Playing in the NESCAC semifinals and finals on consecutive days, the men’s lacrosse team had a grueling weekend in Medford, Mass. where Tufts University hosted the conference tournament. On Saturday, the team faced Williams College and shut out the Ephs 8-0, the first shutout in NESCAC Tournament history. The following day the Cards met with familiar foe Middlebury, whom they’ve played in the NESCAC Championship in each of the last four years, and fell to the Panthers 11-6.

Tufts’s 8-1 conference record earned it the right to host the tournament, as it held the tie-breaker over Wesleyan, who also finished the season 8-1. The tournament has been hosted exclusively at Middlebury since the inception of NESCAC play in 2002.

Saturday afternoon, the Wes laxers demolished a timid Williams team that often appeared hesitant to shoot on goalie Charlie Congleton ’07. The Wesleyan defense shined during the scoreless first period. The Cards’ signature zone D worked like a well-greased machine with each defender roaming his area, constantly watching the crease, and providing constant help on dodging opponents. The Williams’ attackmen and midfielders looked bewildered by the defensive wizardry.

The Cards’ offense took the first period to feel out their opponent and then, like a smart boxer in the middle rounds, knocked Williams out with a flurry of scores. Russ Follansbee ’09 found the back of the net on a dodge from behind the goal early in the second quarter. 30 seconds later, defenseman Spike Malangone ’09 went the length of the field and fed attacker Jason Ben-Eliyahu ’09 a precision pass, which he blasted past the Williams keeper to increase the lead to 2-0. Flagged for holding and a cross-check in the early minutes of the third quarter, Williams went man-down and allowed senior midfielder Mike Hines ’07 to do what he does best: stand, shoot, and rip lefty rope. On both penalties, the Cards scored thanks to Hines’ rockets from the top-left of the box. Ben-Eliyahu and Chris Jasinski ’08 assisted Hines on his goals.

Heading into the fourth quarter with a four-goal lead, the Cards continued their onslaught. Hines capped his game-high three-point outing with an assist to a cutting Jon Killeen ’10. 45 seconds later, Bobby Goulding ’08 picked up a loose ball at midfield and blew past three Williams defenders to find Grayson Connors ’08 alone on the doorstep to give the Cards a 6-0 lead.

Late in the game, Follansbee was knocked down while dodging and didn’t immediately get up. He left the game and was later diagnosed with a bruised liver. He would not be available for Sunday’s game. Connors would score again on a rebound from an attempted shot by defensive midfielder Kwasi Ansu ’09. With a few minutes to go, coach John Raba began to sub his starters and fan-favorite attackman Jeff Strittmatter ’09 gave Wesleyan an extra insurance goal on an unassisted dodging shot from the left side.

While the offense clicked for three quarters, the story of the game was the defense. Congleton, Malangone, Zach Librizzi ’08, Matt Burke ’07, Tom Bendon ’07, and Peter Harris ’07, along with stout defensive midfielders Ansu and Jeff McLaren ’06 worked together for the first shut-out in NESCAC Tournament history. The frustrated Williams offense could not get a single clean look at the cage. Their attempts at dodging were simply turned back by superior athleticism and the smothering help defense provided by the Cardinal zone defense. With long sticks held in the passing lanes, the defense blocked any looks Williams may have had to players cutting through the middle. Congleton had six saves and picked up five loose balls, while Malangone and Bendon each scooped up five groundballs of their own. The telling statistic of the supreme defensive effort was Williams’s shot total. The Ephs managed only thirteen shots in four quarters of play. Such a low total is almost unheard of in modern day lacrosse, especially in the NESCAC, and makes a strong case for the Cardinal defense’s reputation as one of the best in the country.

The domination on Saturday, however, was followed by disappointment on Sunday. Hyped as the perennial meeting of two of Division III’s premier teams, many thought Wesleyan would finally knock the Panthers from their previously unshakeable perch atop the NESCAC. Though the Cards beat Middlebury earlier this year and during the regular season in 2006, no one had taken down the Panthers in the post-season since 2002. A roaring crowd of over 1,000 fans showed up on Sunday. The winner of the NESCAC Tournament gets bragging rights and their name etched on the conference trophy, but also an even bigger prize: an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and a chance at a national title.

In the first quarter, scoring started early. Middlebury drew first blood but Hines retaliated with his 22nd goal of the season, evening the score at 1-1. For the next 20 minutes the teams traded goals. After two Middlebury scores, Jasinski found Connors for a score and, a few seconds later, midfielder Alex Kaufman ’08 found Strittmatter who locked the score at three all.

Strittmatter, filling in for the injured Follansbee, was effective controlling the ball behind the net and getting a step on the man covering him. A slashing penalty on Middlebury with two minutes left in the half gave Wesleyan a chance to take the lead. Just before the penalty was released, Hines wound up and found an open Connors who put away his 25th goal of the season, giving the Cards a 4-3 advantage.

Wesleyan’s lead was suddenly snatched away in the waning seconds of the half. With 30 seconds left, Middlebury attackman Jim Cabrera found Skyler Hopkins for a quick goal. 20 seconds later, as the final seconds ticked off the clock, Hopkins netted another score, giving Middlebury a 5-3 lead and swinging the momentum in the Panthers’ favor heading into halftime. Three unanswered goals by Middlebury in the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth put the Cards on the wrong end of an 8-3 score. With 5:43 to play, Ansu took a pass from Killeen and put a shot past Middlebury goalie Alex Palmisano. Three more goals from Middlebury put the game out of reach, and a late, man-down goal by Killeen proved too little, too late.

The Middlebury bench stormed the field as the Cards hung their heads in defeat. The Panthers now have a six-game win streak in NESCAC Championship. The Cards fought hard, but a late, steam-rolling hit by Kwasi Ansu on a Panther attackman resulted in an unnecessary roughness penalty, and represented the Cards frustration falling to Middlebury for the fourt consecutive year.

The season has not ended for the Cards, though. Late Sunday night, during the NCAA selection show, the Cards were rewarded for their excellent regular season and final record of 16-2 with the number two seed in the NCAA Northern Region and a May 16th match-up with the winner of the Mount Ida–Middlebury game earlier in the week. As Mount Ida is a up-start team, the Cards will likely face the Panthers for an unprecedented third time this season. No doubt Coach Raba will have his players ready for the Panthers and hopefully the overwhelming success of its season thus far will carry the team to M&T Bank Stadium on May 27 for the national championship game.