M. Lacrosse Goes Eagle Hunting at Ohiri Today

After a heart-wrenching 7-6 loss to Hobart on Sunday, the Harvard men's lacrosse team looks to bounce back today against Boston College at Ohiri Field at 3:30 p.m.

Harvard (0-2) was originally scheduled to play the Eagles March 13, under the bubble over B.C.'s Alumni Field Astroturf, but melting snow led to a cancellation. Efforts to move the game elsewhere also failed.

The make-up game features the Crimson on its own open-air grass field across the Charles, a welcome change from B.C.'s stuffy, acoustically-impaired dome.

"We've been practicing on the grass for a while and we're comfortable on it," junior midfielder Adam McGowan said. "The grass is also a lot more forgiving. A lost pass on the turf is a turnover; a lost pass on the grass doesn't always run as much."

McGowan also stressed that as Harvard has become crisper in its passing and its clearing, the change of fields will not have a large affect on how the Crimson plays.

"Against Fairfield the turf hurt us a lot, but we've worked on what we did wrong in that game and we would have been ready to go on either field [against B.C.]," McGowan said.

Junior attackman Lawson DeVries agreed that the change of field does not weigh heavily in Harvard's plans for the game.

"Of course we always prefer playing on the home field," DeVries said, "but what counts is that we come out ready to play."

Against Hobart, the Crimson played impressively for long stretches in the second and third quarters, but lost momentum in the fourth period and conceded a late goal that sealed the Statesmen win.

Although Harvard ended up with another mark in the loss column, the Crimson showed improvement, especially considering its 13-5 loss to Fairfield in the season opener.

One of the most positive signs for the Crimson was the strength of the team's newcomers.

Freshman Colin Leary and Mike Baly both played on the second midfield line. Leary recorded his first collegiate point with an assist in the third period.

Freshman Mike Meagher proved to be a strong performer at the other end of the field. Starting for the first time in his career, he exhibited poise on the crease and was a solid physical presence in the game.

The freshmen should see continued time in today's game.

The freshmen played really well, and I don't think we will be changing any of the lines around for B.C.," DeVries said. "The point of playing them is to keep them in there and get them some experience. The more they play, the more they will contribute."

Sophomore attackman Dana Sprong and junior midfielder Geoff Watson continued to be integral parts of the offense. Sprong and Watson both netted three goals each, and Watson added a pair of assists.

The added scoring threat ought to take some pressure off of the rest of the offense, especially DeVries.

The junior was Harvard's fourth leading scorer last season but has only one point so far. DeVries has drawn the opposition's top defenseman in both games this season.

"I might draw individual pressure this season, but I am going to have to deal with that on my own," DeVries said. "Some games I'll get my shots, some games I won't. I just have to keep looking."

DeVries may see a lot of shots today--he found the net four times against B.C. his freshman year.

Sunday's game also saw Harvard dominate Hobart 12-5 in face-offs, thanks in part to the strong play of McGowan.

Receiving considerable time last season in the face-off role, McGowan took on the job for the Crimson's first line this season.

Although he was quiet in the game against Fairfield, McGowan dominated the opposing center midfielders against Hobart, losing few face-offs in the dirt of Ohiri Field.

"In moving up to the first line, I took on a lot more responsibility and I couldn't focus on the face-offs as much as I wanted to early in the season," McGowan said.

"For Hobart I prepared mentally. A lot of my technique focuses on rhythm and repetition and I really had to focus before I could get into a groove," he said.

The Crimson also got great success from an offensive set-up in which it inverted its midfielders, placing them behind the cage, and moving the attackmen in front of the goal mouth.

The move confused Hobart's defense and lead to a great deal of motion in the offensive sets. The inversion was one of the primary factors to the strong second period in which the Crimson out shot its opponent 12-5.

In the two days since the game, the Crimson has looked to build on the Hobart performance. First among the concerns of this year's team has been clearing the ball into the offensive zone.

"Clearing has always been a strong point of the Harvard game," McGowan said. "In the past couple of days we have worked on improving the fluidity in our clears and moving the ball in transition."

With the Crimson looking much improved in all areas of its game, the B.C match is a perfect chance to record its first win.

The Eagles are returning fourteen starters, but lost their top scorer from last season, Kevin McLane. The outstanding attackman scored 40 goals and 14 assists in his senior season with the Eagles.

In early action this season, the Eagles lost 19-3 to No.18 Townson State.