The men's lacrosse team will look to continue its blistering start to the season this weekend on the road at Connecticut College on Saturday.
The Polar Bears (5-1, 3-0 NESCAC) are currently ranked 13th in the latest national poll and look poised for a great season.
The Camels should provide a tough test for Bowdoin on Saturday. Though just 3-4, and 0-3 in the NESCAC, the team recently dismantled Babson 22-5 and may be on the upswing.
"It's going to be a big game," said head coach Tom McCabe. "They may be 0-3 in the league, but every game has been decided by only one or two goals. It is a tough place to play—we'll have to shoot the ball well and play great defense."
"We'll have to show good patience on offense, especially if they throw a zone defense at us like they have in the past," said senior quad-captain Rob Halliday. "And if we keep playing well in net with goalies, and on defense as well, hopefully we'll get a win."
After a pre-game injury to starting goaltender Jake McCampbell '11, the team has been without its starting goalie for the last two games.
Fellow sophomore Jack Burkhardt and first year Chris Williamson have proved able backups.
"We anticipate having Jake McCampbell back [against Connecticut College]," McCabe said, "and good defense starts with goaltending."
Though it is still early in the season, the roster is shaping up. "I think our team's strength is our depth," said senior quad-captain Bryan Holden. "We have a very talented squad that goes well beyond just the guys on the field."
The team showed off its depth on Wednesday in a 16-9 win over Keene State at home.
After letting up two goals in the fist nine minutes of play, Bowdoin scored six unanswered first-half goals.
"We had 10 different players score," McCabe said, "and that's a real positive. It's fun in those games to share the wealth."
Senior Matt Legg, juniors Adam Tracy and Justin Starr, sophomore Kit Smith, and first year Mark Flibotte each contributed a pair of Bowdoin goals in the win. Burkhardt made seven saves in the net during the first half action before Williamson took over and stopped four shots in the second half to seal the win.
The team could not have asked for a better start within the league. The team has won all three of its NESCAC games after notching wins against Wesleyan, Trinity, and Amherst over Spring Break.
Over the break, the team also traveled to Dallas to play in the Patriots Cup Tournament. The Polar Bears finished 1-1 in two nationally-ranked clashes after a 11-9 loss to No. 10 Western New England and a 10-6 win over No. 20 St. Lawrence.
"This year's spring trip was a bit of sprint," Holden said. "Over the course of a week we had four games, one in Connecticut, two in Texas, and one back at home. While we dropped one of these games to Western New England College, we learned a lot about our team in the way we bounced back by beating St. Lawrence two days later."
At 5-1, the team is ready for upcoming challenges, said Halliday.
"Our physical conditioning is great and with the amount of upperclassmen we have playing, we have a fair amount of experience so we're trying to play a smart brand of lacrosse," Halliday said. "Our depth has helped us, too, we have a lot of good players on our team."