We have a new champion! In what was a fitting finale to a season unlike any other, the Eagles of Boston College are your 2021 champions in DI women’s lacrosse following their 16-10 win over Syracuse. The victory marks the first title in program history, and the Boston College women’s lacrosse squad is remarkably the first team outside of men’s hockey to bring home an NCAA championship for the school. But this title was no flash in the pan effort for the team. It had been building toward this for years, and it is now established as a truly elite program.
Boston College Women’s Lacrosse Finally Finishes the Job
Head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein brought her team to the final game for the fourth time in a row. On the broadcast, commentator Jay Alter noted how the Eagles were trying to not repeat the infamous Buffalo Bills run of four Super Bowls without a single win, and now we can say they were definitely successful in avoiding that. Their previous three attempts started with a 2017 loss in their own backyard at Gillette Stadium to top-seeded Maryland, 16-13. In 2018, Boston College avenged that Maryland loss by beating the Terps in the semifinals only to fall to James Madison, 16-15, in what was just its second loss of the season. In 2019, it was another two-loss campaign. This time, the Eagles beat UNC in the regular season, lost to the Heels in the ACC Tournament, then beat them again in the national semifinal in double overtime only to fall once again to the Terps in the championship game, 12-10.
But this year, Boston College avenged its earlier losses on a national stage. Its three defeats this season were split between Syracuse and North Carolina. In their first game with UNC, the Eagles lost by a whopping 21-9. With Syracuse, they had a double header weekend and a meeting in the ACC Tournament where the Orange had two wins (16-7 and 19-17), while also winning one (14-13). The major win was knocking off undefeated UNC in the semifinals, 11-10. The Tar Heels had looked truly unbeatable this year, and that 21-9 game was certainly in the memory of BC.
But in the final game against Syracuse, there were storylines everywhere. Most notable was that this was the fourth meeting this year between the two teams, which is apparently (and believably) a first for the sport. There was also the inability for BC to contain the Syracuse offense, which had put up some major goal totals in their previous games. Finally, there was Kayla Treanor, the Orange great who is now the associate head coach for Boston College and has her first title at the hands of her former coach, Gary Gait.
The other major storyline in this game was Charlotte North. The sensational transfer from Duke was part of the team in last year’s shortened season but took things to a new level in 2021. In this game alone, she scored six goals, bringing her season total to 102. That mark is now the new record for goals scored in a single season. The goal that actually broke the record was on a free position, which she buried without hesitation.
Congratulations to Boston College women’s lacrosse for finally achieving the ultimate goal and bringing a national title home to Chestnut Hill!
