“Cornell lacrosse shot” by Tommy Gilligan
The 2022 NCAA Lacrosse Men’s and Women’s Championships for Division I are down to the final four. They are scheduled to conclude over the weekend and into Monday.
Each tournament is played in its own city. The men’s championships are in East Hartford, Connecticut, while Baltimore, Maryland, hosts the women’s competition.
The games for both tournaments will be broadcasted on ESPN channels. All the network’s commentators that will be covering this weekend’s matchups joined in on a Zoom call to provide their analyses of the season thus far and what to expect going into the weekend.
Men’s tournament
Anish Shroff, Paul Carcaterra, and Quint Kessenich will be the commentators for the men’s tournament. One of the most important points they discussed was how meaningful it is to have the championship game being played on Monday, which is Memorial Day.
“I think about ex-lacrosse players who have sacrificed for this country,” Kessenich said. “That moment (when the flag is taken out), I know we’re on the national stage. I know it’s a solemn moment. And we can use lacrosse to move forward and celebrate this country.”
Having a high-stakes lacrosse game on that day also demonstrates the overall growth in the sport’s popularity. Paul Carcaterra talked about how the sport has attracted people not only in the United States but also around the world.
“You’re seeing the game transition… I just feel like the game has changed a lot and we’re seeing representation from all across the country,” Carcaterra said. “People talk about the growth of the sport… I think we’re finally seeing barriers being broken in terms of the geography in which players are from.”
The University of Maryland is the top seed in the tournament. It is the only top-three team to have made it to the semifinals. Maryland has an undefeated record (16-0) and will face off against the Princeton Tigers on Saturday for the right to advance to the championship game.
Although all eyes will be on Maryland to see if it can complete its perfect campaign, those outside expectations are something they have been accustomed to for the entirety of the season.
“The reality is (that) Maryland had pressure probably since Week 2. This is a team that’s on an all-time trajectory,” Anish Shroff said. “We’re talking about Maryland in a historically dominant context… They’ve had this target on their back well before the tournament.”
Women’s tournament
Jay Alter, Sheehan Stanwick-Burch, and Dana Boyle will be the commentators for the women’s tournament this weekend.
The four teams remaining are the University of North Carolina (undefeated, 20-0), Northwestern, the University of Maryland, and Boston College. One reason those teams have been successful stems from their acquisition of players from the NCAA transfer portal.
Boyle shared her thoughts on the benefits the transfer portal has on student-athletes at the collegiate level.
“I think it gives kids an opportunity to explore a different avenue and to see a different school,” Boyle said.
The weather in Baltimore is not expected to be up to par for this weekend’s tournament. Sheehan Stanwick-Burch explained the adjustments the teams will have to make in order to combat those issues. That includes making sure they pack enough spare equipment.
“I think the biggest thing I’d be concerned about for them would be any type of weather delays,” Stanwick-Burch said. “If you’re that second game and you get in a delay, (it is) just (about) making sure you have everything in that locker room. You don’t want to be wet and sitting for three hours.”
The four remaining teams in the tournament are the top-four teams in the NCAA overall standings. Each team brings a great amount of firepower to the table, making it difficult to determine who the clear-cut winner is.
“I feel like they each have their own unique edge,” Stanwick-Burch said. “Northwestern and B.C. (Boston College) thrive on that underdog mentality.”
The four teams have combined for 15 of the last 16 championships. Jay Alter says it sets up a weekend of lacrosse like no other.
“In the last decade and a half, (these are) the four perennial powerhouses in the sport,” Alter said. “And they’re all colliding in one championship weekend.”
Women’s schedule
The 2022 Division I Women’s Lacrosse tournament continues with both semifinal matches on Friday at 3 and 5:30 p.m. Northwestern will take on North Carolina followed by Maryland facing off against Boston College.
The championship game is scheduled for Sunday at noon.
Men’s schedule
Semifinal action for the men’s tournament begins Saturday. Cornell will battle out with Rutgers at noon, followed by top-seeded Maryland’s showdown against Princeton at 2:30 p.m.
The championship game is scheduled for Monday at 1 p.m.
