Regular-season gauntlet prepared Lynchburg for 12th NCAA Tournament appearance

“I think we quietly understood that it was win and get in, and if we don’t, we weren’t,” junior attack Evan Lombardo said.

In the next five days, they cruised to an easy win in the conference tourney quarterfinals and took care of business in the semifinals and championship games last weekend, avenging two regular-season losses by defeating No. 12 Washington and Lee and No. 17 Roanoke.

“The guys kept their eyes on the prize. They were extremely dialed in and focused,” coach Steve Koudelka said. “They knew if they just played three great games, they were ODAC champs, and that’s what they did.”

Of course, as they begin the program’s 12th pursuit of the national championship, the Hornets hope the success in the conference is just a prelude.

Winning the ODAC tourney has been taken care of. One goal down.

One goal — securing the bigger trophy for the first time in LC history — to go.

If they’re to accomplish the feat, the Hornets coaching staff and players know they’ll have to lean on the experience they garnered while they survived a regular-season gauntlet.

“I think what prepares you is what you do during the year,” Koudelka said. “… For us right now, the games that we have played … we will be prepared for this moment.”

The Hornets got off to their worst start in at least 15 years this season, dropping the first four games. All of those losses, though, came to teams currently ranked in the top 15 in the nation. Three of the four were in the top seven, and the four losses were by a combined 12 goals.

The defeats showed the Hornets could play with the best, they say, but they’re ready for the chance to show they can do better than just keeping games close.

“To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. We haven’t beat the best this year,” goalie CJ Santora said, “but we’re excited to get the opportunity to [do that] again.”

They’ll start with an opening-round matchup with Dickinson, ranked ninth in the latest United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Coaches poll.

The game is slated for 4 p.m. today at Dickinson in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

“We’re just happy to be in this thing,” Koudelka said, “because now we get to go play against a really great opponent and challenge ourselves again.”

While they’re focused first on things they can do better — like keeping possession so they can control the game more easily, Santora said — one of the keys to Lynchburg picking up a win will be finding a way to stop Dickinson’s Dylan Maher.

The senior attack is third in the nation in goals per game with 4.06. He’s scored five goals or more in a game on six occasions, including a nine-goal performance early in the Red Devils’ season.

The Hornets will counter with a strong attack unit of their own. Ranked 10th in the nation in scoring offense, Lynchburg nets 15.55 goals per game on average, led by Lombardo.

Lombardo, currently ranked 25th in the nation for goals per game with 3.25, has scored five goals or more eight times.

And he makes the most of his opportunities, scoring on nearly 52 percent of his shots (11th nationally).

On the other side of the field, Lynchburg’s stout defense is led by Santora, who saves 54.2 percent of opponents’ shots and has looked his best in goal in the past two games. Against Washington and Lee in the ODAC tourney semis, he made a season-high 19 saves (70.4 percent) in the Hornets’ 11-8 win. Twenty-four hours later, he had 10 saves in a five-goal win in the championship over Roanoke.

Santora, a senior, knows what it’ll take to win a national championship. After making it to the title game as a freshman, he hopes this year will finally be the year everything adds up to a win on championship Sunday, May 27.

“I think the biggest thing is no one’s done fighting. I know we have a lot of gas in the tank still,” Santora said. “We’re a resilient group that just keeps on taking punches and keeps rolling with them and is excited to play lacrosse. No one wants to go home. No one wants to part ways. Our summer isn’t here yet, and we’re excited to keep rolling.”

Lombardo echoed Santora’s thoughts. The confident Hornets are a close bunch, they say, ready to use the past as fuel for a history-making run.

“We all love being here on this team, and we want to prolong it as long as possible,” Lombardo said, “and that means playing on May 27.”