Loyola at Johns Hopkins: Three things to watch
The rivalry between these Charles Street programs resumes, but the scales have been severely in favor of Johns Hopkins, which is 45-3 in this series. No. 18 Loyola (8-3) is riding a five-game winning streak after enduring a three-game skid in an eight-day span in March. Meanwhile, the No. 4 Blue Jays (10-2) has also won five consecutive games after dropping a 5-4 double-overtime decision to then-No. 1 Syracuse on March 19. Here are a few factors that could influence the outcome at Homewood Field in Baltimore on Saturday.
1) Slowing down Dolente. Johns Hopkins has demonstrated a knack for turning a defensive stop or turnover or a faceoff win into a transition opportunity. That latter scenario has caught the attention of the Greyhounds, who hope that senior faceoff specialist John Schiavone (107-of-191 for ..560) can neutralize Blue Jays senior Matt Dolente (138-of-206 for .670). “I think you’ve got to have the ball, to start,” Loyola coach Charley Toomey said. “I’m not going to say that we’re going to slow the tempo of the game down because right now, we need to score goals when we have those opportunities, and if it dictates that we’ve got to play fast, then that’s what we need to do. I really believe that the difference for Johns Hopkins over the last two months has been that Dolente has really come on. He’s a real force at the X, and he’s giving them possessions. … We know we’ve got our hands full.”
2) Sleeping on Loyola’s transition. As Toomey said, the Greyhounds aren’t afraid to move quickly from defense to offense, and if the situation presents itself, they will press their advantage in the offensive end. A pair of sophomores in long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff and short-stick defensive midfielder Josh Hawkins are especially dangerous when collecting turnovers or outlet passes, which is why Johns Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala is on high alert. “Do I think they’re a run-up-and-down team? No,” Pietramala said. “But when given the opportunity – whether it’s off of a save or a loose ball or a faceoff – they are a team that will look to push it. I think they’re tremendously dangerous in those areas.”
3) Getting production from Loyola’s midfield. The Greyhounds offense relies heavily on the attack of sophomore Mike Sawye (26 goals and five assists), senior Matt Langan (14, 16), senior Chris Palmer (9, 1) and sophomore Patrick Fanshaw (12, 3). But Loyola will need contributions from the midfield to pull off the upset. “We feel like we can share the ball at attack and get a couple points, but our challenge – still – is that we need our middies to step up, to draw a slide,” Toomey said. “And if they don’t draw a slide, to finish the ball.” Pietramala said he’s not overlooking Loyola’s starting midfield of senior Chris Basler (4, 12), sophomore Davis Butts (7, 3) and senior Stephen Murray (7, 1). “While people statistically may not look at the middies as they do at the attack, the middies do a lot of legwork for this team,” Pietramala said. “They’re very good between the boxes. They’re good in the big-little pick game. They’re good at drawing a slide. I do think they do more for the offense than meets the eye.”
Categories: Johns Hopkins, Loyola, Three things to watch
