This is the final weekend of games for the NCAA world prior to the NCAA tournament kicking off. That means not only have several schools seen their seasons come to an end, but we’re about to see even more. And while some our ending, others will be given new life. It’s college lacrosse conference tournament time! So let’s take a look at each conference tournament to find the best college lacrosse matchups, see what’s at stake, who’s involved, and when it all happens.
ACC
In men’s college lacrosse, the ACC opted to skip the conference tournament and just play more regular season games. Without an automatic qualifier, this actually does make sense, but it means we lose them fun of a tournament atmosphere. So, onto the next ones!
Ivy League
Who’s in?: Brown (1), Cornell (2), Yale (3), Penn (4)
Format: Standard four team format, starting Friday at Brown. Cornell and Yale start at 6PM on ESPNU with Brown and Penn following at 8:30. The winners play on Sunday at Noon, also on ESPNU.
Top 20 RPI: Princeton (2), Penn (4), Yale (5), Cornell (7), Brown (9), Harvard (12)
What’s at stake?: This is definitely one of the most interesting college lacrosse conference tournaments this season. The main thing on the line is seeding, mostly. With such a loaded field of teams where you still have top 20 RPI squads outside of the tournament, there’s no question the four team playing will make the tournament. But, this is a chance to see how many Ivy teams will play host when the bracket comes out.
Big Ten
Who’s in?: Everyone! Maryland (1), Rutgers (2), Ohio State (3), Johns Hopkins (4), Penn State (5), Michigan (6)
Format: The first round of 6v3 and 5v4 already happened this past weekend, with both Ohio State and Hopkins advancing. Now everything happens at Maryland this weekend. Last night saw Rutgers and Maryland both advancing to the finals, being played Saturday at 8PM on the Big Ten Network.
Top 20 RPI: Maryland (1), Rutgers (6), Ohio State (11)
What’s at stake?: At this point, not much. Maryland and Rutgers are absolutely locks to get into the tournament, so with both advancing to the conference finals, there are no shakeups going on. Ohio State needed that AQ, but their RPI has them in the bubble conversation.
Big East
Who’s in?: Georgetown (1), Denver (2), Villanova (3), Marquette (4)
Format: Standard four team playoff starting last night with Denver and Nova playing first, followed by Georgetown and Marquette. Villanova won their game with Denver by one, and Georgetown easily beat Marquette. Georgetown and Villanova now play Saturday at 4:30 on the CBS Sports Network.
Top 20 RPI: Georgetown (3), Denver (15)
What’s at stake?: Now things are getting interesting. Denver was likely in a spot where they need the conference AQ to get into the tournament with such a low RPI. So when you’re looking at only Georgetown as a lock, they have a gigantic target on their back going into the weekend. If they win, everything is clean. A Hoyas loss to Nova means the ACC and Ivy start sweating some more.
CAA
Who’s in?: Delaware (1), Towson (2), Umass (3), Drexel (4)
Format: Standard four team tournament down in Philadelphia starting last night with Delaware and Drexel followed by Umass and Towson. Delaware and Towson both advance to the finals on Saturday at 2PM, streamed on LSN.
Top 20 RPI: None
What’s at stake?: Pretty much everything. For all four teams, this is/was a “win and you’re in” scenario, and anyone that loses can start cleaning out the locker room.
Patriot League
Who’s in?: Boston (1), Army (2), Loyola (3), Lehigh (4), Navy (5), Bucknell (6)
Format: The quarterfinal round already happened on Tuesday, with Loyola topping Bucknell and Lehigh beating Navy. Now on Friday we will have BU hosting Lehigh at 4PM followed by Loyola facing Army at 7. The winners will play on Sunday at Noon. All games are shown on CBS Sports Network.
Top 20 RPI: Boston U (14), Army (18), Loyola (19)
What’s at stake?: As unfortunate as it is, this is largely a win and your in scenario, or lose and go home. As good as BU has been this year their league-leading RPI is not great, which does not help things. I don’t think either Army or Loyola could rely on that for themselves, either. So expect this tournament to get heated.
NEC
Who’s in?: Saint Joseph’s (1), Bryant (2), Hobart (3), LIU (4)
Format: Standard four team format starting yesterday with host Saint Joseph’s playing LIU and Bryant facing Hobart. Hobart score the upset over Bryant while Saint Joseph’s got the one point win over LIU, meanings these two will play Saturday at 1 on ESPN3.
Top 20 RPI: Saint Joseph’s (20)
What’s at stake?: There will be no bid stealing in this one. Even though Saint Joseph’s as been ranked most of the year, their resume is not stellar by comparison. They need the AQ to be in the tournament, which means everyone else absolutely does as well.
SoCon
Who’s in?: Jacksonville (1), Richmond (2), High Point (3), VMI (4)
Format: Standard four team format hosted at High Point beginning yesterday. Jacksonville topped VMI first, followed by a close Richmond win over High Point. The Spiders and Dolphins play Saturday at Noon on ESPN+.
Top 20 RPI: Richmond (16)
What’s at stake?: This is a weird one. Jacksonville is undefeated in-conference and is a top 10 team in the standings. But their RPI is terrible. Does that make them a lock for the NCAA? I want to say yes, but I don’t think I can. Richmond is a quality team with more than enough potential to win this, and High Point is right behind them. But if Richmond with the higher RPI loses to Jacksonville, one would assume that Jacksonville would be the only SoCon team. Clear as mud.
ASUN
Who’s in?: Utah (1), Robert Morris (2), Air Force (3), Bellarmine (4)
Format: Standard four team format being hosted in Huntsville Alabama. Thursday’s action saw Utah and RMU advance, both in close games. They now face off on Saturday at 1 on ESPN+
Top 20 RPI: None
What’s at stake?: Everything! This is another league where there’s no question on only team is getting in, but that is still a big deal. This is the first year for the ASUN and to have someone like Utah in the top seed, we could see them enter the NCAA tournament for the first time as well.
MAAC
Who’s in?: St. Bonaventure (1), Marist (2), Manhattan (3), Siena (4)
Format: Standard 4 team format down at Marist. Thursday’s action was the Bonnies advance as expected, but Manhattan scored the overtime upset over Marist. That sets up a the finals for Saturday at 10AM on ESPNU.
Top 20 RPI: None
What’s at stake?: The MAAC is 100% a win and you’re in, meaning everyone is trying to avoid that dreaded final trip to the locker. What is worth watching? The Bonnies! They’re still a new team, so getting out to the #1 seed huge for them building a program. Making the NCAA tournament? Massive!
America East
Who’s in?: Vermont (1), Binghamton (2), UMBC (3), Albany (4)
Format: Standard fur team format being held in Vermont. Thursday saw UMBC and Vermont advance to Saturday’s finals, being played at Noon on Saturday on ESPNU.
Top 20 RPI: None
What’s at stake?: Even though these teams had much higher expectations going into the season, none of the final four in the AE are in a spot where they can afford a loss. The America East will only send one team this year, so this tournament means everything.
