The men’s lacrosse team may not be in season for a few more months, but there are already reasons to be excited for the spring.

Last Saturday, the team participated in the annual Lacrosse for Leukemia fundraising tournament. In the tournament, which is not officially scored, the Bearcats battled perennial power Johns Hopkins to a close margin, and outplayed former America East foe Quinnipiac. A successful outing against Hopkins is inspiring, especially considering Binghamton’s newly released schedule.

The Bearcats will once again face one of the toughest schedules in the country, as eight of the 13 games are against opponents who were nationally ranked last season. BU visits the Carrier Dome on March 24 to face upstate lacrosse giant Syracuse for the first time, and two weeks later will head to defending national champion Virginia. Other notable matchups are at regional rivals Cornell, Hobart and Colgate, all three of whom Binghamton faced in 2006. America East rival Albany visits the Southern Tier on April 28 for the last regular season game — one that will likely have important playoff implications.

Head Coach Ed Stephenson is thrilled about this year’s team, which will feature a more up-tempo, attacking offense than in years past. That is good news for anyone who followed the Bearcats last year, when they finished dead last in scoring in the conference. Stephenson said that many freshmen have emerged as the team’s best players and several will become starters. Let’s hope it won’t be a rebuilding year — Virginia and Syracuse will not topple easily.