US Lacrosse College Notebook May 2, 2003 Selection Sunday  Always the most anticipated day of the college lacrosse season, "Selection Sunday" is upon us following a final weekend's worth of games that features some interesting matchups to close the regular season. Fields for the NCAA men's Divisions II and III tournaments and the NCAA women's Divisions I, II and III tournaments will be announced at 7 p.m. EDT Sunday via the Internet at www.ncaasports.com. The NCAA men's Division I selection show will follow at 8 p.m. on ESPNEWS. While the announcement of the championship contenders may not cause the nation to flood lacrosse media web sites to print out brackets for office pools, the drama is intense enough for teams to gather together to watch the selection show. Often times, local media will also assemble to film footage of the team's reaction, usually elation or shock. The UMass men's team will gather in the Boyden Building on campus to watch the show. The Minutemen, ranked third by the USILA at 12-1 overall, are virtually assured of a berth in the NCAA tournament, but they can lock one up for sure by beating upstart Rutgers Saturday for the ECAC Lacrosse League championship and accompanying automatic bid. Given the Minutemen's experience two years ago, being left out despite a 12-2 mark, they would just as soon win their conference rather than wait for the NCAA's decision for it. The Maryland/D.C. area will play host to some key games this weekend, one featuring another ECAC team in Georgetown. The 10-2 Hoyas stand at No. 5 after Monday's loss at No. 4 Maryland. While Georgetown could claim the ECAC title if Rutgers beats UMass, the more interesting storyline is its opponent, 10th-ranked Syracuse. The Orangemen are 7-5 and face losing their sixth game in a season for the first time since 1977. Last year, when only 12 teams were invited to the NCAA tournament, Syracuse's bubble likely would have burst. But with 16 teams comprising field, the Orangmen are likely in even with an unlikely loss to a Hoya team they've beaten eight of 10 times. Syracuse has two major pluses: it beat top-ranked Johns Hopkins earlier this year, and its fans travel better than those of any lacrosse school in the nation. Orangemen fans took over Rutgers Stadium in last year's championship game, and a Syrcause berth in the final four significantly increases the likelihood that attendance records will fall at Ravens Stadium. On Maryland's Eastern Shore, longtime Division III rivals Washington College and Salisbury will meet for their annual rivalry game. About as intense as a rivalry gets, both teams have already locked up NCAA tournament bids by winning the Centennial and Capital Athletic conferences, respectively. Don't look for a drop in intensity, however, as the schools are meeting for the 34th time. The Shoremen lead the overall series 19-14, but the Sea Gulls have won 10 of the last 12 regular season matchups. Faceoff at Kibler Field in Chestertown is 1:30 p.m. On the women's side, Saturday will feature a Division I showdown in College Park between top-ranked Loyola (14-1) and No. 2 Maryland (16-2). Both teams are coming off surprising losses this week. Tuesday, the Greyhounds gave up three goals to Virginia in the final two minutes of play to lose 10-9 at home before more than 1,200 fans. Wednesday saw the Terps, one of the highest scoring teams in the nation, held to just six markers in a 13-6 drubbing at the hands of defending national champion Princeton. Both teams will try to rebound and improve on their seedings for the upcoming NCAA tournament. Last year, Loyola won the teams' regular season matchup, but Maryland knocked the 'Hounds out of the NCAAs. The teams will draw at 1 p.m. US Lacrosse College Notebook is a weekly feature on the US Lacrosse web site. For information about supporting the sport through membership in US Lacrosse, visit our membership page.

The Games • Laxpower Scoreboard • Laxpower Game Calendar The Polls • IWLCA (Women's) • USILA (Men's) • US Lacrosse MDIA • US Lacrosse WDIA • Lacrosse Magazine 2003 Preseason Rankings Previous Notebooks • April 25, 2003 • April 18, 2003 • April 4, 2003 • March 28, 2003 • March 21, 2003 • March 14, 2003 • March 7, 2003 • Feb. 28, 2003 • Feb. 21, 2003 • Feb. 14, 2003