Reverse Survivor: You Have Dysentery

There are lots of factors that feed into Mount St. Mary's continued struggle to find their first win of the year. One of those factors -- the Mountaineers' brutal schedule in light of the talent that The Mount is running with in 2014 -- exacerbates all of the issues that The Mount is attempting to resolve. This isn't an excuse for the Mountaineers' currently winless campaign -- Holy Cross, Dartmouth, and Jacksonville have played tougher schedules than what the Mountaineers have faced and have managed to uncover at least one win -- but it does provide color as to why Mount St. Mary's is wrapped in the misery of a season without super happy good times.

Here's a table that details The Mount's opponents at this point in the season, a slate that (1) is ranked as the 29th most difficult in the nation so far, and (2) has seen the Mountaineers finish only three games within three goals of its opponent:

Mount St. Mary's is essentially a banker on the Oregon Trail, trying to keep everyone alive while bringing only extra wagon wheels in the covered wagon. Dysentery is running rampant and nobody is quite sure how to shoot buffalo because wagon wheels aren't guns. The environment is doing The Mount no favors, but the Mountaineers must continue to endure if they hope to reach their destination.

Mount St. Mary's (0-10)
Next Opponent: St. Joseph's -- April 1st
Chance of Victory: Not great, Bob. The Hawks aren't the smoldering pile of would-be lacrosse that many assume the Hawks are. St. Joseph's doesn't have designs to rule Division I lacrosse with a despotic fist, but the Hawks are pretty average, a decent team that has smashed inferior competition -- St. Joseph's beat VMI by eight, Wagner by four, Monmouth by five, etc. -- and is kind of meandering through their season with good feelings and a sense of vengeance. The Mount hasn't played to the Hawks' level this season, and it would take a significant effort from the Mountaineers to drop St. Joseph's on Hawk Hill.
Next Reasonable Chance of Victory: Wagner -- April 19th. It's becoming increasingly clear that The Mount may not have the impetus for a party with balloons and water guns until the Mountaineers host the Seahawks in their penultimate game of the season. Mount St. Mary's has four dates -- at St. Joseph's, at Bucknell, at Bryant, and home to Johns Hopkins -- before meeting the Seahawks, and blood may continue to leak from the Mountaineers' major arteries until Wagner -- Reverse Survivor's all-time leader in titles -- makes a visit to Emmitsburg.