In one of the most daunting weeks in program history, the Massachusetts men’s lacrosse team handily bested four opposing squads – including two ranked in the top 20 – to improve to 7-0 (1-0 Eastern College Athletic Conference).
The victory-filled week may pay off in the polls, as three teams ranked ahead of the No. 7 Minutemen (No. 1 Virginia, No. 3 Syracuse and No. 4 Maryland) lost games this weekend. However, as Maryland was the only team that lost to a non-top 5 squad – a 10-6 defeat at the hands of No. 12 North Carolina – the Terrapins may be the only team to drop below the Maroon and White.
Virginia and Syracuse each lost one-point games this weekend. The Cavaliers fell to No. 4 Johns Hopkins, while the Orangemen dropped to No. 5 Princeton.
The Minutemen outscored No. 14 Hofstra (14-7), Hartford (14-3), Albany (15-5) and No. 18 Brown (18-6) by a total of 61-21 in 240 minutes of play over an eight-day period.
“I’m not sure I would ever do that again,” UMass coach Greg Cannella said after yesterday’s seven-point win over Hofstra at Hempstead, N.Y. capped off the unprecedented run.
The Maroon and White jumped out to a 7-2 halftime lead and held off a third-period run by the Pride for its first road win of the season.
“This is a program that’s been great [for a long time],” said Cannella, whose team has yet to allow 10 goals in a game this season. “Any time you have a chance to win in their place, it’s great.”
Junior Jeff Zywicki, who led the Minutemen in scoring in every game over break, paced his squad with five goals against Hofstra. No. 9 added an assist to his score sheet as well.
Over the four-game week, Zywicki netted 16 goals and added nine assists for 25 points, comparable to his statistics for the entire 2002 season, which saw him score 16 goals and chip in 11 assists for 27 points.
“The key to his game is finding all of the garbage goals,” Cannella said of Zywicki’s talent for putting home rebounds. “He’s a great player.”
Down 9-2 just two minutes into the second half, the Pride scored four of the five goals to cut the UMass lead to four nine minutes later.
But the Maroon and White defense held Hofstra to just one more goal down the stretch as Zywicki netted a pair of goals and seniors Chris Fiore and Kevin Leveille while the Minutemen ran away.
The win came just two days after Friday’s victory over Hartford, which capped off UMass’ longest homestand in school history.
The Minutemen never left the contest in doubt, jumping out to a 6-0 lead en route to the lopsided, 11-goal victory. It was the sixth straight win for the Maroon and White.
Six Minutemen scored two goals in the contest and seven had two or more points.
Earlier in the week, UMass defeated Albany and Brown at Garber Field.
Zywicki was the story last Tuesday as well, scoring a career-high seven goals and chipping in two assists for a career-best nine points, as the Minutemen bested Albany by 10. UMass snapped an early 1-1 tie with a 3-0 run and led the rest of the way. Leveille dished out six assists on the afternoon.
UMass began its break with a 12-point win over Brown. Seven Minutemen notched two or more goals, with Gene Tundo, Ryan Connolly, Sean Morris and Leveille each scoring three. Zywicki led the Maroon and White in points with six.
The Maroon and White scored at least four goals in each quarter.
