NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament

The NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship tournament determines the annual top men's college lacrosse team in the NCAA Division I. This tournament has determined the national champion since the inaugural 1971 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship. From 1936 through 1970, the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) awarded the Wingate Memorial Trophy annually to the collegiate champion based on regular season records.

NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament
SportField lacrosse
Founded1971
No. of teams17
CountryUnited States
Most recent
champion(s)
Notre Dame (2nd Title)
Most titlesSyracuse (10 Titles)
TV partner(s)ESPN
CBS Sports Network
Official websiteNCAA.com
Current sports event 2024 Championship

History

NCAA Championship 2009. Syracuse vs. Cornell pregame in Gillette Stadium. Syracuse would win 10-9 in OT.

The first Division I Championship tournament held in 1971 replaced the USILA and Wingate Memorial Trophy national title awards. As of 2023, 52 NCAA tournaments have been held (not held in 2020). In that span twelve teams — Johns Hopkins, Syracuse, Princeton, North Carolina, Virginia, Cornell, Duke, Maryland, Loyola University (Maryland), Denver, Yale and Notre Dame — have won the national title, with Syracuse leading with ten titles (plus one vacated by the NCAA[a]). In all, 41 teams have participated in the NCAA tournament since its inception. Only seven unseeded teams — the 1988 Cornell Big Red, the 1991 Towson Tigers, the 2006 Massachusetts Minutemen, the 2010 Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the 2011 and 2012 Maryland Terrapins and the 2016 North Carolina Tar Heels — have made it to the championship game, and only ten unseeded teams have made it to the tournament semi-finals, the most recent being North Carolina in 2016. Johns Hopkins has appeared in every tournament but three (1971, 2013, 2021). The Number One seed in the tournament has won the title 17 times and there have been 13 undefeated National Champions. North Carolina in 2016 was the first unseeded team to win the national title.

Originally consisting of eight teams, the size of the tournament field has changed over the years, increasing to 10 in 1986, 12 in 1987, 16 in 2003, 18 in 2014, down to 17 in 2017, down again to 16 in 2021, back up to 18 in 2022, and finally down to 17 in 2023. The two semifinal games and the final have been played on the same weekend at the same stadium since 1986. All three matches have always been scheduled for Memorial Day weekend, with the semifinals doubleheader on Saturday afternoon and the final held on the holiday itself.

The sport has historically been focused in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states, with the sport's U.S. heartland today extending from New England to North Carolina. Only eight schools from outside the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic have played in the NCAA tournament—Air Force, Butler, Denver, Marquette, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan and Utah. No team west of the Eastern Time Zone won an NCAA championship until Denver in 2015.

20 coaches have won Division I titles: Richie Moran, Glenn Thiel, Bud Beardmore, Bob Scott, Henry Ciccarone, Willie Scroggs, Jr., Roy Simmons, Jr., Dave Klarmann, Don Zimmerman, Bill Tierney, Dom Starsia, John Desko, Dave Pietramala, John Danowski, Charley Toomey, John Tillman, Joe Breschi, Andy Shay, Lars Tiffany, and Kevin Corrigan. Tierney is the only one to have won at two different schools (Princeton and Denver).

Results

NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament
YearHost City
(University)
Host StadiumFinal
Winner (Record)
(Seed)
ScoreRunner-up (Record)
(Seed)
1971
Details
Hempstead, New York
(Hofstra)
Hofstra StadiumCornell (13–1)
(#1)
12–6Maryland (9–4)
(#3)
1972
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumVirginia (11–4)
(n/a)
13–12Johns Hopkins (11–2)
(n/a)
1973
Details
Philadelphia
(Penn)
Franklin FieldMaryland (10–0)
(#1)
10–9
(OT)
Johns Hopkins (11–2)
(#2)
1974
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium IJohns Hopkins (12–2)
(#2)
17–12Maryland (8–2)
(#1)
1975
Details
Baltimore
(Johns Hopkins)
Homewood FieldMaryland (8–2)
(#3)
20–13Navy (10–5)
(#4)
1976
Details
Providence, Rhode Island
(Brown)
Brown StadiumCornell (16–0)
(#2)
16–13
(OT)
Maryland (10–1)
(#1)
1977
Details
Charlottesville, Virginia
(Virginia)
Scott StadiumCornell (13–0)
(#1)
16–8Johns Hopkins (11–2)
(#2)
1978
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium IJohns Hopkins (13–1)
(#2)
13–8Cornell (13–1)
(#1)
1979
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumJohns Hopkins (13–0)
(#1)
15–9Maryland (9–2)
(#2)
1980
Details
Ithaca, New York
(Cornell)
Schoellkopf FieldJohns Hopkins (14–1)
(#2)
9–8
(2OT)
Virginia (12–2)
(#1)
1981
Details
Princeton, New Jersey
(Princeton)
Palmer StadiumNorth Carolina (12–0)
(#2)
14–13Johns Hopkins (13–1)
(#1)
1982
Details
Charlottesville, Virginia
(Virginia)
Scott StadiumNorth Carolina (14–0)
(#1)
7–5Johns Hopkins (11–3)
(#2)
1983
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium ISyracuse (14–1)
(#2)
17–16Johns Hopkins (12–2)
(#1)
1984
Details
Newark, Delaware
(Delaware)
Delaware StadiumJohns Hopkins (14–0)
(#1)
13–10Syracuse (15–1)
(#2)
1985
Details
Providence, Rhode Island
(Brown)
Brown StadiumJohns Hopkins (13–1)
(#1)
11–4Syracuse (14–2)
(#2)
1986
Details
Newark, Delaware
(Delaware)
Delaware StadiumNorth Carolina (11–3)
(#5)
10–9
(OT)
Virginia (12–3)
(#3)
1987
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium IJohns Hopkins (10–3)
(#4)
11–10Cornell (13–1)
(#2)
1988
Details
Syracuse, New York
(Syracuse)
Carrier DomeSyracuse (15–0)
(#1)
13–8Cornell (9–6)
(unseeded)
1989
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumSyracuse (14–1)
(#1)
13–12Johns Hopkins (11–2)
(#2)
1990
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium ISyracuse (Vacated) (13–0)
(#1) [a]
21–9Loyola (11–3)
(#3)
1991
Details
Syracuse, New York
(Syracuse)
Carrier DomeNorth Carolina (16–0)
(#1)
18–13Towson (12–4)
(unseeded)
1992
Details
Philadelphia
(Penn)
Franklin FieldPrinceton (13–2)
(#3)
10–9
(OT)
Syracuse (13–2)
(#1)
1993
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumSyracuse (12–2)
(#3)
13–12North Carolina (14–2)
(#1)
1994
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumPrinceton (14–1)
(#3)
9–8
(OT)
Virginia (13–4)
(#5)
1995
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumSyracuse (13–2)
(#3)
13–9Maryland (12–4)
(#4)
1996
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumPrinceton (14–1)
(#1)
13–12
(OT)
Virginia (12–4)
(#3)
1997
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumPrinceton (15–0)
(#1)
19–7Maryland (11–5)
(#7)
1998
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium IIPrinceton (14–1)
(#2)
15–5Maryland (14–3)
(#5)
1999
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumVirginia (13–3)
(#3)
12–10Syracuse (12–5)
(#8)
2000
Details
College Park, Maryland
(Maryland)
Byrd StadiumSyracuse (15–1)
(#1)
13–7Princeton (12–3)
(#3)
2001
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium IIPrinceton (14–1)
(#2)
10–9
(OT)
Syracuse (13–3)
(#1)
2002
Details
Piscataway, New Jersey
(Rutgers)
Rutgers Stadium IISyracuse (15–2)
(#2)
13–12Princeton (10–5)
(#4)
2003
Details
BaltimoreM&T Bank StadiumVirginia (15–2)
(#2)
9–7Johns Hopkins (14–2)
(#1)
2004
Details
BaltimoreM&T Bank StadiumSyracuse (15–2)
(#4)
14–13Navy (15–3)
(#2)
2005
Details
Philadelphia (Penn)Lincoln Financial FieldJohns Hopkins (16–0)
(#1)
9–8Duke (17–3)
(#2)
2006
Details
Philadelphia (Penn)Lincoln Financial FieldVirginia (17–0)
(#1)
15–7Massachusetts (13–5)
(unseeded)
2007
Details
BaltimoreM&T Bank StadiumJohns Hopkins (13–4)
(#3)
12–11Duke (17–3)
(#1)
2008
Details
Foxborough, MassachusettsGillette StadiumSyracuse (16–2)
(#3)
13–10Johns Hopkins (11–6)
(#5)
2009
Details
Foxborough, MassachusettsGillette StadiumSyracuse (15–2)
(#2)
10–9
(OT)
Cornell (13–4)
(#5)
2010
Details
BaltimoreM&T Bank StadiumDuke (16–4)
(#5)
6–5
(OT)
Notre Dame (12–6)
(unseeded)
2011
Details
BaltimoreM&T Bank StadiumVirginia (13–5)
(#7)
9–7Maryland (13–5)
(unseeded)
2012
Details
Foxborough, MassachusettsGillette StadiumLoyola (18–1)
(#1)
9–3Maryland (12–6)
(unseeded)
2013
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldDuke (16–5)
(#7)
16–10Syracuse (16–4)
(#1)
2014
Details
BaltimoreM&T Bank StadiumDuke (17–3)
(#1)
11–9Notre Dame (12–6)
(#6)
2015
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldDenver (17–2)
(#4)
10–5Maryland (15–4)
(#6)
2016
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldNorth Carolina (12–6)
(unseeded)
14–13

(OT)

Maryland (17–3)
(#1)
2017
Details
Foxborough, MassachusettsGillette StadiumMaryland (16–3)
(#1)
9–6Ohio State (16–5)
(#3)
2018
Details
Foxborough, MassachusettsGillette StadiumYale (17–3)
(#3)
13–11Duke (16–4)
(#4)
2019
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldVirginia (17–3)
(#3)
13–9Yale (15–4)
(#5)
2020
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldCancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic
2021
Details
East Hartford, Connecticut (Fairfield)Rentschler FieldVirginia (14–4)
(#4)
17–16Maryland (15–1)
(#3)
2022
Details
East Hartford, Connecticut (Fairfield)Rentschler FieldMaryland (18–0)
(#1)
9–7Cornell (14–5)
(#7)
2023
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldNotre Dame (13–2)
(#3)
13–9Duke (16–2)
(#1)
2024
Details
Philadelphia (Drexel)Lincoln Financial FieldNotre Dame (15–1)
(#1)
15–5Maryland (11–5)
(#7)
2025
Details
Foxborough, MassachusettsGillette Stadium
2026
Details
TBDTBD

NCAA team titles

Below is a list of championships awarded by the NCAA. A vacated title is not included in the total.

Syracuse
Virginia
Princeton
North Carolina
Maryland
Cornell
Duke
Denver
Yale
Notre Dame
Baltimore schools
Johns Hopkins
Loyola
National Championships by school
– 10 championships, – 9 championships, – 7 championships, – 6 championships, – 5 championships, – 4 championships, – 3 championships, – 2 championships, – 1 championship
TeamTitlesFinals lostYears won
Syracuse1061983, 1988, 1989, 1990[a], 1993, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009
Johns Hopkins991974, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1987, 2005, 2007
Virginia741972, 1999, 2003, 2006, 2011, 2019, 2021
Princeton621992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001
North Carolina511981, 1982, 1986, 1991, 2016
Maryland4131973, 1975, 2017, 2022
Cornell351971, 1976, 1977
Duke342010, 2013, 2014
Notre Dame222023, 2024
Loyola112012
Denver102015
Yale112018
Navy02
Towson01
Massachusetts01
Ohio State01

Results by School and Year

Key

  •  CH  National Champion
  •  RU  National Runner-up
  •  SF  Semifinals
  •  QF  Quarterfinals
  •  10   12   16  First Round (10 teams in 1986, 12 teams starting in 1987, 16 teams starting in 2003)
  •  •  Play-In Round (1 or 2 teams per year, starting in 2014.)
  •  CH  Syracuse national championship vacated in 1990.

Each tournament has seeded the top 8 seeds. The top seed is shown with double underline, the teams seeded between No. 2 and No. 4 are shown with single underline, and the teams seeded between No. 5 and No. 8 are shown with dotted underline.

SchoolConference#QFSFCGCH7172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899000102030405060708091011121314151617181921222324
SyracuseACC4033261610QFSFQFCHRURUSFSFCHCHCHSFRUCHSFCHSFSFSFRUCHRUCHSFCH16SFCHCH16QF16RU16QFQFQF161616QF
Johns HopkinsBig Ten494429189RURUCHQFSFRUCHCHCHRURURUCHCHSFCHQFRU12QFSFSFQFSFSFQFQFSFSFQFSFRUSFCHQFCHRUQF16QFQFQFSF1616QF16QFQF
VirginiaACC433626117QFCHSFQFQFSFRUSFSFQFQFSFRUSF1212QFRUSFRUQFQFCHSF12SFCHSFCH16SFSFSFCHQF161616CHCHQFSFSF
PrincetonIvy League23171186QFQFCHSFCHQFCHCHCH12RUCHRUQFSFQF16QF1616SF1616
North CarolinaACC33261465QFQFSFCHCHSFSFSFCHQFQFSFSFCHSFRUQF12QF12QFQF16QFQF1616QF16QFCH16SF
MarylandBig Ten464129174RUSFCHRUCHRUSFSFRUQFQFSFQFSFSFSFQF1212RUQFRURUQFQFSFQFSFSF16QFQFQFRURU16SFRURUCHSFQFRUCH16RU
CornellIvy League30221483CHSFSFCHCHRUQFQFSFQFRURU121212QFQFQF16SF16RUSFQFSF1616QFRU16
DukeACC2621147312QF12SFQFQFQF12QFRURUSFSFCHSFSFCHCH1616QFRUSFSFRUQF
Notre DameACC271674212121212QF121212QFSF1616QF16RUQFSFQFRUSFQFQF16QFQFCHCH
Loyola (MD)Patriot2516421QFQFRUQF12QFQFQF12QFSFQF12QF161616CH1616SF16QFQFQF
YaleIvy League12632112SFQF16QF161616CHRUQF16
DenverBig East138611161616SFQFSFSFCH16SFQF16SF
NavyPatriot272082-SFQFQFQFRUSFSFSFSFQFSFQFQFQFQFQF12121212RUQF1616QF16QF
TowsonCAA16731-12RUQF12QFSFQF1616161616QFSF1616
UMassAtlantic 10201111-QFQFQFQFQF1212QF12121212QFQFQFQFRU161616
Ohio StateBig Ten7411-1616QFQFQFRU16
Washington and LeeD3883--QFSFSFSFQFQFQFQF
ArmyPatriot18122--SFQFQFQFQFQFQFSFQF12QF12161616QF16QF
BrownIvy League15102--QFQFQFQF12QFQFQFSFQF121616SF16
Penn StateBig Ten722--16161616SFSF16
GeorgetownBig East17121--12QFSFQF12QFQFQFQFQFQF1616QF16QFQF
PennIvy League1491--QFQFQFQFQFQFSF1216161616QFQF
RutgersBig Ten1181--QFQFQFQFQFQF121616QFSF
AlbanyAmerica East1151--161616QF16QFQF16QFSF16
DelawareCAA841--QFQF16SF1616QF16
CortlandD3111--SF
HofstraCAA179---QFQFQFQFQFQF1212QF12QF16QF16161616
AdelphiD244---QFQFQFQF
HarvardIvy League73---QF12QFQF161616
UMBCAmerica East71---121216QF161616
BryantAmerica East61---16QF161616
Air ForceASUN51---QF12161616
Stony BrookCAA31---12QF16
ColgatePatriot31---16QF16
DrexelCAA21---QF16
MichiganBig Ten21---QF16
NC Statedefunct11---QF
HobartAtlantic 105----12121216
RichmondAtlantic 105----16161616
MaristMAAC4----1616
LehighPatriot4----16161616
Michigan StateBig Ten3----121212
ProvidenceBig East3----161616
CanisiusMAAC3----1616
SienaMAAC3----1616
VillanovaBig East3----161616
Robert MorrisASUN3----1616
BucknellPatriot2----1216
FairfieldCAA2----1216
ManhattanMAAC2----12
Mount St. Mary'sMAAC2----1616
HartfordD32----16
High PointAtlantic 102----16
MarquetteBig East2----1616
MonmouthCAA2----16
VermontAmerica East2----1616
Saint Joseph'sAtlantic 102----1616
UtahASUN2----1616
Long IslandMAAC1----10
New Hampshiredefunct1----10
Butlerdefunct1----12
DartmouthIvy League1----16
Detroit MercyASUN1----16
QuinnipiacMAAC1----16
Boston UniversityPatriot1----16
Sacred HeartMAAC1----
SchoolConference#QFSFCGCH7172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899000102030405060708091011121314151617181921222324

Finals appearances by state

StateTitlesUniversityRunners-upUniversity
Maryland14Johns Hopkins (9), Maryland (4), Loyola (1)26Maryland (13), Johns Hopkins (9), Navy (2), Loyola (1), Towson (1)
New York13Syracuse (10), Cornell (3)11Syracuse (6), Cornell (5)
North Carolina8North Carolina (5), Duke (3)5Duke (4), North Carolina (1)
Virginia7Virginia (7)4Virginia (4)
New Jersey6Princeton (6)2Princeton (2)
Indiana2Notre Dame (2)2Notre Dame (2)
Connecticut1Yale (1)1Yale (1)
Colorado1Denver (1)0
Massachusetts01Massachusetts (1)
Ohio01Ohio State (1)

Championships 1881–present

Below is a list of team championship titles, inclusive of those awarded prior to the formation of the NCAA Division I Championship. These include the ILA champions (1881–1898), the USIULL and ILA champions (1899–1905), the USILL champions (1906–1925), the USILA champions (1926–1935), and the Wingate Memorial Trophy (1936–1972) recipients. Of note several schools have claimed their Northern and Southern Division titles won during the USILL years as national championships (based on the results of 3 or 4 intra-division games), while others have not. Still others were acclaimed in their time as unofficial title winners based on being leading teams in the collegiate ranks in particular years. Furthermore, the USILL (1906–1925) was a closed membership organization. Some strong teams of the era, such as Army and Navy, were never members, so that in some years, the USILL champion was not necessarily the best team in the United States.

TeamTitlesYears won/claimed#
Johns Hopkins441891, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1902, 1903, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1911, 1913, 1915, 1918, 1919, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1932§, 1933§, 1934§, 1941, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1957, 1959, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1987, 2005, 2007
Navy171928, 1929, 1938, 1943, 1945, 1946, 1949, 1954, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1970
Princeton151883, 1884, 1888, 1889, 1935§, 1937, 1942, 1951, 1953, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001
Syracuse151920, 1922, 1924, 1925, 1983, 1988, 1989, 1990[a], 1993, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009
Harvard131881†, 1882, 1883, 1885, 1886, 1887, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912‡, 1913, 1915
Maryland131928, 1936, 1937, 1939, 1940, 1955, 1956, 1959, 1967, 1973, 1975, 2017, 2022
Lehigh101890, 1893, 1895, 1896, 1897, 1914, 1916, 1917, 1920, 1921‡
Virginia91952, 1970, 1972, 1999, 2003, 2006, 2011, 2019, 2021
Army81923, 1944, 1945, 1951, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1969
Cornell81902, 1903, 1907, 1914, 1916, 1971, 1976, 1977
North Carolina51981, 1982, 1986, 1991, 2016
Swarthmore41901, 1904, 1905, 1910
Stevens Tech41892, 1894, 1917, 1918
Duke32010, 2013, 2014
St John's (MD)21930, 1931
Yale21883, 2018
Notre Dame22023, 2024
Rutgers11928
Union College11929
RPI11952
Loyola12012
Denver12015
#Championship or co-championship claims, as published in school media guide, record book or yearbook
§The USILA did not name champions for the 1932–1935 seasons. School claims national championship based on being that year's leading team.
†Won a tournament conducted for the first collegiate national championship by the U.S. National Lacrosse Association.
‡Won a post-season championship game between the winners of the USILL Northern and Southern Divisions.

Championships by state

StateTitlesUniversity
Maryland77Johns Hopkins (44), Navy (17), Maryland (13), St. John's MD (2), Loyola (1)
New York33Syracuse (15[a]), Army (8), Cornell (8), Union College (1), RPI (1)
New Jersey20Princeton (15), Stevens Tech (4), Rutgers (1)
Pennsylvania14Lehigh (10), Swarthmore (4)
Massachusetts13Harvard (13)
Virginia9Virginia (9)
North Carolina8North Carolina (5), Duke (3)
Connecticut2Yale (2)
Indiana2Notre Dame (2)
Colorado1Denver (1)

See also

Notes

References