DIII ODAC Lax: Preseason Top 4

Lacrosse arrives shortly to alleviate the woes of a sportless DIII world this Fall and Winter. Who will stand out in Virginia's Old Dominion Athletic Conference?

I know many probably do not know about ODAC D3 lacrosse, but as an alumni of the ODAC lacrosse conference, I wanted to put it on map because of how much clout I have at Kollege Sports.

1. Hampden-Sydney College

Going with HSC for number one in the preseason rankings. HSC has been such a young team the past two years and now Coach Rostan's babies are all grown up and ready to prove themselves. Also, the return of stellar 5th years Jack Hayden and Garrett Patnesky will provide veteran leadership in an ever changing environment. The offense should be productive once again this year, not losing a single player on that side of the ball. Same goes for the defense with no one graduating. Additionally, HSC has, bar none, the best face-off guy in the conference. One key loss will be the graduation of talented HSC goalie Nick Arcuri. It should be interesting to see who Rostan sticks in between the pipes. Heard they have a couple good goalies to choose from so don't expect a drop in production.

2. Lynchburg College

Have to go with Lynchburg with at number 2; they have a lot fire power even with the loss of Kevin Rodgers spearheading the offense. The attack is a year older and more mature, looking to avenge a promising season cut short last year. One of Lynchburg's main problems was they had no talent at the X, but that will change with the recent transfer Fogo from UMW. The defense should be solid with the abundance of athletes Lynchburg always has. I think goalie could be a weakness and must be addresses for the team to capitalize on an otherwise strong roster. Strange since Coach K was a goalie himself.

3. Washington & Lee University

The Generals struggled in the shortened season last year, so it will be interesting to see how they rebound in 2021. It will certainly be tough to replace Hodgson at the X position, however this is a program known for reloading. Also noticeable that Jack Taylor is no longer on their roster, I'm not sure if he transferred or what happened there, but certainly another significant loss. I haven’t heard of any 5th years coming back either which could diminish their chances at reaching the title game. With all of that being said, W&L recruits nationally and should have no problem plugging holes in their roster, and I am sure they will compete for a conference championship as usual.

4. Randolph-Macon College

Have to go with Randolph-Macon in the number 4 spot. They have been on an upward trajectory over the past few seasons and they are returning multiple 5th year players from recent reports. Their number 1 point scorer Colin Disesa is back to contend for a title on what the Yellow Jackets must believe is their best team yet. They were undefeated before the season was ended prematurely last year and look to keep that momentum up in 2021. The teams they played were not that talented, but never the less RMC was undefeated. I think RMC has the potential to make it to the ODAC tourney weekend and maybe even pull a few upset.