This is the biggest college lacrosse upset of the year so far, and while there have been some shocking results, in my opinion, this one is by far and away the most surprising. We got some inside info on how Bates took down #1 Tufts 12-8 in NCAA D3 action earlier this week, and we’re excited to talk about this game more as it really is the biggest college lacrosse upset of the year!
Coach Lasagna from Bates was kind enough to answer my questions even though he really wanted to be focusing solely on Middlebury, whom Bates plays this weekend. We appreciate his time, so here are some quick thoughts on the game from Coach Lasagna!
When I asked him about how Bates beat Tufts, he really focused on the strength of the league (the NESCAC), and how this made for many interesting results. He pointed to Tufts beating Conn by 1, and playing Colby tight, but also to Tufts’ dominance over Williams, a top 10 team at the time. The below is an absolute NESCAC gem from Coach Lasagna, and has been a common held belief for years within NESCAC circles:
In this league, it is mostly who wins the race to 10, who wins the game.
That was pretty much true in my day too… 15 years ago.
When I asked Coach Lasagna about unsung heroes in this game, he had plenty to say!
“Our entire defense. Goalie Joe Faria made critical saves to keep Tufts from going on their normal 7 goal runs against us. Stefano Stadlinger ’16 started his first game and did a solid job on John Uppgren. Sam Francis ’17 battled their FO people tough – and came up with key possessions for us. Our D mids allowed us to not to slide crazily. LSMs, Ken O’Friel, Connor Cerniglia, Charlie Gravina stayed in plays, and at the very least limited Tufts enough for us to get settled.”
I also asked Coach Lasagna what good can come from a win like this… but I was also curious to know if he was wary of any negatives that could arise from a huge upset win as well. His answers were definitely interesting, and sounded pretty good to me:
“Positives – This keeps our people believing in what they are doing. On the road wins vs Bowdoin, Conn, and then Tuesday night… Our team grew up a lot last week.
Negatives- Anything that distracts you from practicing as hard as you can and staying humble, hungry.”
When I asked him if this made Tufts more or less dangerous, I’m pretty sure he had to stifle a laugh, because he was that positive that it made them a MUCH more dangerous team:
Look at their track record. Nobody in our sport plays better after disappointment. Without exception, they answer with their best performances.
So… basically look out for Tufts the rest of the way, but especially this weekend against Hamilton on Saturday!
Congrats to Bates on a HUGE win over Tufts this week. The Bobcats now have a solid 7-4 record heading into the home stretch, and seem well positioned to make a run in the NESCAC playoffs.
If you’re interested in reading more about this game, check out the recap on Lacrosse Magazine.
