The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/tag/mens-lacrosse/)
Jason Ben Nathan | Sun Staff Photographer
Head coach Matt Kerwick expects senior midfielder John Edmonds to play a much larger role in the offense this season.
The Cornell men’s lacrosse team remains one of the most storied programs in the NCAA. The team has won three national championships (1971, 1976, 1977) and participated in the NCAA tournament a total of 27 times. Notable alumni include Mike French ’76 MPS ’78, Eamon McEneaney ’77 and Rob Pannell ’13. The Red has won 29 Ivy League titles, the most recent coming in 2015, the team’s 12th in the past 13 years. Led by head coach Matt Kerwick, this season’s squad is captained by senior goalie Brennan Donville, senior attackman John Edmonds and senior midfielder Matt Schattner.
Beyond racking up records, Pannell and Seibald have worked tirelessly to grow the game of lacrosse. Through camps and clinics across the nation, the two have made increasing lacrosse’s popularity one of their primary goals.
The Cornell men’s lacrosse team (6-7, 1-5 Ivy) finished its season on a disappointing note this Saturday with a 7-6 loss to rival Princeton (5-8, 2-4 Ivy). Although the game had no postseason implications, the Cornell-Princeton rivalry is one of the oldest in collegiate lacrosse and there is always pride riding on the game for the sake of the rivalry regardless of each team’s standings. Early goals from senior midfielder Ryan Matthews and sophomore midfielder Kason Tarbell left the Red with an early 2-0 lead with 11:26 remaining in the first quarter. However, three late first quarter goals from Princeton junior attack Gavin McBride (and one from junior defenseman Marshall Peters) left the teams tied 3-3 going out of the first quarter. The Tigers outscored the Red 3-1 in the second quarter to send the game to halftime with Princeton leading 6-4.
This year’s clash against Princeton feels a little different than most years for the Cornell men’s lacrosse team. Unlike most years, neither team is in contention for either the Ivy League or NCAA tournaments. This means that the game carries no weight in postseason play. Nevertheless — given it is one of the best rivalries in collegiate lacrosse — there is a lot of pride that comes with the game.
After graduating a talented senior class, the Red turned to freshmen for offensive output. Even among the upperclassmen, few players had seen much time on the field last year and Cornell struggled to achieve the same success that the program is known for. With just rival Princeton left on the schedule, the Red sits at 6-6, including 1-4 in the Ivy League.
In a critical game to remain in contention for postseason play, Cornell wilted against the most potent offensive attack in the country and limped to a 22-5 defeat at the hands of Brown. The Bears never trailed in the victory over the Red this past Saturday, scoring the most goals at Schoellkopf since 1998.
With two Ivy League games left in the season and an Ivy League title still at play, it is crunch time for the men’s lacrosse team. The Red have had ample time to develop over a long season and will need to put what they have learned to the test. Cornell (6-5, 1-3 Ivy) welcomes No. 3 Brown (11-1, 4-0) tomorrow on Schoellkopf field. Riding a two-game winning streak, this game will be key for maintaining positive momentum continuing through the end of the season.
Freshman attackman Colton Rupp’s buzzer-beater sent Cornell to 13-12 victory over Lehigh. Senior midfielder John Edmonds had three goals and three assists including a pass that set up Rupp’s game-winning shot.
The Cornell men’s lacrosse team takes on Lehigh this weekend in its third to last game of the regular season. The Red (5-5, 1-3 Ivy) has had an up-and-down season and is looking for three more wins in order to hopefully move into the postseason with a solid position.
Senior midfielder Ryan Matthews’ goal in overtime powered the Red to an upset victory over No. 9 Syracuse. The win marked the program’s first triumph over the Orange since 2012.
The Red falls to 4-5 on the season after a 12-8 defeat at the hands of Harvard. Cornell’s young offense made a series of mistakes throughout the game that allowed Harvard to pull of the victory.