Men’s Lacrosse: Terriers Look to Continue Dominance over Colgate

By: Marisa Ingemi

It’ll be an extended break for the Terriers of Boston University due to cold weather. More than a week since their last game, a victory over Air Force, BU will return to conference play and face Colgate on Monday at 1:00 p.m.

BU is 2-0 all time against Colgate, and the Terriers could find themselves in their highest ranking yet after several top-15 teams were defeated this past weekend.

The Terriers, however, are only focused on how they play.

“We just take it one game at a time,” said attacker Ryan Hillburn. “Colgate is a capable opponent. Every Patriot League game is important. We worry about us first.”

Hillburn and the Terrier offense have exploded to average 11 goals per game. Hillburn’s 16 points are tied with Jack Wilson for the second most on the team, while senior Cal Dearth leads the way with 22.

The offense has been more versatile in recent years, with almost each player spending time at both attack and midfield.

“Our offense has six hands, so anyone there can step up and make the next play,” Hillburn said. “We’re a close group and meshing well so it doesn’t matter who plays what position.”

Meanwhile, it’s been the offense that has led BU to their top 20 ranking with the fifth best scoring defense in the league. Freshman Chase Levesque is a part of that, and he helped lead the defense to shutting down Air Force after they jumped out to a 2-0 lead last weekend.

“We’ve been in that situation a lot this year and we’ve shown we can bounce back no matter what the situation is,” Levesque said. “It was important for us to bounce back.”

The freshman also tallied his first career goal against the Falcons in a big Terrier second half.

“It’s such a great moment for me, and to get all the support of my team mates,” Levesque said. “My coaches told me I’d get that opportunity, it was a great moment.”

Air Force was one of BU’s most difficult out of conference foes, and they have just one more non-conference game remaining against Harvard next Tuesday. Other than that, it’s all Patriot League play from here on out.

Colgate sits at 2-3 and are 1-1 in the conference with a win over Bucknell and a loss to Lehigh. They have also defeated Hobart, last weekend, and fallen this season to Marist and Binghamton.

Led by ten goals from Anthony Abbadessa and 14 points fro, sophomore Sam Cleveland, the Raiders have been able to score at times, but good defenses have shut them down.

For BU, it’s all about starting the year out 7-0, and the Raiders are their next test.

“I think it comes down to our leadership this year,” said Hillburn. “Having a full senior class is key for us, we look to the upperclassmen. This year is a lot different because we didn’t have that leadership.”