two years ago, in April of 2003, right before facing UMass. The Hoyas lost their position after falling to the Minutemen 11-8. Last Saturday, history repeated itself. The Hoyas came extremely close to winning in the final minutes of the game but missed crucial opportunities to pull ahead, losing 12-13.
“There was no doubt that UMass is an extremely talented team,” senior defenseman Brodie Merrill said. “They have one of the best offensive units in the country.”
A torrential downpour couldn’t slow the momentum of the high-scoring game. Junior midfielder Pete Cannon provided another strong effort, scoring five goals against the Minutemen to back up his two-goal performance against Loyola the weekend before. But even Cannon’s play couldn’t overcome the Hoyas’ miscues and propel Georgetown to a win.
“We came out flat and made too many errors in the beginning,” Georgetown senior midfielder Mike White said.
After UMass took the lead at the start of the game, Cannon answered back, scoring his first of the afternoon. Georgetown first-year attackman Matt McBride scored with less than one minute remaining in the quarter, ending the period with UMass leading 4-2.
The second quarter saw large amounts of offensive action, but UMass remained ahead, ending the half with a 9-6 advantage. The Hoyas came back hungry in the third, finding the net three times to tie the game and holding the Minutemen scoreless.
Heading into the final quarter, the score was tied at 9-9. Georgetown took the lead with another goal from Cannon, but four consecutive UMass goals put the Minutemen ahead 13-10 with only five minutes remaining. Cannon again answered with two goals, pulling the Hoyas within one point, but that was the closest they would get. In the crucial final minutes of the game, UMass goalie Bill Schell came up big, making a number of huge saves to seal the win.
With the victory, UMass grabbed first place in the ECAC from the Hoyas, who now have a record of 8-3. Georgetown has two games left, both at home, which they must win to secure an NCAA tournament berth.
Georgetown senior and captain Brodie Merrill will be a marked man in the final games, as he was recently named as one of 16 candidates for this year’s Tewaaraton Trophy, lacrosse’s equivalent to the Heisman. The award honors the top varsity collegiate lacrosse players in the U.S. The list of 16 will be reduced to five and the award will be presented on June 2, 2005.
Merrill and the Hoyas look to finish the season strong this Saturday, April 30th. Georgetown will host Rutgers (4-7) on Senior Day on North Kehoe Field at 1:00 p.m.
