Rivalry lacrosse games dot the menu this week and next. League races are beginning to crystallize. The weather is perking up. What more can you ask for?
Eleven teams are in the hunt for an NCAA tournament seed. League tournaments in the Big Ten, ACC, and Ivy will shape the bracket. The questions are simple—who can keep improving? Who can stay healthy? Who can find that extra gear when the calendar flips to May?
In terms of hosting a playoff game, eleven teams appear to be in the mix (in my opinion). Based on current RPI order, the list includes:
Princeton
Maryland
Penn State
Cornell
North Carolina
Army
Harvard
Syracuse
Notre Dame
Ohio State
Duke
Perhaps Michigan can leapfrog into the conversation with two more wins. Duke holding head-to-head wins over Saint Joe’s and Richmond is critical. But remember, three of the above will fall out of the top eight and end up with road games in the first round. If Army doesn’t win the Patriot League, someone on this list may be bumped entirely from the at-large picture.
20) Sacred Heart
Pioneers (9-2) have won five straight, the latest over Quinnipiac, and are now (5-1) in the MAAC. Canisius and Siena are front and center for the league AQ. Graduate goalie Alex Pazienza has made over 500 career saves. The bouncy righty is stopping shots at a rate north of 57%.
19) Yale
Welcome back. Three straight wins over Brown, Penn, and Dartmouth have Yale and coach Andy Shay in the Ivy League tournament mix. A 21-12 win over the Big Green marked a step in the right direction in a season filled with injuries. Don’t forget about Chris Lyons and Leo Johnson. The Bulldogs finish the regular season with Hofstra, Albany, and Princeton.
18) Rutgers
Scarlet Knights (6-7) missed the net 13 times in the first 30 minutes. Minimally invasive offense never wins. Dodge to the dirt. It’s hard to believe this squad beat Maryland. Scarlet Knights try hard, they’ll hit you, but the 24 turnovers and lack of separation quickness on offense prove fatal. RU tries Penn State on Friday night (BTN).
17) UMass
Minutemen are on the verge of a ten-win season (9-3) for coach Greg Cannella, with victories over Rutgers, St. Joe’s, Dartmouth, Albany, and Vermont. Trace Hogan, Aidan Drunsic, and Robbie Granara are leading the way. The Gorillas face Richmond on Saturday.
16) Denver
Following Army-Navy, the televised 7-3 win at Georgetown was tough on the eyes. Pios (6-5) mixed zone and man-to-man defense. Malcolm Kleban made 11 saves in the swamp. The EMD unit was in shutdown mode. Hoyas shot 3 of 33. Noah Manning had four goals for coach Matt Brown. It’s hard to trust anybody in the Big East this year. Expect chaos the rest of the way. What’s up with scoring goals this year? Marquette scored two. Georgetown scored three. Duke scored seven. Hopkins just four. Hofstra, High Point, and Penn managed only six.
15) Fairfield
Stags (11-1) picked up a giant win at Delaware as Will Consoli had seven points and goalie Owen Hirsch made 16 saves. Fairfield heads on the road to face Towson this week. The CAA race is no joke.
14) Saint Joseph’s
Hawks (9-3) have won nine of their last ten games, the latest over Hobart. Richie LaCalandra put up eight points and Ben Dutton scored five times. Hawks face High Point next.
13) Richmond
Spiders (9-3) stung High Point 11-6 on Senior Day to improve to (3-0) in the A10. Going 7-for-21 on face-offs wasn’t ideal, but the defense, led by Mitchell Dunham (6 GBs and 5 CTs), limited High Point to 25 shots. A critical game with UMass is next on the calendar. The Atlantic 10 trio of UMass, St. Joe’s, and Richmond are all having stellar seasons. The A10 winner is a nasty draw in the round of 16.
12) Michigan
Wolverines (7-5) were tied 3-3 at halftime in a defensive battle and went over 23 minutes without a goal. It was a hard-fought game at Rutgers, devoid of transition. Ryan Cohen pumped one past the wide-stanced RU goalie Cardin Stoller for an 8-6 lead with 8:00 to play. Big Blue held on for the 8-6 win. Not impressed with Big Ten offenses right now. Michigan (3-1) in conference currently sits in first place with OSU. The rivalry game in Ann Arbor with Ohio State is always theatre.
11) Duke
Devils (9-4) couldn’t find the net in an 8-7 loss to UNC. When the starting attack combines for three points, you’ve got problems. Six failed clears didn’t help, and scoring just two goals over the final 30 minutes is a recipe for disaster. The defense was excellent—holding Carolina to eight goals is a winning effort.
Junior FOGO Luke Engelke has exceeded expectations in Durham. Close defender Charlie Johnson has helped lessen the blow of losing Kenny Brower. Johnson covered Brennan O’Neill daily on the scout team last spring, and matchups with Owen Duffy, Joey Spallina, and McCabe Millon will define his season. Devils entertain Syracuse on Saturday at 2pm (ACCN). Duke could use another quality win to elevate off the bubble.
10) Penn State
Penn State (8-3) dominated Hopkins 10-4 as Matt Traynor poured in seven goals. “We Are” leaves Hopkins wanting more, with the Jays having now lost four straight in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions rank #3 in both RPI and strength of schedule.
Rutgers and Penn State meet on Good Friday, April 18, on BTN.
9) Harvard
Crimson (9-2) had too much firepower for Penn, as Jack Speidell continued his magical ways with five goals. This kid is a star, and the combo with Sam King is lethal. For once, Harvard won the majority of the face-offs. Martin Nelson, their top defenseman, deserves All-American status. He plays close, takes LSM runs, and lines up on the wing when they double pole face-offs. He creates mayhem and causes turnovers. Ray Dearth and Owen Guest are two underrated SSDMs for coach Gerry Byrne. Harvard plays a lot of defense because they win under 40% of their draws, but they create possessions with a relentless ride.
Crimson face Cornell next. A Big Red win means they host the Ivy Tournament. A Harvard victory could trigger a party in the North End and a three-way tie with Princeton and Cornell.
8) Notre Dame
A must-win against Virginia gives the Irish a 6-3 record and an RPI of #9. A third-quarter surge and a seven-goal run made the difference. Bagpiper Ben Ramsey went coast to coast, igniting the Arlotta crowd. Ten different players recorded a point in the much-needed 12-7 win that bolstered their otherwise mediocre resume.
Four players are flying under the radar this season. Defender Nate Schwitzenberg has been rock solid in his first year as a starter. Freshman midfielder Matt Jeffery looks like a future star. Short-stick Christian Alacqua has made major strides in 2025, and LSM Will Donovan is winning his matchup every week.
Golden Domers travel to North Carolina on April 19 (ESPNU).
7) Ohio State
The Buckeyes’ 11-game win streak came to an end in a 13-8 loss to Maryland. Ohio State’s first midfield was underwhelming. Righty sniper Alex Marinier, who switched from defense after two years, has been lighting up goalies, but Maryland clamped down on him. Through their first eight games, OSU shot 29.8%. Then they heated up, shooting 41% over four games. On Saturday, they crashed back to 8-of-33 (24%).
Ohio State’s RPI is #10, and a strength of schedule of #19 shows some weak spots in their slate. The Buckeyes play Michigan next in Ann Arbor. There’s still work to be done, or they’ll be sweating it out on Selection Sunday.
6) North Carolina
Heels (9-2) took a gritty 8-7 win over Duke in a defensive battle. Painting Durham Carolina blue is always a special moment. Injury concerns around Owen Daly and Dom Pietramala do temper the optimism.
North Carolina faces Notre Dame on Saturday at noon on ESPNU. Anish Shroff and Paul Carcaterra will be on the call from Dorrance Field.
5) Army
Black Knights tied it up 4-4 at the buzzer before halftime on a soft, no-angle goal. That momentum carried into the third quarter, building a 7-4 lead. Navy started to take on water after giving up five in a row, but they righted the ship and were down just 8-6 to begin the fourth. Army leaves defenders on an island with slow-to-slide mechanics. Navy tied it 8-8 with 12:00 to play, then took a 9-8 lead on a sneak by Mac Haley after a late Army defensive rotation. This game always delivers epic ground ball battles. Navy led 10-9 with 6:00 remaining after midfielder Jack Flaherty scored while falling down the right alley. It became 11-9 with 2:06 left. Army midfielder Evan Plunkett scored on a rollback to make it 11-10, then struck again off the invert to tie the game at 11 with 1:23 remaining. Timeout. Navy turned it over high in the zone, and Army scored on a fast break just as the clock hit zero. Extra time in Annapolis. Army had the first possession in OT, but Dan Daly made a point-blank save on a high-to-high sneak attempt from Plunkett. Level changes matter. Navy took possession and called timeout, but their drawn-up play fizzled into a weak-angle shot. Army regained the ball, and coach Joe Alberici called timeout. Jackson Eicher won it by bulldozing his way right-handed up the hash. The rent is due. Army wins 12-11 in OT and sings second. This rivalry never disappoints. Saluting all the men who stepped into the arena and battled.
Army’s (10-1) hopes for the Patriot League AQ and an at-large bid both remain intact. Their SOS of #22 is a drag. Bucknell, the most erratic team in the country, is next.
4) Syracuse
Syracuse (9-3) held Notre Dame scoreless for 39:53 last week. RIT transfer Michael Grace effectively covered Jake Taylor in that game, so surrendering 17 goals to Cornell a week later was a massive step in the wrong direction. Shot selection on offense wasn’t up to par. Too often, Syracuse takes the first available shot instead of hunting the best one. Coverage of CJ Kirst and Ryan Goldstein struggled with a slide-happy scheme. Against elite opponents, seven penalties is a losing formula. The Orange seemed to unravel in the cold rain and continue to struggle outside the cozy Dome.
Syracuse is at Duke on Saturday at 2pm (ACCN). I’ll be in Durham with Chris Cotter for this one.
3) Maryland
‘Be the Best’ (9-2) silenced Ohio State in Columbus, 13-8. Maryland trailed 2-1 midway through the first quarter, then sparked an 8-1 run to take a 9-3 halftime lead. Maryland bench scoring remains non-existent.
Maryland hosts Johns Hopkins on Friday night at 8pm on BTN, with Joe Beninati and Mark Dixon six floors above the action.
2) Princeton
Princeton handled Brown 17-7. When you watch the Tigers play, LSM Michael Bath jumps off the screen for his impact in the middle of the field. SSDM Cooper Mueller, a Princeton legacy whose dad Kit played hoops for PU in 1991, has put together a strong campaign. Coach Matt Madalon and staff continue to produce winning results.
Tigers and Quakers play this week.
1) Cornell
Big Red (10-1) hit the ten-win mark after putting up 17 goals against Syracuse on Long Island. CJ Kirst and Ryan Goldstein ran circles around the Orange defense with patience and precision. Goalie Wyatt Knust was razor sharp early while building an 8-2 lead. Cornell has nine Long Island public school players on the roster. I love the grit. You have to respect the 16 goals per game this offense is averaging.
Sophomore Ryan Goldstein is averaging three assists per game. The X attackman and Cornell legacy joined me on the podcast this week.
Cornell did not qualify for the NCAA tournament in 2024. They’ve made champ weekend appearances in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2018, and 2022. This senior class played in that 2022 title game. The 160-year-old program owns NCAA titles in 1971, 1976, and 1977. Dust ’em off.
The men’s and women’s NCAA lacrosse championships will be held at Gillette Stadium on Memorial Day weekend. Men’s Quarterfinals are set for Hofstra and Navy on May 17 and 18, and it looks like those matchups will be can’t-miss games in 2025. The bracket will feature ten automatic qualifiers and eight at-large selections. The top eight seeds will host first-round games in the round of sixteen. The NCAA selection show airs on Sunday, May 4 at 9:30pm on ESPN+.
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 current players Dom Pietramala (UNC), Alex Marinier (OSU), Max Sloat (Duke), Eric Spanos (Maryland), Shawn Lyght (Notre Dame), Coulter Mackesy (Princeton), Billy Dwan III (Syracuse), and Casey Wilson (Denver).
