Men’s lacrosse (9-7, 6-4 NESCAC) finished sixth in the NESCAC, after suffering a 4-14 defeat to third-ranked Bowdoin Polar Bears (11-4, 8-2 NESCAC) last Saturday during the quarterfinals of the NESCAC Tournament. The result marks the end of a strong season for the Ephs, which saw them string together wins in four of their final five games.
Prior to the tough loss, the team had been riding a wave of momentum to end the regular season, winning games against conference foes Colby (6-8, 2-8 NESCAC), Hamilton (9-6, 4-6 NESCAC), and the Middlebury Panthers (9-7, 6-4 NESCAC).
Co-captain Cal Caputo ’24 said that this success was a product of the team’s resiliency in overcoming a brief mid-season lull. “The guys did a really good job of learning from the mistakes we made and putting a really good run of games together, of having a hunger and drive from the losses — that helped get us on a roll.”
The conclusion — and climax — of the Ephs’ regular season came against the Panthers on April 24 in what has become a rivalry between the two NESCAC competitors. “We have a special rivalry with Middlebury,” Will Doran ’26 said. “Back in the late ’80s, there were two brothers. One was a lacrosse captain at Williams, and one was a lacrosse captain at Middlebury, and their grandfather had a trophy made for the rivalry. So we play for the Thompson Trophy every time we play Middlebury.”
The game reflected both teams’ intensity. Doran called it “the most electrifying lacrosse game” he had ever played in. The Ephs and the Panthers battled back and forth, with neither team able to establish more than a twogoal lead. In the fourth quarter, the Panthers took a 9-8 advantage with 1:17 left, but Nick Bates ’24 responded with only 38 seconds remaining, sending the game to overtime.
Overtime was initially a stalemate, a credit to the Ephs’ defense, according to goalkeeper Matt Wetmore ’25. “Our defense really held strong,” he said. “I didn’t even have to do much in [overtime], as I only had one shot on goal in the three overtime periods.”
After two scoreless periods, Caputo punctuated a 10-9 Eph sudden-death victory with a breathtaking, behind-the-back goal. The play, which constituted Caputo’s final regular season goal in a career full of them, made its way onto ESPN’s SportsCenter Top 10. “That was a dream come true moment as an athlete,” Caputo said. “Waking up and seeing you’re on SportsCenter is pretty surreal, so I was definitely happy about that.”
With a euphoric end to the regular season in the rearview mirror, the Ephs turned their attention to the Polar Bears — a team that had defeated the Ephs 6-14 two weeks prior. “As a team we were really fired up, really excited to get a second shot,” Doran said. “We wanted to beat ’em when it counted.”
The Ephs struggled throughout the contest, going down early to the Polar Bears and seeing the deficit grow over time, ending in a 4-14 loss. “I think mentally we went into it with the right mindset,” Doran said, explaining the loss. “It just came down to execution. Bowdoin executed better than us yesterday and you can see that in the score.”
The Ephs emphasized Bowdoin’s strength as a team. “They’re really good on both ends of the ball — definitely one of the best teams we’ve played all year,” Caputo said. “They do a good job of coming out of the gates strong, and they made it tough for us to get in a rhythm.”
In defeat, Caputo, Gavin Timoney ’27, Seamus Regan ’27, and Tucker Catlin ’24 each scored a goal for the Ephs.
The loss marked the end of the careers of the Ephs’ seniors. “[The seniors] gave everything,” Wetmore said. “They had a pretty unconventional journey through Williams with COVID their freshman year, but they have really given more than I can summarize in words to this program, and the tears on the field after reflected that.”
Despite the difficult end to the season, the Ephs looked back fondly on it as a whole. Caputo noted important wins against Christopher Newport and Middlebury, as well as an improvement in team culture. “The message for myself and the other senior leaders was that we were really grateful for the group of guys and the season that we did have, and that there was no one else that we’d rather do it with,” he said.
