W2WF: NCAA Championship vs. Maryland

The Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic are two epicenters for developing lacrosse talent. The regions, which stretch through several states, create a centerpiece for the sport upon which one of its richest rivalries planted and grew. So there's no better comparison for the two than in the college game, where institutions become the best representatives for their respective homes.

As a result, there are few referendums quite like the NCAA Championship game, and it rings especially true when teams from those two areas collide for the trophy. In 2000, for example, Maryland played Princeton in the national championship game in New Jersey and won, 16-8. Two years later, the Tigers won the first of their consecutive national championships by beating both Georgetown and Virginia, with the former being played in Maryland.

The Cavaliers got the Tigers back in 2004, beating them 10-4 at Princeton Stadium for the last national title game before Northwestern commandeered bragging rights with five straight titles and seven out of eight. That one that the Wildcats didn't win? Maryland won it, beating them 13-11 in a game played in Towson.

Northwestern's banner bonanza ended in 2012 as the Mid-Atlantic ushered it off center stage by establishing itself as the NCAA's best region. North Carolina won it all in 2013 to kick off a stretch of five straight championships for either the Tar Heels or Maryland. Last year, the title went to James Madison to claim bragging rights back to Virginia for the first time 2004.

The Northeast, meanwhile, has been completely out of the trophy party, having last won a national title in 2003 when Princeton beat the aforementioned Virginia team at Syracuse's Carrier Dome. It's been even longer for Massachusetts, which hasn't seen a national championship women's lacrosse team since Harvard beat Maryland in 1990.

In 2017, Boston College had its first opportunity to reclaim bragging rights for its home region. The Eagles' Cinderella run through the NCAA Tournament landed the team at Gillette Stadium in its home state, but the packed crowd on hand celebrated the sport while Maryland celebrated a national championship.

Then came last year and a second chance. The Eagles won an overtime thriller over Stony Brook to deny the Seawolves the opportunity to compete in a Final Four home game, then seemingly exorcised their demon loss from the year ago by beating Maryland in the semifinal round. Again, though, the Mid-Atlantic denied BC something of a home game win, beating the Eagles on Long Island, the home region to some of the team's biggest stars, and JMU walked off with the trophy.

This year is BC's third consecutive national championship game appearance. Season-long coverage tied this team to the No. 1 national ranking with the expectation that it could make it to this point. Now, in a game being played in Maryland, the Eagles will attempt to claim its first national championship in what will feel like a road game against the state's flagship university.

BC already cleared its closet of ghosts from postseason losses to North Carolina. Now it sets its sights on a bigger prize, one that hasn't traveled north in 15 years and hasn't arrived in Massachusetts in almost 30 years. The two best teams in the country are meeting for a national champion, but in many ways, the geography of it all makes this one of the most intense atmospheres possible.

Here's what to watch for in the 2019 NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse National Championship:

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Game Day Storylines

Don't Fear The Reaper

Maryland is the one team in this national tournament that can match up, pound-for-pound, with Boston College. The Terrapins went undefeated in the regular season, winning 12 of its 16 games over nationally ranked opponents. They beat both North Carolina and Syracuse in head-to-head matchups against the ACC, with both games going to overtime. They later smothered Virginia, 16-6, in a game that came right during the bulk of Big Ten play. In the Big Ten Tournament, though, they suffered an upset loss to Northwestern, the only blemish on an otherwise perfect season.

That loss served as an awakening, and the sleeping giant romped through its three NCAA Tournament games. Maryland outscored Stony Brook and Denver by a combined 34-16 margin, and on Friday, it dropped 25 goals in its own third game against the Wildcats.

Maryland's attack ranks fifth in the nation, and its defense ranks fourth. The attack has six 30-goal scorers, four of whom have 40 goals and two that broke the 50-goal plateau. The attack outshot teams, 364-262, in the first half alone, resulting in a 286-182 shots on goal margin that produced a 169-86 goal differential. In fact, Maryland on the season had more shots on goal than opponents had total shots, including ones that missed.

This team is the complete package, but it's not invincible. Northwestern negated the fast start in the first half by staking a 10-4 lead at halftime, then held on through the second half to win, 16-11, in the Big Ten championship. The Wildcats controlled possession, limiting Maryland to only three goals through the first quarter of game time. Two of those goals were in woman-up situations, so the direct road, which seems obvious at times and is clearly easier said than done, is to simply control the game tempo. Northwestern's really the only team to cleanly do that, and it's also the only team to defeat the Terps this year.

Hey Now, These Are All Stars

The numbers back up just how hard it is to control game tempo against Maryland. The easiest way to claim momentum is in the draw circle, and that might be the one area where BC dominates opponents the most. Kali Hartshorn and Lizzie Colson both took the bulk of those, winning well over 100 draw controls during the season.

Boston College, meanwhile, will counter with its own ability to manhandle the draw control. The Eagles won over 400 draws this season, and their rally from the six-goal deficit against UNC is largely because of their ability to dictate pace and momentum.

Maryland obviously can transition its draw control success to offensive output. The team has six 30-goal scorers, of which Jen Giles was the high-water mark during the season. Giles was also one of the leading distributors for assists, along with Brindi Griffin, who added a 30-goal season of her own. So the key for BC is to mark everyone and play the perfect amount of space because the Terrapins can attack from all sides with a fluid offense.

Sound Of The Guns

Maryland's attack is one of the most dangerous, fluid units any team can face in the country, and the only team that maybe has a claim against it resides at Boston College. The Eagles have even more weapons and can run a depth chart of four 50-goal scorers onto the field. Sam Apuzzo became the first BC women's lacrosse player with 90 goals in a season against UNC, hitting her 91st goal with the overtime winner.

Apuzzo is by far the leading goal scorer, but the Terrapins will have to remember what Kenzie Kent did to them in the 2017 national championship game. She scored five goals in a 16-13 loss, adding five assists in a 10-point performance that earned her Most Outstanding Player honors. Kent was completely dialed into that game, and she overshadowed Apuzzo, who was a perfect 4-for-4 on her shots on goal.

Kent and Apuzzo enter this game with 100 points apiece, with the two-sport phenom holding a one-point advantage over the defending Tewaaraton Award winner. Apuzzo will clearly draw the bulk of attention and will face a team's best defender, but that's opening up opportunities for Kent, who transformed into the same postseason legend that broke out in '17. She posted four goals and six assists against Colorado, then ran another six-assist performance for eight points against Princeton. After three points against UNC, she might be ready to take another run at the Terps two years after losing at home in Massachusetts.

Those numbers are gaudy, but they'll need to be in full effect if BC wants to claim the throne. Maryland hasn't exactly allowed a ton of goals this year, and it limits the assists that come on those goals. Free positions are at a premium, and even then, opposing shooters don't exactly convert a whole lot. It will create a great chess match, and how each team adjusts on both sides will be great to witness. Both teams will score, then both units will adjust. Both defenses will hold, and the attacks will switch something up. Whoever makes the right adjustment at the right time will likely crown national champions.

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Meteorology 101

The beautiful weather in Baltimore will continue through much of the day on Saturday, and minimal cloud cover with temperatures in the 70s (maybe 80s) will give the teams Rockwellian conditions for their final practice session of the year. They should savor it because Sunday could turn into an absolutely physical grind.

Sunday's national championship is at high noon, which is right about when precipitation will start creeping into the region. Forecasts are calling for possible scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon as temperatures get up into the 90s. The humidity won't increase all that much, but the chance for storms will combine with the heat on a turf field to create some sweltering conditions.

Weather-wise, I don't think anyone will mind. These teams have played in every condition possible, and you'll be hard-pressed to find anyone who even thinks about blaming a play in a national championship game on Mother Nature. But if you're going to the game, you might think about having an extra water or two to hydrate.

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A Personal Note

Normally, I'd run through some interesting games across the nation or something to watch elsewhere on the scoreboard, but since this is the national championship game, that's kind of a moot point.

Instead, I'll just throw in there how appreciative I am in the media industry for this particular Boston College team. Acacia Walker-Weinstein has always been accommodating, even when I'm sure it's not the easiest for a coach in the middle of a season or postseason run, and the athletes never flinch when showcasing that same graciousness and selflessness.

As a journalist, I'm always looking for that crumb quote that might provide an insight into what these special people are thinking or feeling. The truth is that nobody in the lacrosse program (or at BC for that matter, as a whole) ever made me feel like I was searching for a crumb. They are always forthright and honest, which is refreshing.

It's especially great to see the camaraderie and closeness of this particular team. It feels like there's a chunk of repetitiveness to how often they credit each other, but that's not coachspeak or playerspeak. It's simply the truth.

I wish this team nothing but luck in its game on Sunday.

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Pregame Quote and Prediction

On a team, it's not the strength of the individual players. It's the strength of the unit and how they all function together. -Bill Belichick

It's been seven years since Boston College celebrated the 2012 men's ice hockey national championship, and the brushes with the national spotlight have gotten the Eagles back on the country's college radar. But there's still a longing for that trophy presentation and the hoisting of something to call our own.

The Eagles watched opponents raise trophies and banners at their expense in the last two years in women's lacrosse. It's come despite BC becoming the national powerhouse and beacon that all other teams measure themselves by. There have been individual honors and team recognition. There just hasn't been a national championship, though all of that can change on Sunday afternoon if the team captures the trophy.

To do so, BC will need to go through the certified giant of college women's lacrosse. It will need to beat a team that has done it all, with a coach that registered her 300th career victory in the national semifinal. It will need to stand toe-to-toe, one more time, in a heavyweight battle. It will need to absorb all of the punches Maryland can throw, only to throw back some punches that are stiffer and harder.

The team stressed its day-by-day mantra all season long. Now, in its last game, there is no more next day. This is the last day and the last time it needs to be better than yesterday. If it can do that, Boston College will finally have that first lacrosse national championship.

Boston College Athletics

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Sam Apuzzo

Kenzie Kent

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