What was the most impressive performance of the quarterfinals?

Jack Emmer: Virginia overwhelming Hopkins was very impressive. It’s hard to figure out Virginia. They went into the tournament not being the best team by far. Even though they were seeded first, they didn’t finish their season very well. And now they have stepped it up a bit. That was certainly impressive. I thought Duke would get the better of Carolina, but it was a close game. I was most impressed by the Princeton-Cornell game. I thought those were two heavyweight teams going at it. The intensity level – not just on defense, but all over the field – was absolutely incredible. I thought Princeton was very, very good, and Cornell beat a good team. Now, can Cornell come back and do that again against Virginia? That’s a tall order, but that was an impressive game.

Which team fell short of expectations?

Jack Emmer: I would think Maryland’s performance offensively would create a concern on Coach [Dave] Cottle’s part. Dave’s always been a good offensive coach, but they got six against Syracuse and seven against Notre Dame. They weren’t getting the offensive production, so I would think they have to take a hard look at the people they’re playing there and what they’re doing there. They’re probably going back to the drawing board.

With No. 1 seed Virginia, No. 2 seed Syracuse, No. 3 seed Duke and No. 5 Cornell advancing to the final four, are these the four teams you expected to see in the semifinals?

Jack Emmer: When you have a tournament like this, you usually find the better defensive teams tend to be there. So I thought Navy would do a better job than they did because they were pretty stingy, and that spoke to how well Duke was playing to beat Navy, 14-5, like they did. I thought Navy had a chance of advancing. I did think Hopkins would give Virginia a better game. But when you look at it, you’ve got the first, second, third and fifth seeds in there. So there’s not many surprises. I was very disappointed in Notre Dame. I’m sure they’re feeling that way in themselves. They were 15-0, and they didn’t play well at home after winning 25 games in a row. Didn’t play well out there and you would think a 15-0 team would make a run somewhere in that game, and they never did. As a fan , you’d love to see a Notre Dame or one of those not-as-traditional teams be there, but that hasn’t happened quite yet. I don’t think we’re too far away from that though.

With four of the five finalists for the Tewaaraton Trophy in Virginia attackman Danny Glading, Syracuse midfielder Matt Abbott, Duke attackman Ned Crotty and Cornell midfielder Max Seibald in the semifinals, which player has the edge for the Tewaaraton?

Jack Emmer: I would say after the results so far, Crotty probably has the edge based on how he has played in the tournament. But I think the Tewaaraton award is going to be decided in this final four. How well is Max Seibald going to play? And he’s a terrific player just as Matt Abbott is. They’re similar. They do everything. They’re not your typical high scorers in the country. They’re respected for all the other things that they do.

The team that wins the championship will probably produce the Tewaaraton winner. But one guy that’s going to get overlooked here is Zack Greer because Zack doesn’t have the opportunity to play in the tournament. [Bryant is ineligible in its first season in Division I.] He’s the all-time NCAA leading scorer, and he took that Bryant team from absolute obscurity to having a pretty good year. But he’s probably not going to win the award. I think he probably should win the award. I think he may be the best player. But just because of a lack of exposure, that makes it tough on him.

Who will win the national title?

Jack Emmer: You’re going to put me on the spot here, huh? I think Syracuse is the best team. But I do think if Cornell can match that defense they played a week ago, they can give themselves a shot to beat Virginia and then have a rematch if Syracuse does beat Duke. But the Syracuse-Duke game is a fantastic game. That will be a one-goal game. But I think Syracuse is the best overall team. I think they have so many horses offensively that it’s hard to defend them, and they’re playing good defense. So I think they have an edge.