Previewing and Linking a Huge Wednesday Slate of Games
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We've got a pretty jam-packed Wednesday on tap, which tends to be the case heading into Easter weekend since Friday and Saturday games will be at a minimum. Let's take a look at some of the day's best matchups, with all available live streams linked.
Belmont Hill (Mass.) at Deerfield Academy (Mass.)
Live stream — 4:00 p.m. ET
Fresh off its annual spring break trip to Florida, Deerfield is set to welcome Belmont Hill to campus this afternoon and look to avenge last year's 6-4 loss to the Hillers, who spent much of the year nationally ranked before getting upset in the ISL quarterfinals in May.
I'm most intrigued to see how Belmont Hill looks on the back half of the field after graduating the lion's share of its defensive starters, a highly impactful group of multi-year starters that includes close defenseman Ben Wood, who is now a postgrad for Deerfield, adding a nice little wrinkle to today's showdown. Known for a methodical style of play and stingy zone defense, the argument could be made that no team in New England dictates the tempo of a game more than Belmont Hill. Today at Deerfield, Hillers will hope to gain a significant possession advantage due to the services of face-off specialist Eli Friedman, a Cornell commit who headlines an excellent junior class for BH. With the Big Green adding 5-star PG Peter Buonanno this offseason, fellow Princeton commit and 5-star LSM Peyton Fox and Belmont Hill's new-look defense will have to be up to snuff in a hurry.
Malvern Prep (Pa.) vs. Boys' Latin (Md.) at USA Lacrosse HQ
Live stream TBD — 4:15 p.m. ET
During the dreary months of winter, high school lacrosse fans couldn't help but get excited about the addition of this neutral site matchup between preseason Top 10 teams. On Tuesday night, someone will head back to campus no longer undefeated.
Malvern Prep, previewed here upon being ranked No. 2, has jumped out to a 4-0 start while beating its opponents by an average margin of victory of 5.5 goals. The Friars already have a pair of wins over MIAA foes Calvert Hall and Loyola Blakefield, demonstrating impeccable depth and chemistry on offense, where they present more than a few matchup problems with physically imposing scorers and a pair of highly skilled Top 25 juniors in Michael Ortlieb (Duke) and Jake Bickel,
On the other side of the field, Boys' Latin (4-0) is similar in that it has three 5-stars on offense, a highly accomplished face-off specialist, lockdown d-middies, and a first-year starter in goal. The contrast in styles between the Lakers' Parker Hoffman (UNC), an undersized yet athletic weapon with a nose for the goal, and the Friars' Nick Wehmeyer (Yale), a hard-nosed scrapper, will provide entertainment at the face-off X. However, the matchup of the day is undoubtedly between Malvern Prep longstick Lucca DiBartolomeo (Penn State) and fleet-footed Laker middie Liam White, who is headed to Ohio State. The play of White and future Terp attackman Matt Higgins will be crucial with BL's Spencer Ford out of the lineup due to injury, but even so, BL will look to feast in the two-man game against a Malvern close D that graduated a significant amount of experience from a year ago.
A live stream looks unlikely, but we'll be there on-site, so check back for coverage.
Chaminade (N.Y.) vs. McDonogh (Md.) at Salesianum (Del.)
Live stream — 5:30 p.m.
In a rare Long Island vs. Baltimore matchup, the Flyers and Eagles are set to meet in Wilmington at Salesianum School (Del.), where the Sallies will square off against St. Mary's (Md.) later on at 7:30.
Remarkably consistent year-over-year under the guidance of legendary head coach Jack Moran, the Flyers have just one game under their belt, having topped Ward Melville (N.Y.) 13-8 on Saturday. McDonogh, meanwhile, had an up-and-down week, suffering its most lopsided defeat in close to a decade in a loss at Haverford (Pa.) before engaging in a tight battle against Hill Academy (Ont.), ultimately pulling out a 12-9 win thanks to a huge performance from Georgetown-bound middie Ben Firlie.
On Wednesday, the Flyers will have their hands full, however, they'll have a distinct advantage at the face-off dot, where junior Quinn Ball (Penn) excelled as a sophomore before going on to earn a Top 50 ranking in the class. On defense, Chaminade will trot out lockdown cover man Ben Fox, the No. 23 recruit in the class, to cover McDonogh's top-ranked junior Brendan Millon, so expect some fireworks from the 1-on-1 battles between future ACC foes.
Salisbury (Conn.) at Noble & Greenough (Mass.)
No live stream — 4:30 p.m.
Follow @NoblesBVL and @burylax for any updates
Radnor (Pa.) at Brunswick (Conn.)
Live stream — 4:30 p.m.
