In the end, the game that matched the top two Ivy League men’s lacrosse teams was hardly a contest at all.
Nationally ranked No. 2 Princeton traveled to Ithaca, N.Y., Saturday and easily defeated No. 9 Cornell, breaking the tie for first place in the Ancient Eight. The Big Red fell to the Ivy’s second slot, closely trailed by Dartmouth, who nabbed a win over Brown on Saturday. Meanwhile, the league’s lower-tier teams struggled against nonleague competition throughout the week.
Princeton 17, Cornell 9
At Cornell’s Schoellkopf Field, the week’s premier Ivy League match offered little excitement. The Tigers (8-2, 4-0 Ivy) continued to tear through the league, posting their eighth straight win.
All-American Ryan Boyle notched seven assists, six of them passes to linemate Jason Doneger. In an 8:28 span, Doneger scored five consecutive goals that put the game out of reach for the Big Red (7-4, 4-1).
Toward the game’s end, Princeton held an 11-goal lead. Princeton now has defeated Cornell eight straight times, and a Tiger win against Dartmouth next week will clinch Princeton a share of the Ivy League title.
Dartmouth 14, Brown 10
The Big Green (9-2, 3-1) continued to gather momentum Saturday, defeating Brown (3-8, 1-3) in Hanover, N.H., setting the stage for the April 26 showdown at Princeton.
Brandon Wright scored a hat trick for Dartmouth, and five other players scored two goals each. Before the Bears scored their first goal in the second quarter, Dartmouth already had built a 6-0 lead. Goalie Andrew Goldstein anchored the Big Green defense with 14 saves.
The Big Green travel to Princeton Saturday with hopes of spoiling the Tigers’ chance to seal the Ivy League championship.
Massachusetts 11, Harvard 6
Hosting the nation’s No. 6 team April 16, Harvard (4-8, 1-4) was unable to hold off ECAC powerhouse University of Massachusetts.
A slow first half ended with a 4-3 lead for the Minutemen. Through the second half, Massachusetts gradually extended its lead.
Kevin Leveille helped the Minuteman effort, scoring two goals late in the third quarter. He finished with four goals for the day, and teammate Chris Fiore added a hat trick to account for a majority of Massachusetts’ scoring.
Sean Kane scored two goals from Harvard, which remained in the Ivy League cellar at week’s end, tied with Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania 15, Lehigh 11
Three players combined for 13 Quaker goals as Penn (5-7, 1-4) defeated Patriot League opponent Lehigh April 15.
After the teams scored two goals apiece early, the Quakers erupted for six straight scores. By the fourth quarter, Penn had opened a 15-6 lead.
Zandy Reich, who scored six goals, and Will Phillips, who netted four, led the way for Penn. With his first career hat trick, Penn’s Greg Voigt added to the scoring.
Villanova 8, Pennsylvania 7
Four days after the win at Lehigh, Penn relinquished a four-goal lead in the fourth quarter and lost a heartbreaker at Villanova.
Aided by a Phillips hat trick, the Quakers built a 7-3 lead after three periods Saturday.
But the Wildcats came alive in the final frame with pairs of goals from Matt Lucas and Brendan O’Donnell, taking a late lead. When Villanova was called for a penalty with 47 seconds remaining, Penn played with a man advantage but was unable to find the back of the net.