The 2025 NCAA men’s lacrosse tournament has arrived, and every game will be available for fans on ESPN platforms. First-round matchups begin this weekend, with coverage on ESPNU, ESPN+, and a marquee showdown between Ohio State and Notre Dame airing on ESPN2. The quarterfinals will take place at Hofstra on May 17 and at Navy on May 18, leading into NCAA men’s lacrosse tournament Championship Weekend at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, where the men’s and women’s semifinals and finals will be held. Anish Shroff contributed to this article.
Wednesday, May 7th
Siena grabbed the MAAC automatic qualifier for the first time in 11 years. Pratt Reynolds scored five times in the 12-8 final win over Sacred Heart. Ryan McCarthy had five assists, and goalie Andrew Arcuri made 15 saves. Coach Liam Gleeson is a former Great Dane assistant.
Albany defeated Bryant 12-7 for the first time since 2015 on their way to the America East AQ. The Danes played in the 2018 Final Four. They are a five-time quarterfinalist and appeared in the 2024 bracket, defeating Sacred Heart in the play-in game before losing to Notre Dame 14-9. Coach Scott Marr has led his team to 12 NCAA men’s lacrosse tournament.
Robert Morris beat Detroit Mercy 17-8, capturing the NEC automatic bid. The four-time NEC champs from the Steel City meet Air Force on Wednesday.
Air Force makes its first NCAA appearance since 2017 after hoisting gold in the Atlantic Sun tournament.
Opening Round Wednesday Results
Albany defeated Siena 11-9
Air Force beat Robert Morris 14-9
Join Chris Cotter, Paul Carcaterra, and Quint on their drive from Ithaca, NY, to the ESPN studio in Bristol, CT. They provide the pizza, laughs, and opinions on this week’s episode of the Quintessential Podcast.
Saturday, May 10th
Richmond at #8 North Carolina
12:00 pm on ESPNU (Anish Shroff and Quint Kessenich)
The Spiders captured the A10 and make their sixth tourney appearance after ending the regular season with eight consecutive wins. They haven’t lost since March 15 and are battle-tested in 2025 with wins over Georgetown and Virginia, and close losses to Maryland, Duke (OT), and Cornell, 12-11. Richmond ranks in the top 10 in both scoring offense and defense. They allow opponents just 27 shots per game. Quarterback Aidan O’Neil and defender Hunter Smith are the marquee names. Lucas Littlejohn and Max Merklinger spearhead a diverse scoring unit.
North Carolina hosts with health concerns looming about their most impactful player, Owen Duffy. The sophomore is freakishly mobile — a catalyst and party starter for Joe Breschi’s offense. Lefty hammer Dom Pietramala has been unstoppable with hands free. FOGO Brady Wambach is a reliable commodity in the possession department, and grad goalie Michael Giofrancaro maintains a level pulse. The Heels’ “no-name” defense continues to overachieve. If Duffy isn’t 100%, freshman and complimentary midfielders will have to raise their game.
This pairing is a true #8–9 matchup and kicks off a full day of television coverage on ESPNU and ESPN+ at noon, live from Dorrance Field.
Towson at #3 Princeton
2:30 pm on ESPNU (Chris Cotter and Paul Carcaterra)
Towson earned their second consecutive CAA title last weekend. The Tigers (11-5) began the year at 1-5 and have since won ten straight. The defense is most responsible for league success. Ronan Fitzpatrick scored five times in the championship game win over Drexel. Towson lost at Syracuse 20-15 in the 2025 NCAA first round after putting a scare into the Orange. They haven’t won a playoff game since making the Final Four in 2017.
Princeton lost to Cornell in the Ivy League final. The Tigers have dropped two consecutive NCAA first round games. This senior class played in the 2022 Final Four in Connecticut. The offense is one of the nation’s best. They heavily rely on two-man games. There is an abundance of skill with players like Coulter Mackesy, Nate Kabiri, Chad Palumbo, and Tucker Wade. While it appears as if the defense tightened later in the season, the jury is still out on whether that was due to true improvement or the declining quality of opponents faced in the lower half of the Ivy League. They have played both man and zone schemes on defense but rely heavily on goalie Ryan Croddick. Face-off success has too often been sold separately. With a track record of playing poorly in the first round and coming off two hard games last weekend, this Tiger vs. Tiger matchup won’t be a cakewalk.
Colgate at #5 Penn State
5:00 pm on ESPNU (Drew Carter and Matt Ward)
Colgate upset Army in the Patriot League semifinals and kept it rolling with an emphatic win over BU to grab the AQ. They haven’t been to the NCAA men’s lacrosse tournament since 2015. Their ten-man ride and pressure defense can be overwhelming. The offense is #3 nationally in scoring. The Connor brothers steer the offense, and goalie Matt LaCombe was a brick wall in the Patriot League tournament. The performances of specialists are heightened in May.
The Nittany Lions defeated Colgate in the first game of their season, a year after losing to the Red Raiders. PSU is led by Matt Traynor, Kyle Lehman, Alex Ross, and goalie Jack Fracyon. Freshman midfielder Hunter Aquino has cooled off lately and needs to bust through the freshman wall. If Penn State can make this a half-field game, they’ll win. But if Colgate speeds the game up and makes Penn State uncomfortable in the middle of the field, this will be a 60-minute game.
Georgetown at #7 Duke
7:30 pm on ESPNU (Anish Shroff and Quint Kessenich)
The Hoyas took the Big East AQ as Nova slid recklessly and got diced by ball movement. That’s an amazing seven straight league titles. GT coach Kevin Warne, who played for John Danowski at Hofstra, saw his offense shoot 45% in two wins last weekend. Aidan Carroll had a career day with eight goals and ten points. Fulton Bayman has been terrific after graduating from ND. Georgetown can pass. Jack Ransom can shoot.
Guessing that the Duke defense will be slow to slide/double and force Georgetown to score unassisted goals. Seventy-five percent of Hoya goals are assisted. Duke’s defense has been outstanding in the last month, holding six straight opponents to fewer than 10 goals. Defender Charlie Johnson is likely to cover Aidan Carroll. Johnson is exceptional. The Blue Devils’ Achilles heel has been sluggish attack production and clearing woes at key moments. Does Georgetown try to ride them? Can Duke generate goals outside the six-on-six? SSDM Aidan Maguire and LSM Mac Christmas have transitional firepower. Georgetown will be playing on grass — a rarity outside the ACC — in a night game at Koskinen.
First team to 10 wins.
Sunday, May 11th
Notre Dame at #4 Ohio State
12:00 pm on ESPN2 (Chris Cotter and Paul Carcaterra)
CFP National Championship rematch on the lacrosse field in front of an ESPN2 audience—what more could you ask for? This pairing in the first round could easily be a final or semifinal-quality matchup. Grab the Hefty bag and clean out your locker. Somebody is going home early.
The Irish rank in the top ten in scoring offense and defense but have been prone to lengthy scoring droughts over the last month. Midfield production and offensive flow have been disjointed and inconsistent. Chris Kavanagh is the spark, but he may be silenced by Bobby Van Buren. Midfielder Jordan Faison, splitting time between spring football and lacrosse, has not had the same impact this season. Notre Dame has excellent short stick defensive midfielders and stopper Shawn Lyght down low. Goalie Thomas Ricciardelli was dropping, flopping, and guessing low in the ACC Tournament—which can be corrected in practice this week. Notre Dame is talented and experienced, but what makes you believe the lightbulb can flip on just like that?
The Buckeyes (14-2) grabbed their first Big Ten title with a win over Maryland last Saturday night. They played in the 2017 national title game but haven’t won an NCAA playoff game since. Ohio State picked up a win over Notre Dame in South Bend earlier this season. Goalie Caleb Fyock—aka Big Tasty—leads the country in save percentage. Coach Nick Myers pulled talent out of the transfer portal, and his offense is diverse and deep with contributors like Alex Marinier, Liam White, Garrett Haas, and Jack McKenna. At the core, OSU is a defense-first team (#6 in scoring defense) with Van Buren and stout shorties playing at an elite level.
Air Force at #2 Maryland
2:30 pm on ESPNU (Drew Carter and Matt Ward)
Terps coach John Tillman is hunting his 11th Final Four in year #14. He’s an incredible 10-1 in the NCAA quarterfinal round. Maryland lost to Ohio State in the Big Ten final. Goalie Logan McNaney is Mr. May. His story is featured in “Game On,” which includes segments on CJ Kirst, Syracuse, and Notre Dame. Keep your eyes peeled for air times and networks—ESPN’s best storytellers are giving lacrosse some love.
Maryland’s defense is its identity, ranking #3 in the country in scoring defense. This team rarely beats itself. They are masters of restarts and win the inches. The LSM group—Jack McDonald and AJ Larkin—is excellent. Close defender Will Schaller is a burly lockdown artist. The offense is methodical, not spectacular, and led by Eric Spanos and Braden Erksa.
Harvard at #6 Syracuse
5:00 pm on ESPNU (Mike Corey and Mark Dixon)
Crimson upset Syracuse in the Dome earlier this season despite not winning face-offs. The Harvard ride has teeth. Harvard hasn’t won an NCAA men’s lacrosse tournament game since 1996. Sam King, Jack Speidell, and athletic midfielders Owen Gaffney, Logan Ip, and Miles Botkiss play an aggressive style in settled situations, ranking #6 nationally in scoring. That group looked hesitant against Princeton’s zone defense in the Ivy semifinal. Finding solutions to a possession disparity is job number one for coach Gerry Byrne.
Syracuse hasn’t been to Championship Weekend since 2013. The ACC Tournament champs are led by junior attackman Joey Spallina and PLL draft picks Owen Hiltz, Sam English, and defender Michael Grace. Goalie Jimmy McCool is trending in the right direction. This is a rematch game that coach Gary Gait and #HHH should crave. On paper, it appears to be the highest-scoring game of the opening weekend.
Albany at #1 Cornell
7:30 pm on ESPNU (Jay Alter and Jules Heningburg)
Cornell has the nation’s #1 scoring offense and the best player in the game: lefty scorer CJ Kirst. Thirteen seniors were part of the runner-up finish in 2022. The Big Red hasn’t won the national title since 1977 and have lost five finals along the way (1978, 1987, 1988, 2009, 2022). The offense is elite with Ryan Goldstein and Michael Long flanking Kirst on attack. Ball movement has been dazzling. Midfielder Hugh Kelleher, a PLL draft pick on Tuesday night, is a north-south Mack truck dodger. Lefty Liam Firth and Dalton provide skill and savvy inside and on the wing.
Cornell plays a boatload of SSDMs and LSMs and utilized both man-to-man and zone schemes against Yale. Their slide and recovery patterns were dreadful in that Ivy semifinal, but those areas looked cleaned up in the Ivy final win against Princeton. Goalie Wyatt Knust, a bouncy lefty from Tampa, Florida, is battle-tested and clutch. Jack Cascadden has gaudy faceoff stats after shredding sub-par Ivy FOGOs all season and can strike in transition—he has nine goals in 2025.
This veteran team feels like they’re on a mission, and coach Connor Buczek knows how to navigate the road to Boston, having led the Big Red to the 2022 title game, falling to Maryland 9-7 on Memorial Day. After two hard games in the Ivy Tournament and “Slope Day” festivities on campus Wednesday, I don’t expect Cornell to be razor sharp in the NCAA men’s lacrosse tournament opening round.
Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllstars. Check out his weekly podcast at laxallstars.com in the media section. Recent guests include players Ryan Goldstein (Cornell), Dom Pietramala (UNC), Alex Marinier (OSU), Max Sloat (Duke), and Eric Spanos (MD).
