With only three games left in the regular season, Georgetown men’s lacrosse head coach Dave Urick wants his team focused on finishing strong.
“We make it a point to constantly remind the kids that they can play their way into the NCAA tournament,” Urick said. “But they can also play their way out.”
Until last Saturday, the Hoyas were certainly well on their way, winning three straight games against Navy, Mount St. Mary’s, and Notre Dame. However, this streak came to a sudden halt on Saturday with an 11-6 loss at the hands of the Loyola Greyhounds.
Senior captain Craig Dowd tied the game at four a piece just before halftime. Unfortunately, Loyola came out of the half strong on both sides of the ball, holding the Hoyas scoreless in the third while netting four goals of their own.
“We didn’t face-off as well as we have been,” Urick said. “That gave them a huge advantage in possession, and they took full advantage of it, scoring four goals in less four minutes.”
Along with uncharacteristic face-off losses, the Hoyas also suffered from a lack of success when holding the man-advantage. While Georgetown has excelled with the man-advantage all year, the Hoyas went a paltry 0-4 against Loyola.
Fortunately, Georgetown wasn’t the only highly ranked team to stumble this past week—Drexel, Hofstra, UMass, and Hopkins all suffered losses this week as well. The high volume of losses, meant the Hoyas only dropped to No. 10 from No. 9.
Photo courtesy of Sports Information
The loss simply accentuates the importance of the final three games. These games are all the more crucial since the Hoyas will not compete in a post-season conference tournament, and therefore have limited opportunities to score more quality wins.
The Hoyas’ final stretch begins this Saturday with a match against the No. 16 UMass Minutemen. Despite Georgetown’s higher ranking, Urick does not expect an easy game.
“They’re a well coached team, as it’s usually only a one or two goal game,” Urick said. “It’s a type of team that makes you play good, solid, fundamental lacrosse.”
Georgetown will need solid contributions from the entire roster in order to beat UMass, something Urick did not feel like the Hoyas enjoyed in their game against the Greyhounds.
“We didn’t get much of anything from the freshmen against Loyola,” Urick said. “They’re no longer considered freshmen, so they have to recognize and respond accordingly.”
The freshmen will get their chance to respond this Saturday against UMass in Hartford, Connecticut, as a part of the Warrior Classic lacrosse tournament.
