From the implementation of a 30 second shot clock to prevent teams from holding the ball in 2012, to the ever-evolving faceoff rules designed to get the ball out and moving, to the elimination of the multiple clearing timer requirements in favor of a single 30 second count, collegiate lacrosse has always embraced its dynamism, never afraid to change itself in the hopes of improving the quality of the game. However, while the NCAA proved adept at fixing these subtleties of gameplay, a more ominous problem emerged, one that had been ignored by the NCAA for too long.

Aside from personnel, tactics have changed significantly this season as the team has rolled out a brand new defensive scheme. The old standard of man-to-man defense was exchanged for a more fluid zone system, in part to adapt to the new shot clock rule.

One team needed to win to keep its season alive. The other had the chance to move into first place in the Ivy League with a victory. And both took care of business.

No. 10 Penn women’s lacrosse took one giant leap towards the top of the Ivy League standings with a pivotal 17-12 win over No. 7 Princeton on Wednesday night. Saturday’s clash at Harvard is now even more important, as the Quakers could conceivably return to the top of the conference, should league-leaders No. 11 Cornell slip up.

While most of the campus will be out celebrating Spring Fling on Saturday, Penn men’s lacrosse will be faced with a must-win game for the second week in a row if it wants to keep its Ivy League and NCAA Tournament hopes alive.

Honorable Mention All-Ivy. 23 wins. 232 saves. 1,757 minutes played. So far, that is the legacy that the goalkeeper will leave behind from her two seasons with the Quakers. Quite possibly, fans may have never had the chance to witness her sheer dominance, but fate, as always, intervened.

From a development standpoint, a collegiate athlete’s freshman season is critical. It is a time of learning by doing, developing skills, and getting an initial taste of college athletics.

Talk about living up to the moment. With its back against the wall and the Ivy League Tournament on the line, Penn men’s lacrosse recovered its early season form just in time, defeating Harvard 14-10.

Having been on the brink of elimination from its tenth regular season conference championship in 11 years for more than a month, there’s been only one focus for Penn women’s lacrosse — staying alive. And behind a tremendously balanced offensive effort featuring a combined nine goals from senior Emily Rogers-Healion and freshman Gabby Rosenzweig, the Red and Blue did just that yet again.

It’s on to the next one. That’s the mentality for Penn women’s lacrosse as it prepares to take on Columbia this weekend in New York.

Win or go home. Penn men’s lacrosse will be headed up to Harvard this weekend in what is likely a must-win game for both teams if they hope to make it to the Ivy Tournament for a chance at an automatic bid in the NCAA tournament in May.

Operating from the defensive midfield, the senior might go unnoticed by the casual observer. For those interested in the Quakers solely for the highlight reel goals and doorstep saves, a player like Kreinz might not even be on their radar. He clears, he plays defensively, he scoops up ground balls, and he provides the occasional transition tally, but he’s by no means a goal scorer.

Penn women’s lacrosse has a knack for making big games look easy. It did that on Saturday when they handily took down Dartmouth, 17-6.

Everything in the early going truly pointed to a Penn men’s lacrosse victory, but Brown’s resiliency proved too much to handle, resulting in an 11-8 loss. The Quakers (4-5, 1-3 Ivy) are now on the brink of Ivy League Tournament elimination, as they once again failed to play the complete 60 minutes of lacrosse. 

After falling just short of pulling off a seven-goal comeback against Ivy rival Yale, the Penn men’s lacrosse team will face another tough test this weekend against conference foe and national semifinalist Brown on Saturday.

For Penn, this contest, and the four to follow it, are must-wins for the side seeking a share of the Ancient Eight title as well as home-field advantage come the NCAA Tournament.

With women's lacrosse ranked in the top 10 nationally, track and field seeing school records fall left and right, baseball having won ten of its last 11 games and more, the season has seen some supreme successes already — but only one athlete can stand out as the best. Our sports editors take to the roundtable to debate: Who is the Penn Athletics spring season MVP so far?