Maryland men, women each reach Final Four in NCAA lacrosse
The NCAA men’s lacrosse Championship Weekend in Philadelphia will have a bit of a 1990s vibe to it, with two programs ending long semifinal droughts.
North Carolina made it back to the Final Four for the first time since 1993. These Tar Heels, squarely on the bubble as the regular season wound down and unseeded in the tournament bracket, might not have been the group expected to end the run of quarterfinal futility. But a week after defeating Marquette, the No. 6 seed but a tournament rookie, the Tar Heels bounced No. 3 Notre Dame 13-9 in Columbus on Sunday. Chris Cloutier (three goals, three assists) and Steve Pontrello (4G, 2A) accounted for a team-high six points each as the Tar Heels built an insurmountable 13-4 lead. Cloutier had the highlight goal of the day on a behind-the-back shot late in the first half.
UNC (10-6) will take on No. 7 Loyola (Md.) at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday. The Greyhounds, who brought home the program’s first championship in 2012, avenged a regular-season loss to neighborhood rival Towson with a 10-8 victory in Sunday’s second quarterfinal in Columbus. Freshman sensation Pat Spencer and junior Zack Sirico each had three goals and one assist for Loyola (13-3).
In Saturday’s quarterfinal contests in Providence, R.I., Brown earned its second Final Four berth in program history and first since 1994 despite the absence of its best player. The Bears’ Dylan Molloy, the nation’s leading scorer and a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award, was sidelined by a foot injury. But Brown overcame his loss—as well as a heroic effort by Navy goalie John Connors—to stave off the Midshipmen 11-10. Kylor Bellistri led the way with six points on four goals and two assists for Brown (16-2). Connors, who made 21 saves, and midfielder Casey Rees, who scored five times, did their best to keep the Midshipmen (11-5) in it. But the Bears’ depth and high-octane style helped them earn a date with top-seeded Maryland.
The Terrapins (16-2) took care of business with a methodical 13-7 dispatching of No. 8 Syracuse. Matt Rambo paced the Maryland attack with four goals and two assists, and Kyle Bernlohr continued his impressive postseason in goal with a career-high 16 saves. The Maryland men have been to three of the last five championship games but are still trying to break through for the program’s first title since 1975.
The top-seeded Maryland women also advanced to the Final Four over the weekend. The Terrapins romped past Massachusetts 18-3 to improve to 21-0 in their quest for a third consecutive title. Zoe Stukenberg led the way with five goals for Maryland, with Megan Whittle and Caroline Steele adding four goals and an assist apiece. The Terrapins will meet fourth-seeded Syracuse, which outlasted previously unbeaten Southern California 12-11 in overtime. Kelly Cross delivered the game winner for the Orange (19-5) after Allie Murray’s save with nine seconds left in regulation forced the sudden victory period.
The other women’s semifinal on Friday at Talen Energy Stadium on the Saint Joseph’s campus in Philadelphia will feature No. 3 North Carolina against unseeded Penn State. The Tar Heels (18-2), like their brothers on the men’s side, defeated Notre Dame in an all-ACC quarterfinal 10-6. The Nittany Lions (14-6), a week after upending No. 2 Florida, took down seventh-seeded Penn 8-4 to reach the semifinal round for the first time since 1999.