CU - Va Lax

We're up 5-4 at the half.

Cornell doing a great job dictating the tempo of the game.

Faceoff struggles in the 3rd. Tied 7-7 going to the 4th.

Faceoff's killed us that period and in the game so far. Frustrating to see the other team get possession after possession....

Big Red in some trouble now. Down 9-7, 9:58 to go. Fiore doesn't appear to save much over his left shoulder.

Stoned 3 times today at point blank range.

Virginia leads 11-8, 2:43 to go.

Virginia wins 11-9.

At least it was a closer game than last year, when Virginia destroyed us at Schoellkopf.

I am certainly no lax expert and only saw the 2nd half
But there was some encouraging play there and I think plenty of potential there
(which is a CU coaching staff strength in developing)

obviously way too many EMOs for UVA in the 3rd period and major issues at the X

The challenge is going to be, looking at a stiff Ivy League schedule and SU and Stonybrook as the remaining non-conference teams
even with peaking later in the season they might not make the tournament without the league autobid or upsetting both non-conf teams (unlikely)

Still hard to know what to think about this team. The three wins were against lesser teams with the kind of ease you would want. Both times Cornell played a top squad (and I'm not even sure how "top" Army is) they've lost a competitive game. In both losses, Cornell was stoned by some great goalie play, but is that because the goalies were spectactular or because the Big Red's shots were too easily stopped? Wahoo fans are claiming the game was close because they played terribly; is that true or did Cornell's defense make them look bad? I wish I knew enough about lax to know the answers to these questions. I welcome thoughts from someone who does know the game.

Saturday's (March 12) 11-9 loss to #2 Virginia should leave most Cornell fans feeling a lot better about the team than last Saturday's (March 5) 11-9 loss to then #19 Army even if we suffered the same second-half fade. The Virginia game showed we can play with any team in the country this year. (Hope we can say that after we play Syracuse.) It's also another year where I'd feel better about Cornell's tournament chances if quality losses counted as well as quality wins. Here's what I saw at at the same M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore as our disappointing loss to Notre Dame here last year in the NCAA semifinals.

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It was a different AJ Fiore this week. 11 goals allowed last week at Army, only 4 saves. 11 goals allowed this week, 10 saves against the nation's #2 team.


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The game was officiated by leprechauns and the nets were green (and also failed in the first period if you saw the needed repairs on TV).


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The defense was worlds improved with what we learned from Army plus LSM Max Feely (center of photo) back after being out against Army. The Cornell D shut down Virginia's leading scorer, Steele Stanwick. (Is that a porn-star name or what?) Cornell's defense, especially into the midway point of the third period, along with team hustle, and no first-half penalties helped Cornell, not Virginia, control the pace of the game. Of course, there was the rest of the third period and the fourth. Notice that yellow flag (against Cornell) that was to be part of our undoing: six second half penalties.


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Rob Pannell was sensational, again, with 4 goals Saturday. He got Cornell's first 2 goals while Virgnia's studs were held in check. Once Virginia opened a 2-goal lead in the fourth, Pannell's final goal (here) brought Cornell back to a manageable 9-8 deficit with 9:07 to play. Even if it felt Virginia was playing better in the second half.


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Here's where it fell apart with about 5 minutes to play: A side to side clearing pass from a long stick flew over the head of Tom Trasolini (the ball is between the TV camera and Cornell photographer Heather Nichols). We were 22x24 on clears but this was a terrible time to mess up. This is where we also failed to convert on our only second-half extra-man advantage. Cornell drew 6 penalties in the second half that led to to 2 Virginia goals.


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Virginia went up 11-8 with 2:43 to play. Roy Lang here scooped the faceoff, legged it into the Virginia end, and scored. That gave Cornell one last improbable opportunity to score 2 more in 2:28. Except that Virginia did a good job of ball control in the final moments and Cornell couldn't convert.


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This David Lau shot in the final 2 minutes would have made it 11-10 and a chance to score again since we were winning most of the 4th Q faceoffs (6x7). It went high.


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Rob Pannell passes off in the closing 2 minutes. For all his skill as a feeder, Cornell has not been able to take advantage of Pannell's passes in the big games. The timing hasn't clicked, or defenders clogged the middle. Here are Pannell's stats:

 4 goals 15 assists  -- 19 points vs. unranked Hobart, Binghamton, Canisus 
 9 goals  0 assists  --  9 points vs. Top 20 Army and Virginia
13 goals 15 assists  -- 28 points total

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Imagine the excitement if Lau had scored. This would have been the game's final play: Pannell (previous photo) to Lau to Steve Mock (6) for the tying score. Instead, the ball rattled around on the turf and we couldn't get the last shot off. End of game.


There's still a long road to the NCAA tournament. If we make the tournament and if we do well, the Virginia game means everyone on the team has now played at least once in M&T Bank stadium, site of this year's as well as last year's lax final four. One question we need to answer: Do we have the depth to play all four quarters with the nation's best teams? That was our undoing against Syracuse in the NCAA title game when the starters were running on fumes in the closing minutes.

Great photos, as always, Bill!

Didn't watch the game, but saw the UVA behind the back goal as the #2 play on ESPN's Top Plays. The Princeton buzzer beater was #1.

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Cornell tried behind-the-back shots in the games I went to but I believe without success and for sure not making the ESPN highlights reel. (But then the media recalls the NY Times Sport magazine article 4 years on how the Bratton twins with their unheard-of-for-lax athleticsm would revolutionize the sport, and here's proof in their senior year). Roy Lang here tried it against Army late in the game. And I recall we did it against Virginia, again without scoring. Can't recall who took the shot.