💥 TOP-10 RIVALRY GAME

As far as non-conference clashes go, Virginia and Johns Hopkins have one of the most historic rivalries in all of college lacrosse. To the winner goes the coveted Doyle Smith Cup.

On Saturday, the Blue Jays will visit Klöckner Stadium for the 97th installment of this classic series. Since the first meeting in 1904, Hopkins holds a 61-34-1 advantage in head-to-head matchups with the Cavaliers.

Virginia, however, has claimed each of the past three meetings, including an 18-13 win at Homewood Stadium a year ago. In that game, Xander Dickson and Patrick McIntosh each scored six goals for the Hoos.

Heading into this year’s matchup, both squads rank among the top 10 teams in the country. Virginia moved up to No. 2 in The People’s Top 20 this week, while Hopkins currently sits at No. 6.

The Cavaliers (3-0) are undefeated on the season, and they’ve already defeated two Big Ten opponents (Michigan and Ohio State). The Jays (4-1) just took down an ACC opponent on the road in North Carolina and are now riding a four-game winning streak into Charlottesville.

This should be an epic matchup. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network starting at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday. For more weekend streaming information, scroll to the bottom of this newsletter.

🍊 Syracuse’s Overtime Problem

Through six games, the Syracuse Orange are 4-2. The only thing standing between them and a perfect 6-0 record right now is a pair of unlucky overtime finishes against quality opponents.

A couple weeks ago, we saw Syracuse fall to Maryland in overtime. In that game, the Orange had a potential game-winning goal wiped off the board by the controversial goal-mouth rule. Although the call was upheld by replay review, many Syracuse fans feel like the team was robbed of a win.

This week, Syracuse lost to Army in overtime. This time, the Orange missed an empty-net opportunity. The wide shot came off the stick of Christian Mulé, who seemingly could not miss in regulation.

A couple of Mulé’s highlight-reel goals are featured in this video:

Losing in overtime to Maryland and Army isn’t back-breaking for the Orange (both opponents are ranked squarely inside the top 10). But the toughest part of Syracuse’s schedule still lies ahead. This Saturday, they host High Point for their seventh consecutive home game. Then, they’re on the road for six of their last eight games of the season.

Can Syracuse come out on top in neutral-site matchups with Hopkins and Delaware? How will they look against Cornell in Ithaca? Will they be able to hang with the other top teams in the ACC?

There’s a lot that is still unknown about this 2024 Syracuse team.

🚩 PLL Adjusts Face-Off Rule

On Friday, the Premier Lacrosse League announced a change to its face-off rules. Starting in the 2024 season, players will no longer be allowed to use a long pole at the face-off stripe.

This rule change comes after multiple teams — primarily the Philadelphia Waterdogs and Boston Cannons — started using long poles at the face-off X to counter the league’s shortened shot clock after face-off wins last season. Both the Waterdogs and Cannons made the playoffs in 2023, despite ranking at the bottom of the league in face-off win percentage.

Other rule changes for the 2024 PLL season include adjusted/expanded replay review and an updated definition of “defenseless player.” You can read more about the new rules by clicking the button below.

🇯🇵 PLL, Unleashed Japan Rosters

We now know who will be representing the PLL and Unleashed All-Stars during their trip to Japan later this month. Here are the full rosters for both squads.

PLL All-Stars:
Rob Pannell
Matt Rambo
Xander Dickson
Justin Anderson
Ryan Ambler
Romar Dennis
Matt Campbell
Nakeie Montgomery
Will Perry
Mark Glicini
Ethan Rall
CJ Costabile
Jarrod Neumann
Arden Cohen
Max Wayne
Colin Kirst
Brendan Krebs
Mike Sisselberger

Unleashed All-Stars:
Lauren Gilbert
Sammy Jo Tracy
Andie Aldave
Lizzie Colson
Hannah Dorney
Marge Donovan
Paulina Di Fatta
Rachel Hall
Dempsey Arsenault
Ally Mastroianni
Maggie Bill
Scottie Rose Growney

This will be the PLL’s third trip to Japan. Check out our vlog from last year:

Both the PLL and Unleashed All-Stars will play exhibition games vs. Japan All-stars on March 20. For more information on the Japan trip, click the button below.

📺 Weekend TV & Streaming Info

NCAA streaming info courtesy of Inside Lacrosse (all times Eastern):

Friday, March 1:
3:30 p.m. — Cleveland State at Canisius (GoGriffs.com)
6 p.m. — Penn at Duke (ACCN)
8 p.m. — Princeton at North Carolina (ACCN)

Saturday, March 2:
11 a.m. — Dartmouth at Siena (Siena All-Access)
11 a.m. — Villanova at Lehigh (ESPN+)
11:30 a.m. — Mount St. Mary’s at Monmouth (FloSports)
12 p.m. — Marist at Bellarmine (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Binghamton at Richmond (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Brown at Georgetown (FloSports)
12 p.m. — Bryant at Manhattan (No Streaming Info)
12 p.m. — Holy Cross at Bucknell (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Loyola at Colgate (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Ohio State at Cornell (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Michigan at Delaware (FloSports)
12 p.m. — Detroit Mercy at VMI (No Streaming Info)
12 p.m. — Sacred Heart at Drexel (FloSports)
12 p.m. — Harvard at Vermont (AmericaEast.tv)
12 p.m. — St. John’s at Jacksonville (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — NJIT at Wagner (Wagner All-Access)
12 p.m. — Yale at Penn State (B1G+)
12 p.m. — UMBC at Towson (FloSports)
12 p.m. — Navy at Boston U (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Providence at Fairfield (Stags Sports Network)
1 p.m. — Hampton at Stony Brook (FloSports)
1 p.m. — Hofstra at Rutgers (B1G+)
1 p.m. — Johns Hopkins at Virginia (ACCN)
1 p.m. — Utah at Marquette (FloSports)
1 p.m. — Quinnipiac at Merrimack (AmericaEast.tv)
1 p.m. — Albany at UMass (ESPN+)
2 p.m. — Robert Morris at Hobart (hwsathletics.com)
2 p.m. — UMass Lowell at LIU (ESPN+)
5 p.m. — High Point at Syracuse (ACCNX)
9 p.m. — Le Moyne at Denver (Pioneer All-Access)

Sunday, March 3:
12 p.m. — Air Force at Saint Joseph’s (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Army at Lafayette (ESPN+)
12 p.m. — Princeton at Duke (ACCNX)
12 p.m. — Maryland at Notre Dame (ESPNU)
12 p.m. — Penn at North Carolina (ACCNX)