Weekend winners:

1. Syracuse: Twenty-one, and a winner. The Orange began to put last year's trying season behind them with a 21-6 rout of Villanova behind Kenny Nims' six goals. It's just one game, but there was more than a glimmer of the 'Cuse everyone learned to fear in the past.

2. Garrett Billings: With teammate Ben Rubeor sidelined with a knee injury, Billings lit up Drexel for three goals and four assists in an 11-7 Virginia victory. The Cavaliers will need Rubeor soon enough, but it has to be settling to know an upset or two can be averted before the March 1 meeting with Syracuse.

3. Delaware: In a rematch of last year's NCAA quarterfinal, the Blue Hens dusted off UMBC 15-7 in a game played in Florida. Delaware has some interesting games on the horizon, including a March 8 visit from Albany and a March 12 trip to Georgetown.

Time to regroup:

1. Colgate: Considered a Patriot League contender in the preseason, the Raiders were lit up 15-5 in an opening weekend trip to Denver. Colgate isn't in a cult of one in terms of struggling with a trip out west, and the Pioneers are probably better than a lot of folks gave them credit for. But a 10-goal loss is not the way to make an early impression.

2. St. John's: Programs that are only a few years old require some patience, and Adam Pascal has done a superb job in making Holy Cross a lot more respectable than it once was. But the Red Storm cannot afford to be losing at home to the Crusaders, especially after building a 3-0 lead. St. John's could be in for some rough days this year, especially when it visits Georgetown on March 1.

3. Loyola: Nobody does the excruciating opening loss quite like the Greyhounds, who have dropped their last four openers by a combined six goals (including Saturday's 7-6 loss to Notre Dame). There aren't many easy ones on Loyola's schedule, and it would be hard to overcome an 0-2 start and make the tournament for the second straight year. To avoid that, the Greyhounds must defeat Towson for the first time since 2004.

And my ballot for this week's Inside Lacrosse media poll:

1. Johns Hopkins (0-0)
2. Duke (1-0)
3. Virginia (1-0)
4. Georgetown (0-0)
5. Cornell (0-0)
6. Maryland (0-0)
7. Princeton (0-0)
8. North Carolina (1-0)
9. Syracuse (1-0)
10. Navy (2-0)
11. Notre Dame (1-0)
12. Albany (0-0)
13. Delaware (2-0)
14. Towson (0-0)
15. Hofstra (0-0)
16. Denver (1-0)
17. Massachusetts (0-0)
18. Loyola (0-1)
19. Drexel (0-1)
20. UMBC (0-1)

--- Patrick Stevens