Welcome to On the Run. Here's what happened in college lacrosse this weekend, plus some little things that I loved. Quick and easy to read while you're on the run!

 ⚔️ THE HEADLINER: DOWN GOES #1

The storyline that stole the show this weekend.

Another week, another #1 ranked team losing as Boston University took down Army on Friday evening.

The result isn't a huge shock and it's not because Army isn't a top team; they certainly are. But it's more so that this Boston University team is also very good and experienced. They have a terrific group of graduate students. Offensively, Louis Perfetto, Vince D'Alto, and Jake Cates are dynamic playmakers while Roy Meyer and Patrick Morrison create a disruptive core down low. Junior midfielder Tommy Bourque had his best game of the season with a hat-trick after shooting 16% to start the season. Add in strong goalie play from junior Will Barnes, and this Terrier team could make a run in the tournament.

For Army, this definitely hurts their opportunity to receive an at large bid in the NCAA tournament, but I've always thought of the Patriot League as a one-bid league with only the winner getting in. They do need to figure some things out to make a deep run as many predict. Offensively, they need contributions from guys other than their top 6 guys and defensively, they need goalie Matt Chess to be more consistent, but he's shown flashes of being a great goalie.

The #1 seed in the Patriot League will host the conference championship game, so we will more than likely see a rematch on Sunday, May 5. These are the two best teams in the league, and I expect both to win out in league play, and meet in the finals.

❗OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS

What else happened?

1. justin tiernan goal counter: 37 (including the game-winner)

Michigan took down Maryland in what looked like a (very) cold game. More importantly, Tiernan needs 23 more goals to hit 60 on the season, one of my boldest predictions of the season.

2. high point beats north carolina on crazy goal

Crazy.

3. snowstorms!

A big storm brought snowy conditions to the east coast, which made for some interesting games.

4. pll draft big board

Not exactly related to this weekend, but I thought Paul Carcaterra's Big Board was very accurate. Stay tuned for more draft content.

🆒 THINGS THAT HAPPENED 

From a nifty substitution to a highlight-reel goal and everything in between. Here are the little things that maybe weren't the star of the weekend, but things I still enjoyed.

1. havard's miles botkiss with the twister

Pretty finish!

2. maryland's Daniel maltz = highlight machine

Some of the best hands in college lacrosse on display with this difficult catch and finish.

Then later in the game, he handles in traffic and has the awareness to hit Ryan Siracusa (who is also playing really good lacrosse right now) for the go-ahead tally.

3. teddy malone = tj malone

I love Teddy Malone's game, and he has some distinct similarities to his brother and Penn State star TJ Malone. They are both very, very two-handed and are both straight-line dodgers. 

Harvard is a good lacrosse school, but I feel like if Teddy went to an ACC or Big Ten school, he would garner more recognition than he does currently, because he's a terrific player.

4. princeton's nate kabiri no look goal

The no-look, turn the corner shot has become Nate Kabiri's 'signature' move. He's done it in high school, and now throughout his first year with the Tigers, has been scoring it multiple times. 

Here's this past weekend against Harvard.

He did it against Maryland earlier in the season.

And even one of his first goals in his college career, a scrimmage against Notre Dame, was the same no-look goal.

It's clear Kabiri has practiced this shot over and over, and I wonder if we will start to see other players try it out, because it seems effective and catches the goalie off-guard.

5. cj kirst 200 mph shot

People forget that CJ Kirst is one of the best shooters in the nation. This is heat.

📈STOCK RISING

We know about the stars of college lacrosse - who's flying under the radar?

1. ryan goldstein (attack - cornell)

There had been a lot of hype surrounding Goldstein in the fall, and now with his increased playing time this spring, it's easy to see why. A prototypical X attackman, he's equipped with elite change of direction, two-handedness, and finishing and feeding ability. While undersized, it feels like he can do a little bit of everything offensively for the Big Red. He reminds me a lot of Michigan's Michael Boehm.

2. joe cesare (midfield - georgetown)

Having 2nd-line midfield production is crucial down the stretch, and Cesare is as steady as they come. I didn't know too much about him coming into the season, but he's been impressive with timely plays, specifically his cutting and inside finishing ability. He's shooting 50% on the year with 9 goals.

I hope you enjoyed this week's edition of On the Run and hope to see you next week.

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