Midd men’s lax ready for RIT

MIDDLEBURY, Vt. (WCAX) - The Middlebury men’s lacrosse team is hours away from their first national quarterfinal since 2010.

Like last week, the Panthers will have to go on the road, and this time they’re staring down another of the nation’s best: the two-time defending national champion and 3rd ranked RIT Tigers stand between Midd and a semifinal berth.

The Panthers know they have their hands full but they’re hoping what they’ve already been able to accomplish this year has built a sense of belief that they can pull off the win.

“I just keep trying to tell our guys that they need to believe in themselves as much as I believe in them,” said head coach Dave Campbell. “They’ve done a lot of great things this year, they’ve beaten some really great teams, they’ve played at a really high level. They need to believe that when they’re going against a really good team, and another good team that’s gonna make plays and score some really nice goals. And it can’t take away from your belief in that moment. And when we believe in ourselves and trust each other, we’re really good.”

“We have a lot of respect for that program,” added senior defenseman Billy Dobensky. “We actually have a drill that we do called the RIT drill. So again, a lot of respect for them, they have a really good team, really skilled. And I think that again, coming back to us, I think it’s just focsuing on what we do best, taking care of the little things and the big things will take care of themselves. So yeah looking forward to it, it’s gonna be a huge test.”

Faceoff between the Tigers and Panthers is scheduled for 5 p.m. Saturday evening from the Tufts campus in Medford, Mass.

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