First off hats of to our guys for playing their asses off. This game was ripe for the picking. We were in perfect position to pull off this huge upset. I have a feeling not calling a timeout in OT will haunt Brecht the rest of his life. Damn shame.
No. 9 Rutgers Men’s Lacrosse Faces No. 1 Seed North Carolina in NCAA Quarterfinals - Saturday at 2:30 p.m., ESPNU
- Thread starter Tango Two
- Start date
Great game. can't turn the ball over in the clear.
Gef
How can you not know the back pressure is coming when it happens 4 times in a short time span.
You know there’s no time and space?
I never played Lax competitively, the only thing I can compare it to is being aware of the back checker in hockey, you know is going to take the puck from you if you slow up during zone entry
was amazed by the faceoffs for 3 quarters......... but, they evened-up by the end. and the mid-field TOs killed us.
horrible X play in last 10 mins.
proud how hard we fought, but... Sorry Brecht was waaay late trying to call Time-out in OT.....that's on him.
horrible X play in last 10 mins.
proud how hard we fought, but... Sorry Brecht was waaay late trying to call Time-out in OT.....that's on him.
It happened all game. By OT I’m screaming at the TV for our guys to hustle with the ball. How can they be jogging with the ball when UNc is all over them? They should be running their asses off to get clear of the pressure. Best lax game I’ve ever seen but we had this one if not for the hustle plays.
Very tough loss. Leaves me with a similar feeling as the Houston basketball game. That is not good. It was there for the taking but we just did not make enough plays down the stretch. Way finished with moral victories. Getting too old.
My take, and I'd love your opinion, is that fatigue played a major factor in the turnovers. It became an increasing problem in the last half of the 3rd and all of the 4th. I noticed the attack and other middies did not come out to receive a pass (at least from the TV view) when the clearing middie crossed the midfield line. This allowed either the double or an overplaying single to be more effective. Fatigue might also have been a factor in the failure to back up 2 shots in the 4th that resulted in Carolina possessions.
Still, one hell of a game.
For me, it's not getting old just yet. I'm still grateful to see RU playing big time athletics with everything on the line.
this.
very happy to see us competing across the board...
...learning how not to lose took a long time around here.........
.....learning how to win is another thing entirely.......... need to take that next step.
One of the teams I coached ran a pretty good ten man ride ( a lot like what UNC did) and we would simply funnel kids to a side and trap them on the wing where we would double or triple team them.
generally what makes it successful is when the clearing team does not clear all the way to the box and are two static. (We saw both of this) and then there were UNC effort plays including #4 knocking the ball out of our sticks not once but twice.
That being said what a great effort by the boys, Dugenio was awesome at the X and the defense held their best player without a goal and Collin Kirst was simply a thief at times.
They were gassed. That was an extremely physical game. Those kids left it out there. They gave it everything they had. I’m absolutely gutted but so proud of all they’ve done and how they played today. It was an incredible game and and an incredible effort.
This program will continue building into a monster.
The effort it takes to run ssdm is crazy as every team goes at those kids all day which means they have to defend and then the expectation is that the will clear the ball and start transition. Our top SsDM #44 and #26 were on the field a lot they have 4 kids that run this spot but those two were clearly the best and early on #2 was getting run by pretty consistently so they had to limit his runs.
Plus our SSDMs play more offense than most and that is one of our strengths. They are a big reason we held their powerful offense in check most of the game. They were simply gassed at the end. Not to mention Hofstra’s turf is like quicksand. Wears out the legs especially on a hot day.
Despite the result, I felt like we proved ourselves today in front of the whole nation. We pushed the supposed top team in the country to the absolute limit and even outplayed them in many facets. The fact now that we got that first taste of May Madness action means we will start appearing here more and more frequently and will get to the Promised Land of MDW appearances in the Final Four and contending for NCs.
It was a terrific game and we should all be very proud of those young men. They played their hearts out. I can understand fatigue happens - just a shame that it cost them a chance at the final 4. As disappointing as it is for our guys; I recognize the effort UNC’s players made and it is how championships are won. I agree we’ll grow from this and as I mentioned before - this was the best lacrosse game I have ever seen. I feel badly for our guys.
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Might have something to do with playing the number 1 team in the country
Plus UNC has 2 offensive middie lines to rotate. So they're playing fewer minutes and getting more recovery time. At the end of game on an almost 90 degree day that can make a difference (no shit).
While it seems like recruiting is getting better, we lose a lot this year. With the Ivies back in play next year, making the tournament is going to be a big challenge. It will be interesting to see if we consider some position changes. Coyne showed promise on offense in is first couple of year yet I thought he was at times challenged to stay with his man on defense.
I thought it was a very exciting match today and while very disappointed that we did not close it out, we certainly gave a good accounting against the #1 ranked team. Incremental progress from this point forward only gets harder. We need to build off of this and maintain the momentum rather than allow any complacency to set in.
Not today. Turnovers were the bane in the 4th Q. I think we won three faceoffs in a row at one point and turned the ball over twice out of the three from lack of awareness. Bottom line, and some have said fatigue was a big factor, but NC wanted it more and played the 4th Q like it was the last quarter of their careers. Even in OT, we got a stop and had possession of the ball, only to cough it up on a good stick check (again). NC players have been in these situations. RU hasn't and will hopefully learn from it. RU played an awesome game but just couldnt close it out.
No you're right. Today we were sooooooooo much better, but in the end when it counted we didn't win those FO. Still, I am so proud of what these kids accomplished. The outcome was very disappointing but with a few bounces here and there plus a TO we should have or could have won.
Great game and effort by both teams. Teams were evenly matched, but RU came up short.
Great season, future is bright.
Great season, future is bright.
Congrats to our LAX team for one heluva fabulous season!!
Proud of this team tonight...what a tough loss, but stepping away, what a great effort by every young man that stepped on that field today....sure, it wasn't a clean game, but it was elite level and the athletes on both teams were competing in extreme conditions and left it all out there....UNC is loaded at the midfield with big, fast athletes....that's why they were the #1 seed....
UNC runs some of the biggest most athletic midfielders at you in the nation...the big question going in was could we slow them down, keep us in the game, how would our defense and rope unit handle the pressure...that would be the chess match so speak....
Well, we struggled in transition at points...everyone on our team made mistakes, but most mistakes we made had as much to due with the pressure UNC puts on you mentally and physically....they ride you hard up and down the field...and while we had moments that looked bad, we also had enough success to take them to OT...
We held them to 11 goals in reg...UNC is the number one rated offense in the country...number 1.
I'm just not gonna get into it tonight...just know that the young men are heartbroken...they left it all out there but the other team made a couple more plays late to advance....and that other team is a damn good team...and so are we...
I know a few guys were exhausted at the end of that game...
Thanks to all RU fans that support this group of young men with positive thoughts....they truly appreciate the opportunity they have to represent Rutgers and it's alumni.....
What a run...I'm very sad it's over
UNC runs some of the biggest most athletic midfielders at you in the nation...the big question going in was could we slow them down, keep us in the game, how would our defense and rope unit handle the pressure...that would be the chess match so speak....
Well, we struggled in transition at points...everyone on our team made mistakes, but most mistakes we made had as much to due with the pressure UNC puts on you mentally and physically....they ride you hard up and down the field...and while we had moments that looked bad, we also had enough success to take them to OT...
We held them to 11 goals in reg...UNC is the number one rated offense in the country...number 1.
I'm just not gonna get into it tonight...just know that the young men are heartbroken...they left it all out there but the other team made a couple more plays late to advance....and that other team is a damn good team...and so are we...
I know a few guys were exhausted at the end of that game...
Thanks to all RU fans that support this group of young men with positive thoughts....they truly appreciate the opportunity they have to represent Rutgers and it's alumni.....
What a run...I'm very sad it's over
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Best thing to come out of today and this weekend - the exposure will hopefully show local kids RU is legit and maybe start keeping those 4*/star players from going to UMD/Lehigh/PSU etc and staying home…
It was always the r biggest concern. Every post I made pre game their depth was mentioned. You could see at the end of the game. Those plays where we were running by guys were getting tougher and tougher. And you have to tip your cap. UNC rides likes crazy. It’s what they do and how they’ve won many games. Their depth won this game. They have more than any team in the country.
I can’t say it enough, This loss hurts like hell but Im so proud of these kids. They gave it everything all season. They make it so easy to support them. Just great great kids who represent our university and program extremely well.
I'm a lacrosse newbie but really enjoyed watching this year. Learned a lot.
My consolation, to ease the pain of the loss, is that I do not think we would get by Maryland - maybe I'm wrong .
So if we are going to lose, better to lose with a fight we just saw yesterday. That was a great match and people noticed - Rutgers is on the rise.
Felt the same about BB. We could have been in the final 4 but we would never beat Gonzaga or Baylor.
Our day is nearing. We finally have some competence in running athletics.
My consolation, to ease the pain of the loss, is that I do not think we would get by Maryland - maybe I'm wrong .
So if we are going to lose, better to lose with a fight we just saw yesterday. That was a great match and people noticed - Rutgers is on the rise.
Felt the same about BB. We could have been in the final 4 but we would never beat Gonzaga or Baylor.
Our day is nearing. We finally have some competence in running athletics.
I disagree. When you haven't made the NCAA tournament since I believe 1990, any tournament game you play is a positive. Then to take the #1 team into OT with the entire lax world watching you, you turn nonbelievers heads and make them think, "hmm the committee underrated Rutgers they're really good". Frustrating, yes, a total waste of time, no.
You are absolutely correct. Nothing good. Not good they made it to the final eight for the first time. Not good they had the #1 team on the ropes with the Final Four in sight. Not good they put up a fantastic effort against a really good team and put on an awesome defensive show. The only things that weren't good about yesterday's game were the brain fart turnovers in the 4th quarter the final score.
Congrats to the boys on an amazing season, thank you for leaving it all out there!!! I am a proud fan!
