Three wins in a row don’t mean a whole lot during most regular seasons. A three-game win streak in baseball is just a nice weekend, in hockey only good for a half-month of prosperity. In a 14-game season, however, three games can make or break tournament hopes, as well as the chance at a winning year.
Not that the Massachusetts men’s lacrosse team needs extra reason to play well Saturday, when it takes on Harvard at 1 p.m. on Garber Field. The Crimson (1-1) come to Amherst off a 15-4 trouncing at the hands of Bucknell last Friday, thanks to the impeccable goaltending of Bison netminder Matt Baran, who didn’t allow a goal until the third quarter in a 17-save effort.
The Minutemen (2-1) will have a chance to all but erase the memory of a 12-7 loss to North Carolina on the opening weekend of the season, and begin a five-game in 15-day odyssey on a high note. It is the first of three games over spring break for UMass, a time that coach Greg Cannella relishes.
“I think it’s a good thing, I look forward to it every year,” he said. “The younger guys stay with the older guys off-campus … it’s like going on the road and sharing hotel rooms with each other. Their focus is excellent over spring break, there’s nothing else going on, it’s all lacrosse.”
The last time the two teams met, on April 16, 2003, the Minutemen (2-1) escaped with an 11-6 victory despite being routed on faceoffs, 18-3. The draws have been a focus all year for the Minutemen, and sophomore faceoff specialist Dane Collins will be called upon to improve upon last year’s total. It won’t be an easy task, though, as Harvard’s Alex Vap, who won 17 of the draws, returns as a senior this year.
Preparation has been a key this week for Collins.
“We worked hard at it,” Cannella said. “We’re still working hard at it this week, Dane’s watching tape. We’ve challenged the faceoff guys, we’ve challenged the wings. So we’ve addressed it, we have confidence in Dane and the wings to scrap it up.”
UMass enters the game without four vital cogs in its machine. Attackman Jeff Zywicki will sit out with a recurring back injury, midfielders Sean Morris (mononucleosis) and Greg Scott will both be inactive due to injury, as well as junior defensive stalwart Matt Garcia, who is nursing the ankle he sprained against UNC on Feb. 28.
“Because of a couple of guys that are hurt, we have some young guys out there, so we are inexperienced, we’re young,” Cannella said. “We do have some good senior leadership, and upperclassman leadership.”
The absence of Zywicki and Morris, who combined for 55 of the Minutemen’s 195 goals in 2003, has put the onus on other offensive threats to bring the scoring. Senior Kevin Glenz has answered the call, with eight goals and two assists this season. Glenz was named ECAC Player of the Week on Tuesday, after scoring six goals and two assists against Hartford – including five goals in the second half.
Cannella said he would continue to call upon Glenz, and a few others, to fill in where Zywicki and Morris are missing.
“I think the [Neil] Lundbergs and [Chris] Doyles and [Ryan] Connollys and Glenzes and [Matt and Gene] Tundos, Jack Reid, Aaron Paskalis, … as people that have experience, we need them to go out there and play as hard as they can, make the plays we need them to make,” he said.
