Comparing late season lacrosse polls is a lot of fun! ALL of the teams have tons of data and results to pour through, and everyone thinks they know how teams truly stand. Do they? Do I? Let’s compare some lacrosse polls, and see where people agree… more importantly, we will see where people DON’T agree!
First I’ll run through MY picks for each spot in the Top 20, then I’ll show you where these teams ended up in OTHER people’s polls (LaxPower, Media Poll, Coaches Poll, LM Poll – I’ll add the Coaches Poll in when the lazy USILA publishes their Top 20! Kidding about the lazy part, but I will add it in later when it goes up.) Let’s get after it!
Comparing Late Season Lacrosse Polls
1) Syracuse – After the weekend Cuse had, you’d be crazy to put them anywhere but at #1. I had Cuse as my #1 team more often than any other voter in the nation, and it feels good to know I was right!
Laxpower: Syracuse Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Syracuse Media Poll: Syracuse
2) Denver – With all of the ACC teams beating up on each other in their tourney, it only seemed fair to reward Denver with a big climb in the polls. They’ve been sitting behind ND, UNC, and Maryland for a while. It’s time for the Pioneers to shine!
Laxpower: Notre Dame Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Notre Dame Media Poll: Notre Dame
3) Duke – A big win over previous #1 ND and a one goal game with Cuse gives me all the confidence I need to move Duke into my Top 3 teams. Did I not say Duke in late April would be VERY different from Duke earlier in the season? I did. This is what Duke does. Remember that!
Laxpower: Denver Coaches Poll: LM Poll: UNC Media Poll: Denver
4) Notre Dame – The difference betwen #1 and #5 is very small. The only thing smaller is the difference between #1 and #4! ND is a top level team, capable of winning it all, but for me, they sit at #4 now with that Duke loss in the ACC semifinals.
Laxpower: UNC Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Denver Media Poll: UNC
5) North Carolina – Again, we have another team that could contend for a national title, but that sits outside of the top 3 teams. In 2015, this is not bizarre at all. 2015 is contender city, and the list goes as low as the #7 or 8 team in the country. UNC is very much still in the hunt.
Laxpower: Duke Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Duke Media Poll: Duke
6) Maryland – The Terps have been playing a lot of close lacrosse lately, and while I loved the wins, the loss to Hop shook my confidence in the Terps a little bit. I only say a little bit because that was an absolute MUST-WIN game for Hop, whereas it was not for Maryland, who is going to the NCAAs no matter what. Now, what will the Terps do in the tourney? That’s a bigger question!
Laxpower: Maryland Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Maryland Media Poll: Maryland
7) Albany – The Danes play a weaker schedule and this makes them harder to judge. They also can explode for points, and can hang with anyone, but I question if they can win multiple Top 20 games in consecutive fashion, but that is only because they haven’t had to… yet. Will Lyle make his senior year truly special with a deep NCAA run? I’d say probably!
Laxpower: Albany Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Virginia Media Poll: Albany
8) Virginia – I’m still struggling to understand how a Top 10 team doesn’t make their conference tournament. I get it, the ACC is legit, but still, that seems straight up crazy to me! Don’t sleep on Virginia!
Laxpower: Cornell Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Albany Media Poll: Virginia
9) Brown – Brown is a little up and down this year, but they’re more up than down, and they just beat Cornell by 4, and a couple other teams by more. A tighter, low-scoring game with Bryant impresses as well, as that was a game Brown typically would have lost (low scoring, possession heavy, slow). Brown has the ability to score lots of goals, and that makes them a real threat.
Laxpower: Virginia Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Brown Media Poll: Brown
10) Cornell – I wish I could just rank all the Ivy teams I like at #10 and be done with it, because I have no idea how this league will actually play out. Brown, Cornell, Yale, and Princeton all seem to have the pieces required to be the top dog, and Harvard and Penn are loaded with talent. How do grade these teams? It’s almost impossible, just know they are all good, and all sit somewhere between #5 and #15.
Laxpower: Brown Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Cornell Media Poll: Cornell
11) Yale – See above comment! Yale controls games, plays smart lacrosse, and can win the big one. Now, can they do it when it counts?
Laxpower: Yale Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Yale Media Poll: Yale
12) Georgetown – The Hoyas are beating the teams they are supposed to as a #12 team, and losing to teams ranked above them. This is a good spot for the Gtown program, which is clearly on the rise!
Laxpower: Army Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Georgetown Media Poll: Georgetown
13) Princeton – I like Yale, Brown, and Cornell over Princeton, but by the slimmest of margins. When the Tigers are playing team ball, I like them as much as anyone. This is not a team of stars, but it is a very dangerous team, especially in the Ivy.
Laxpower: Hopkins Coaches Poll: LM Poll: OSU Media Poll: Colgate
14) Marquette – Losing 3 of your last 4 games is not ideal, and losing each games by 7 goals isn’t great either. But then you realize that this a young program, and that those 3 losses were to Denver, Duke, and Notre Dame. Their upcoming game with Georgetown should be killer!
Laxpower: Colgate Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Colgate Media Poll: Ohio State
15) Ohio State – Okay, OSU, I’ll keep you in the Top 20, but I’m not 100% sure why. The loss to Rutgers REALLY concerns me, but that win over Denver gives me hope still. Do work against Maryland next weekend or something bad could happen, like dropping out of the Top 20 altogether.
Laxpower: Loyola Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Marquette Media Poll: Princeton
16) Colgate – Each time I watch Colgate play I like them a little bit more. Great goaltending, some impact scorers, and a team that loves playing lacrosse; this is what I see from Colgate, and I like it. Colgate plays Cuse next weekend, and both teams are dancing already, so expect an awesome Upstate battle. Do whatever you can to watch this one, even though conference playoffs will be raging!
Laxpower: Georgetown Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Hopkins Media Poll: Stony Brook
17) Stony Brook – The SeaWolves are just barely pulling out wins, and it’s making me nervous. I’m starting to really doubt their Top 20 viability.
Laxpower: Princeton Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Princeton Media Poll: Hopkins
18) Towson – I could probably drop Towson out of my Top 20 and no one would complain (except maybe Towson), but I’m keeping them in it, and I think they will rebound in the Colonial. They need to! You can’t lose to Hofstra 9-2. You just can’t.
Laxpower: Ohio State Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Fairfield Media Poll: Army
19) Army – Army made it back to the Patriot League finals, where they lost to Colgate. I still like Army, but I’m a little disappointed in their season to be totally honest. To me, this team had the makings of a special group, but it never quite came together in the right way. Or at least it hasn’t yet. Notre Dame is still on the slate, and you know the Irish will bring their A-game to that one. If Army can win, they’ll prove me wrong instantly.
Laxpower: Richmond Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Army Media Poll: Marquette
20) Navy – Unlike Army, I wasn’t enthralled with Navy early on, but they have definitely won me over to some degree. One game left with Air Force. Win big and make me look good for giving you the 20 spot this week!
Laxpower: Stony Brook Coaches Poll: LM Poll: Stony Brook Media Poll: Richmond
