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The Merrimack Warriors are the 55th team in our 2020 men’s college lacrosse schedule preview series and the ninth team from the NEC. Merrimack was in Division II last season and finished 17-3 overall in 2019 and 10-1 in NE10 play. The Warriors lost to Le Moyne in the NE10 Championship, but defeated Mercyhurst, Adelphi, and Le Moyne all on the road before taking care of Limestone to win their second consecutive NCAA Division II national championship.
Here’s their entire 2020 schedule:
Merrimack’s 2020 Schedule
| Date | Road Team | Home Team | Special Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Road Team | Home Team | Special Notes |
| 1/28 | Merrimack | Boston University | Scrimmage |
| 2/1 | Holy Cross | Merrimack | First ever Division I game, First meeting since 1997 |
| 2/15 | Dartmouth | Merrimack | First ever meeting |
| 2/18 | Merrimack | Fairfield | First ever meeting |
| 2/22 | Merrimack | Michigan | First ever meeting |
| 2/29 | Merrimack | Vermont | First ever meeting |
| 3/7 | UMass Lowell | Merrimack | First ever meeting |
| 3/14 | Merrimack | Wagner | NEC, First ever meeting |
| 3/21 | Saint Joseph's | Merrimack | NEC, First ever meeting |
| 3/28 | Bryant | Merrimack | NEC, First meeting since 2008 |
| 3/31 | Merrimack | Yale | First ever meeting |
| 4/4 | Merrimack | NJIT | NEC, First ever meeting |
| 4/7 | Merrimack | VMI | At Staples HS (in Westport, CT), First ever meeting |
| 4/11 | LIU | Merrimack | NEC, First ever meeting |
| 4/18 | Merrimack | Hobart | NEC, First ever meeting |
| 4/25 | Sacred Heart | Merrimack | NEC, First meeting since 1996 |
Who’s In?
- Everyone except LIU
Who’s Out?
- Everyone except LIU
Merrimack’s Opponents 2019 Average Win Percentage & RPI
| Avg. overall win pct. | Avg. nonconference win pct. | Avg. conference win pct. | Avg. overall RPI | Avg. nonconference RPI | Avg. conference RPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg. overall win pct. | Avg. nonconference win pct. | Avg. conference win pct. | Avg. overall RPI | Avg. nonconference RPI | Avg. conference RPI |
| .418 | .413 | .424 | 49.07 | 45.13 | 54.33 |
Circle These Dates
- 2/1 vs. Holy Cross: Merrimack begins their Division I era at home against fellow in-state program Holy Cross. The Crusaders will be a great early test to see where Merrimack is as a D1 program after a few dominant years at the Division II level, and it’ll also be the first time we see Charlie Bertrand against D1 competition. The Warriors lost their two previous meetings to Holy Cross in the 90s.
- 2/18 at Fairfield: The Warriors’ first road game will be in Connecticut against Fairfield and new head coach Andrew Baxter. Baxter came over from Yale and has some experience scrimmaging Merrimack in the spring as tune-ups for the Bulldogs before they began the regular season.
- 3/14 at Wagner: Merrimack opens up conference play with a trip to Staten Island to take on Wagner. The Warriors will still play an NEC conference schedule, but won’t be eligible for any postseason competition for the next four seasons due to reclassification (they’ll be eligible for the postseason in time for the 2024 season).
- 3/28 vs. Bryant: Some of Merrimack’s NEC opponents will be very familiar to the program. For the first time since 2008, the Warriors will take on Bryant, a former NE10 rival before moving to Division I in 2009. In their first D1 year, the Bulldogs went 10-5. Could the same happen for Merrimack?
- 3/31 at Yale: Head coach Mike Morgan is very familiar to making the trip to New Haven every year. It’s usually before the regular season begins in a scrimmage setting with the Bulldogs as previously noted. This time, this is a regular season meeting where the game does count. And Merrimack should expect a much different looking Yale team than in early February.
- 4/11 vs. LIU: The team’s lone returning opponent to their schedule is also moving up to Division I. But unlike Merrimack, LIU is immediately eligible for postseason competition as Long Island University merged their Brooklyn and Post campuses for athletics. Last year, Merrimack lost to then-LIU Post 17-16 in overtime.