Mar 27, Monday — Montreat College’s (NC - NAIA) men’s head coach, Keith Lohmuller, tragically passed away earlier this month on March 17. That left a decision for his team and the administration — continue to play or cancel the remainder of the season? The team chose to continue and a week to the day following Lohmuller’s passing won its first game of the year, a 12-6 victory over St. Andrews University (NAIA).
Freshman goalie Jay Chance made 14 stops to help secure the victory and was named the AAC Defensive Player of the Week for the effort. Montreat will try to continue their inspired play and face regional DII foe Mars Hill (2-9) on the road on Wednesday evening.
*******
Scores:
Women’s DIII
Bridgewater College 18 - Randolph College 7 - Two Virginia teams from the DIII Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) opened conference play on Saturday, with Bridgewater prevailing 18-7 in Lynchburg. Bridgewater (5-4), located less than ten miles from DI power James Madison, led 9-2 after the opening quarter and outscored the Wildcats 9-7 over the remaining three. Senior Madeline Magill registered a hat trick and now has 15 tallies on the season. The Eagles face ODAC neighborhood rival Eastern Mennonite on Tuesday.
Randolph (4-4) lacked bench depth and played with an even dozen players. The Wildcats are led by head coach Bernadette Connor. Connor played her undergraduate lacrosse at perennial DIII power, TCNJ, and to appearances with a deeper roster, Randolph looks like a team that can compete well. For those interested in Randolph College lacrosse, their recruiting form is here.
Middlebury 13 Bates 2 — The defending DIII national champs extended a win streak dating back to 2022 to 13 games. The Panthers face a stiff test in #5 Tufts on Saturday. The Jumbos enter the contest 5-1 on the season.
IWLCA Rankings as of March 27:
DI - 1) Syracuse (11-0) 2) Northwestern (10-1) 3) North Carolina (9-1)
DII - 1) West Chester (8-0) 2) Pace (6-1) 3) Regis (CO) (7-0)
DIII - 1) Middlebury (8-0) 2) Washington & Lee (8-1) 3) TCNJ (7-1)