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The Lafayette Leopards are the 49th team in our 2020 men’s college lacrosse schedule preview series and the sixth team from the Patriot League. Lafayette finished 4-11 overall in 2019 and 0-8 in Patriot League play. The Leopards failed to qualify for the Patriot League Tournament.
Here’s their entire 2020 schedule:
Lafayette’s 2020 Schedule
| Date | Road Team | Home Team | Special Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Road Team | Home Team | Special Notes |
| 2/1 | Lafayette | Penn State | First meeting since 1996 |
| 2/8 | Georgetown | Lafayette | First meeting since 2013 |
| 2/15 | Lafayette | North Carolina | First meeting since 2018 |
| 2/22 | Lafayette | Binghamton | |
| 2/29 | Loyola | Lafayette | Patriot League |
| 3/7 | Army West Point | Lafayette | Patriot League |
| 3/14 | Lafayette | Colgate | Patriot League |
| 3/17 | Rutgers | Lafayette | |
| 3/21 | Lafayette | Boston University | Patriot League |
| 3/28 | Lehigh | Lafayette | Patriot League |
| 4/4 | Lafayette | Holy Cross | Patriot League |
| 4/11 | Navy | Lafayette | Patriot League |
| 4/17 | Lafayette | Bucknell | Patriot League |
| 4/24 | Lafayette | Cleveland State |
Who’s In?
- Penn State Nittany Lions (2/1)
- Georgetown Hoyas (2/8)
- North Carolina Tar Heels (2/15)
Who’s Out?
- NJIT Highlanders (14-10 W)
- Wagner Seahawks (13-10 W)
- Manhattan Jaspers (13-5 W)
- UMBC Retrievers (19-8 L)
Lafayette’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 |
| .541 | .550 | .534 | 28.57 | 28.17 | 28.88 |
Circle These Dates
- 2/22 at Binghamton: After a tough start to their season with Penn State, Georgetown, and North Carolina, the Leopards travel to Binghamton to visit the Bearcats. Last year, Binghamton got out to an 8-3 lead in the second quarter, but Lafayette went on a trio of three-goal runs en route to a one-goal victory at home. Conor Walters finished with seven points but he graduated. Andrew Robbins scored four goals in the win and is back for the Leopards.
- 3/14 at Colgate: After starting the season 3-2 with wins over Syracuse and Boston University, the Raiders floundered by losing their next six games before ending that skid against the Leopards near the end of the year. And that matchup wasn’t even close, as the Raiders won by nine goals. Colgate will look to compete for a spot in the Patriot League Tournament in 2020 after finishing second-to-last in the conference in front of Lafayette.
- 3/28 vs. Lehigh: The annual rivalry game shifts to Lafayette. It’s labeled as a rivalry game anytime these two schools play each other, but it hasn’t been a rivalry on the lacrosse field. The Mountain Hawks haven’t lost to the Leopards since 2009 and have only lost three times since 1993. That’s a 24-3 record. Maybe a stunning upset could be in the works?
- 4/4 at Holy Cross: In the past four seasons, the Crusaders have worked themselves up from near the bottom of the Patriot League to qualifying for the Patriot League Tournament. It might not be a huge leap going from eighth to fifth or sixth place, but they still have made the postseason. That’s where Lafayette would love to get to in the very near future. Holy Cross dominated last year’s meeting with a 12-goal victory.
- 4/11 vs. Navy: Navy was Lafayette’s closest Patriot League game last season (a five-goal margin) as well as their last conference victory back in 2017. The Mids missed barely missed the Patriot League Tournament and made a coaching change with Joe Amplo leading the way. Navy does have some young guys looking to step up, but will need to fill holes left by Greyson Torain and Ryan Wade.