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NCAA Lacrosse Final Four Super Post

The NCAA Lacrosse Final Four is upon us, and thank goodness for that! It’s a GREAT weekend of lacrosse, and there is PLENTY to watch on TV, read about online, and actually DO. The doing part gets to your backyard, the parking lot of a game, or out on a field yourself. But we’ll get to that later… for now, let’s talk about the 2015 NCAA Lacrosse Final Four in Philadelphia, PA!

I’ll preview the big games, pick winners, show off some stellar videos to get you ready, and then point out some AWESOME NCAA Lacrosse Final Four items that you just might be overlooking! It’s all in the details. Get granular.

Previews & Winners – D1 NCAA Lacrosse Final Four

On Saturday, Notre Dame plays Denver and Johns Hopkins takes on Maryland. Both games are going to be stellar. If there is one prediction I make all weekend that is a LOCK, both games being stellar has to it. This is MUST watch lacrosse.

Notre Dame Vs Denver – Notre Dame’s defense is athletic, tough, and plays together. They also play very smart lacrosse, and they dictate tempo and pace, even without the ball. It’s downright impressive. Denver does the same thing, but they do so on offense. Watching the Denver O and Notre Dame D collide is going to be an analyst’s dream come true. Patience Vs Patience, Strength Vs Strength. That alone should be magic, but it makes very hard to pick a winner. Add in Denver’s face off strength, and Notre Dame’s electric Matt Kavanaugh and Co. on offense and predicting a winner here becomes impossible. That being said, I’ll take Notre Dame to win a TIGHT game.

Johns Hopkins Vs Maryland – This is such an epic game I can’t even begin to describe it accurately. This is an OLD rivalry; it goes WAY back. And both teams this year have looked like world beaters at times. I had some serious doubts about Hopkins during the regular season, but those doubts are long gone for me. I learned my lesson in 2015. Hopkins can explode for goals, or hold for long possessions. Their defense can spark transition, and when they play up tempo and loose, they look like a dangerous, fiery group. Maryland is balanced, and while they play Baltimore-style lacrosse, they also have an edge to them, and might view themselves as the underdogs in this one still. Maryland will work HARD, and Hop needs to equal or better than intensity. I’ll go with Maryland to win, but I don’t feel good about that pick at all!

Sunday Action – D2 & D3

On Sunday, the D2 and D3 finals will be played in Philly, and both games should be quite good. The D2 game has the potential to be lopsided (although you never know) while the D3 game should be an epic battle between two teams who can put up goals, and play fast lacrosse!

NCAA D2 – Limestone Vs LeMoyne – I will give the edge to Limestone here, but it’s not much of an edge. Both teams have losses during the season, and both can have off days. When LeMoyne plays well, they put up about 12 goals and limit their opponents to around 8. Limestone typically puts up more goals per game, but when they play better teams, this number can drop. LeMoyne needs to hit at least 10 goals in this one to win, and they can’t let Limestone put up too many points early. Turn this game into a grind, and it could tilt to LeMoyne’s favor. Still, I’ll take Limestone by a couple goals. Maybe.

NCAA D3 – Lynchburg Vs Tufts – Of all the games out there, I like my pick in this one the best. Tufts has experience on the big stage, they almost always put together a run of 5+ goals in any game, and they are battle tested against teams that know their style of play well. That being said, if a team can hold Tufts to under 12 goals, a win is quite possible. And Lynchburg has consistently held opponents under 10 goals all year. Tufts wants a shootout, Lynchburg would prefer a game where the two teams combine for 20 goals or less. Who is going to get their way? I’ll take Tufts, but that’s probably just my NESCAC bias showing.

NCAA Lacrosse Final Four Video Explosion

Why not drop a bunch of good videos into this post? Video is good.

How EPIC was this game? Best of the tourney so far by my count…

You know who Steve Zahn is cheering for in the D3 game, right?

Limestone Highlights over Lake Erie

Le Moyne over Merrimack Highlights

Grab Bag: Other Stuff To Know

If you want to follow Lynchburg’s team for the weekend, you can! Check out the Lynchburg Athletics site for more on that. Very cool thing to do for your program!

Game Times – TV Channels – Online Streams: ND Vs Denver – 1pm ET, ESPN2; Maryland Vs JHU – 330pm ET, ESPN2. Both games are also on Watch ESPN online.

Monday’s D1 title game is at 1pm on ESPN.

D2 Final – game will be played on Sunday. Livestream HERE

D3 Final – game will be played on Sunday. Livestream HERE

Check out the 2015 All Americans! And here are your 2015 Scholar All Americans.