In the second game of its homestand, the Boston University men’s lacrosse team will host the United States Military Academy Saturday afternoon at Nickerson Field with postseason implications on the line.
The Terriers (8-3, 3-2 Patriot League) are coming off an 8-7 defeat to Lehigh University, while the Black Knights (7-3, 4-1 Patriot League) recently lost by the same scoreline to Bucknell University.
BU head coach Ryan Polley said Saturday’s affair should provide clarity for the upcoming Patriot League Tournament. Before that point, the Terriers have taken the same approach in practice, even though turnovers were the name of the game against Lehigh (6-4, 4-2 Patriot League).
“We’ve kind of had a similar practice plan for the last couple of weeks, so I don’t think we’ve typically changed too much,” the third-year head coach said. “… Nothing has really changed. We just have to be a little bit smarter, a little bit more focused and I think the turnovers will take care of themselves.”
Army’s a well-rounded team, Polley said, but its offense bears a prowess that must be reckoned with. It finds the back of the net 12.7 times a game, good for 12th in the country.
Much of that is thanks to attack Cole Johnson, who has tallied 50 points on 28 goals and 22 assists. His average of five points per game is tied for third overall in the country. His efforts are supplemented by the attack duo of Nate Jones and Connor Cook, who have combined for 47 points.
Polley cautioned that it will be important to limit Army’s attacks, much like efforts were previously concentrated on Lehigh attacks Tristan Rai and Reid Weber.
“They go as their attack goes, and we’ve put a lot of focus on limiting their strong opportunities,” Polley said. “The message isn’t any different, but they’re very prolific and we have to be on our game. That’s the first thing we’re concentrating on, just limiting their attack opportunities and that we’re solid from a defensive perspective.”
But Army isn’t just getting the job done on offense. It has the seventh-best scoring defense in the country, allowing just 7.30 goals per game and has held opponents to eight goals or fewer in eight of 10 contests. Accordingly, Polley knows his team will have to be efficient when opportunities arise.
“We’ve been focusing on having long possessions and taking what the defense gives us,” Polley said. “If we get a 30-second shot clock, then that’s okay. We’ll continue to grind out possessions and try and wear them down and make the shots and opportunities when they’re presented to us.”
BU’s conference foe is also solid in the cage. Freshman AJ Barretto has posted a .566 save percentage, a conference-topping number and one that ranks him ninth in the country. He was tabbed as the top-rated goalkeeper coming out of high school last year by Inside Lacrosse.
“He’s played in some big games and made some critical saves, and that’s the other factor to them being a great defensive team,” Polley said. “… He’s had a great freshman year, and he’s definitely a good one. We have to shoot smart, we have to shoot to open slots and execute our game plan.”
One final Black Knight strength is their prowess at the faceoff X. Terrier specialist and junior Sam Talkow ranks third nationally with a .698 win percentage, but Army occupies the fifth and sixth spots with senior Alex Daly, who sports a .674 percentage, and junior Dan Grabher, who’s winning at a .667 clip.
“They have great wing play and two great guys at the X, so that’s been one of our main focuses this week — just making sure we get great wing play,” Polley said, “because we think Talkow and [senior faceoff specialist] Elliott [Burr] are not going to be able to win the faceoffs as easily as other games.”
With these danger areas in mind, BU is set on gathering its ever-elusive fourth conference win, so far as the impending Patriot League Tournament isn’t even on its mind. Therefore, Polley said the Terriers are just concerned with their performance and letting the chips fall naturally.
“If we can win it, it would certainly help our chances with making the tournament, seeding, potentially hosting, all those good things,” Polley said. “But we can’t get worried or wrapped up with what happens away from Nickerson. We’re just going to really focus on this Army team and play a great game.”
Jonathan's a New Englander who writes about sports, features and politics. He currently covers men's hockey at BU, worked as Sports Editor during the spring 2016 semester and is on the FreeP's Board of Directors. Toss him a follow on Twitter at @jonathansigal.
