Another surging second half pushed the No. 14 men's lacrosse team to an 11-9 win over cross-town rival Providence College on Saturday at Stevenson Field.
The win was Bruno's ninth straight and keeps it tied with Princeton atop the Ivy League with a 4-0 record in conference play, to go along with Brown's 10-2 overall mark. Providence dropped to 5-7, but not before challenging the Bears for a game regarded as the city championship.
Consistent with its play all season, Brown started slowly, only to roar back in the second half to capture the win. Providence came out very strong looking for an upset against the Bears, whom some consider overrated, according to tri-captain Jeff Hall '08.
"Within the lacrosse community, there has been talk about how Brown will eventually lose," the midfielder said, adding that people often point out the Bears' close wins. Bruno's last five wins have all been by three goals or less.
Still, Hall said that the team is motivated by the lack of respect and the fact that each team is gunning for them.
"We love getting everyone's best effort," he said. "Getting their best effort makes us give our best effort."
Head Coach Lars Tiffany '90 found the win even more rewarding because of Providence's strong play.
"I look at this as a big win because we faced an opponent who gave us everything we could handle," he said.
Early on, Providence's effort outdid Bruno's as the Friars jumped out to a 3-1 lead with just less than five minutes to play in the first half. The hole was courtesy of a slow, methodical Providence offense that made the Brown defense, fourth in the nation in scoring defense with just 6.25 goals against per game, work for at least two or three minutes per possession.
"It was a different game style from what we've been playing. They like to slow the game down and hold (the ball) and control it," said tri-captain defenseman Brian Sharnick '08. "At first, we played pretty passive (on defense). We let them come to us."
To compound the possession disparity, Providence won 16 out of 23 face-offs, an area where Bruno has struggled all season, especially in the last few games. And when the Bears did have the ball in the first half, the offense had trouble maintaining possession, turning the ball over frequently and generating just seven first-half shots.
Brown cut the deficit to one by halftime when attackman Thomas Muldoon '10 scored a man-up goal a minute before intermission.
The second half was a different story, as the Bears awoke from hibernation to score nine goals.
"Going into halftime, everyone was frustrated with the way we played in the first half," said attackman Andrew Feinberg '11, who tallied three of his team-high four goals in the second half.
The Bears jumped on the Friars, scoring two goals in the first seven minutes of the third quarter to take a 4-3 lead.
"In the first half, we just weren't playing our normal game. We were too focused on (set) plays," Hall said. "In the second half we just let loose and let people make plays."
"In the second half we just loosened up and got more aggressive," Sharnick said. "We put some pressure on them."
That pressure prevented Providence from playing its slow-down style and forced turnovers.
Brown also scooped up 15 ground balls in the second half, seven more than Providence did. These turnovers and ground balls led to fast-break opportunities.
Feinberg credited the defense for fueling the offense's second-half success because it "got the ball loose and allowed us to play our transition game."
Though Brown turned up its intensity, Providence reclaimed the lead with four goals in an 8:28 stretch that ended just after the fourth quarter began. After a Feinberg goal during the run, the score was 7-5.
The Bears responded with a 5-0 run of their own in the next 4:47 to give Bruno a 10-7 advantage.
Feinberg scored the first two and midfielder Zach Caldwell '10 added two of his own, a result of strong dodging at the top of the box.
"The men stepped up and made plays in the fourth quarter," Tiffany said. "At the end of the third quarter, we (the coaches) turned it over to them. We allowed them to put more pressure on and take some chances."
Despite being down, the team did not panic and was able to respond to the Friar run, Hall said.
"It's about having confidence within yourself and your teammates that you're going to win the game," he said. "We've been down before. We always have confidence that we can come back."
Providence tried to respond to the Brown explosion, but goalie Jordan Burke '09, a two-time Ivy League Player of the Week this season, made five of his 12 saves in the fourth quarter to snuff out the comeback.
The Friars did get two late goals, but Muldoon got one as well, giving Bruno an 11-9 victory.
"They brought everything they had," Hall said. "That makes us better as a team. A win versus Providence helps us against Cornell."
The Bears will face the Big Red on the road next Saturday. Cornell suffered its first Ivy League loss last Saturday to Princeton, but is still very much in the mix for the Ivy title with a 4-1 conference record. After Cornell, Brown will finish up at home on May 3 against the Tigers, who are also undefeated in league play. The game could determine the Ivy League winner and who receives the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The last time the Bears won the Ivy championship was 1995; Cornell and Princeton have dominated since then.
"We are so excited to be in that position. It is exactly where we want to be at this point in the season. We have control of our destiny," Hall said.
Sharnick added "they will be really intense games. Like all Ivy games, there will be more of a playoff feel. (You have to show) up. If you have a little let-up against those teams they can take advantage of you."
With the conquest of the city of Providence behind it, Brown appears to know what it needs to do going forward to get its next title: the Ivy title.
