"I love them," he said without a hint of sarcasm. "If we were not playing Lafayette on Friday night, I’d be rooting for Lafayette. [Coach] Terry Mangan is a guy who has paid his dues in coaching. He’s been at UMBC, he’s been at Penn, he’s been at Hobart, he’s been at UMass. He went to that program several years ago, stuck his nose to the grindstone, and just started recruiting and recruiting. He’s got some outstanding kids that really enjoy playing the style they’re playing. It’s going to be a big game for Lafayette, but it’s also going to be a big game for us. Tommy Perini is as good a shooter and lacrosse player as we’re going to play against this year. He’s very dangerous, and I think what they have done at Lafayette is, Terry has changed the culture there. I’m sure they expect to win, and they’re going to be very tough for us to play at their place."

The Leopards boast five players with at least 10 points each, and a pair of junior attackmen in Perini and Stefan Bauer each lead the way with 19 points each. Perini has a team-high 16 goals, while Bauer has posted a team-best 13 assists. Senior goalkeeper Vinny DePasquale anchors a defense that has surrendered just four goals in the first quarter and only six goals during man-down situations.

But whereas Lafayette is enjoying its first 4-0 start since at least 1979, the Midshipmen have dealt with upstarts before, and that seasoning could be a factor Friday night.

"Our seniors have been in big games," Meade said, adding that the senior class is 32-15 and has won two Patriot League regular-season and tournament championships. "They’ve been on the field against Hopkins, Maryland, Army and a lot of other schools. Hopefully, that experience is going to be beneficial to us. But I think the Lafayette kids are in a different situation than they’ve been in. They’re probably going to be the favorites here. We at the Naval Academy respect that for the work that they’ve put in. We’re going to have to bring everything we’ve got and we know that."