BRUNSWICK – The Bowdoin men’s lacrosse team is trying to make the season last as long as possible for Tom McCabe, who is stepping down as coach after 22 years.

The Polar Bears looked thoroughly motivated Wednesday night in a 16-5 win against Mount Ida in the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament.

Bowdoin will play Union College Saturday in a second-round game at a site to be determined.

“We know what he’s done throughout his career and we want to put him out on top,” said Sether Hanson, a long-stick middie. “We want to give him a good swan song here. We’re trying to give him one long last season here, and we’ll see how far this thing goes.”

McCabe is stepping down to become a member of the Peace Corps along with his wife, Pat, who teaches physical education to elementary students in Brunswick.

“Maybe, they do (get some extra motivation), but I hope they’re playing because they want to keep winning, and that’s why I’m just excited for them,” McCabe said. “It’s just the icing on the cake.”

Advertisement

It is Bowdoin’s second appearance in the NCAA tournament since the New England Small College Athletic Conference schools were allowed to play in the tournament in 1994.

“It would be nice to end up on top, but we’re not changing anything,” said Max Rosner, a junior defender from Brunswick. “We’re just going to continue to work hard and play our game.”

Bowdoin (14-5) played a nearly flawless first half in building a 13-0 lead.

“We were hitting our shots, we were moving the ball well,” said Hanson, whose hometown is listed as Lake Oswego, Ore., but graduated from Cape Elizabeth High School in 2009. “Everyone was selfless. We were just moving around, bumping around the outside and making our shots count.”

It was the second time Mount Ida, which is located in Newton, Mass., has lost to Bowdoin in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. In 2008, the Polar Bears scored four goals in the fourth quarter in an 11-5 win.

“In that first quarter, even though we’ve played some good competition this year, they came out with such speed and we were just not ready for it,” Mount Ida Coach Andrew Fink said. “(Bowdoin) is a big, strong and fast and talented team, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved on.”

Advertisement

By the game’s end, the Polar Bears held a 43-17 edge in shots and a 39-22 edge in ground balls and had won 14 of 23 faceoffs.

Will Wise led Bowdoin with three goals. Tyler Williams, Chris Anderson, Keegan Mehlhorn and Griffin Cardew each added two goals. Patrick Lawlor had five assists.

Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 791-6424 or at:

pbetit@pressherald.com

Twitter: PaulBetitPPH

 


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.