#BIGEASTwlax Championship Bracket Set
-/RV Denver, Marquette pick up final two spots in four-team field, joining No. 6/9 Florida and 24/RV Georgetown in next week’s conference tournament.
NEW YORK – The bracket for the 2018 BIG EAST Women’s Lacrosse Championship presented by Jeep has been set, as -/RV Denver and Marquette clinched the final two spots in the field, joining 24/RV Georgetown and regular-season champion No. 6/9 Florida in next week’s tournament. The Gators are the No. 1 seed for the fourth consecutive season and will serve as host of the championship for the first time.
All three games will be played at Florida’s Donald R. Dizney Stadium in Gainesville, Fla. Semifinals are set for Thursday, May 3, with top-seeded Florida facing fourth-seeded Marquette at 4 p.m. ET. No. 2 seed Georgetown versus No. 3 seed Denver follows at 7 p.m. Both semifinals will stream live on the BIG EAST Digital Network presented by SoFi. Semifinal winners advance to Saturday’s title game which is slated for a noon start and will air on FS2. The host Gators have won all three BIG EAST Championships in which they have competed, including last season at Villanova.
Florida and Georgetown solidified their postseason seeds last weekend, with the Gators using today’s 23-3 win over Butler to clinch the regular-season title outright and finish conference play unbeaten for the third consecutive year. Florida improved to 31-1 all-time in BIG EAST regular-season contests during its four-year stretch as an affiliate member. The Gators enter the postseason with a 14-3 overall record, having won eight straight games. The Hoyas won at Temple, 15-8, to improve to 12-5 on the season while posting a one-loss BIG EAST record (8-1) for the first time since 2015. Georgetown qualified for the BIG EAST Championship for the 12
th consecutive season and eyes its first league title since 2010.
Denver qualifies for the BIG EAST Championship for the second consecutive season, setting up a 2-3 matchup with Georgetown for the second straight year. The Pioneers came from behind to win at Vanderbilt on Saturday, 11-10, to clinch the No. 3 seed. Denver enters the postseason 11-5 and finished BIG EAST play 6-3.
Marquette used a dramatic 15-14 win over visiting Connecticut on Saturday, in a do-or-die game for both squads. MU scored the game’s final five goals to rally from a four-goal deficit to punch their ticket.The Golden Eagles are making their first trip to the BIG EAST Championship in what is just their fifth season of BIG EAST women’s lacrosse. MU finished the regular season with a 10-7 overall mark and 6-3 BIG EAST record, both program standards. Marquette and Denver tied for third in the league standings at 6-3, but the Pioneers take the head-to-head tiebreaker after topping the Golden Eagles, 17-11 on April 18.
Florida and Marquette meet in the postseason for the first time. The Gators defeated Marquette earlier this season in Gainesville, 18-6. Georgetown and Denver meet in the conference tournament for the second consecutive year. The Pioneers scored a 9-8 win over the Hoyas in last season’s semifinals. During the 2018 regular season, Georgetown won, 8-7, at Denver.
The winner of the BIG EAST Championship receives the league’s automatic bid into the 2018 NCAA Championship. The 26-team field will be announced on Sunday, May 6.
BIG EAST Women’s Lacrosse Championship presented by Jeep
Donald R. Dizney Stadium
University of Florida - Gainesville, Fla.
Semifinals - Thursday, May 3
No. 1 seed Florida vs. No. 4 seed Marquette, 4 p.m.*
No. 2 seed Georgetown vs. No. 3 seed Denver, 7 p.m.*
Final - Saturday, May 5
Semifinal winners, Noon^
*BEDN
^FS2
All times Eastern