As we head into the club lacrosse postseason, the Georgia men’s lacrosse team is ranked 18th (though, arguably, the Bulldogs should be ranked higher) and the Georgia women’s lacrosse team is ranked 13th. Following last weekend’s Southeastern Women’s Lacrosse League Tournament, Lady Bulldogs senior defender and team captain Michele "Meesh" Manis also was named the SWLL Defensive Player of the Year.
As the Division I SELC Southwest Division champions, the Red and Black gentlemen evidently will open the league playoffs against the Southeast Division runners-up at 8:00 p.m. Eastern next Friday, April 27. This Friday, April 20, the Florida and Florida State men’s club lacrosse squads will square off to decide the Southeast Division crown; the Gators and the Seminoles both boast 3-0 division ledgers, and third-place Central Florida is 2-2 against the SELC Southeast, so the loser of this Friday’s Sunshine State showdown will meet the Bulldogs in the SELC Tournament quarterfinals one week later. During the regular season, Georgia lost to Florida State but beat Florida in the course of completing the first twelve-win regular season in the history of the Bulldogs’ club program.
We are awaiting the release of the WCLA Division I National Championship bracket, which will feature the nation’s top 16 teams. By ranking, the Georgia ladies deserve inclusion in the field. The Classic City Canines are better than their 10-7 record, as their losses were by two to No. 10 Pitt, by one to No. 12 Santa Clara in overtime, by four to No. 3 Florida, by two to No. 11 BYU, by two to No. 1 Colorado State, by one to No. 7 Central Florida, and by one to No. 3 Florida in the SWLL Tournament. The Athenian women’s ten victories included triumphs over co-No. 8 UCLA by eight, No. 4 Michigan by two, No. 6 Colorado by three, and co-No. 8 Texas by four. A national tournament bid this year would be the Lady Bulldogs’ seventh overall, and their fifth in six seasons.
Go ‘Dawgs!