NEW YORK  – The NCAA men’s lacrosse championship started this weekend highlighted with two of the BIG EAST Conference’s six programs earning national seeds with No. 5 Georgetown and No. 7 Denver. The Hoyas advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals after handing Syracuse an 18-8 first round loss on Saturday night in College Park, Md. On Sunday night, Denver fell just short as the Pioneers lost 14-13 at home to Loyola.
 
Georgetown will be making its first NCAA Quarterfinal appearance since 2007 on Saturday, May 22 as the Hoyas will play No. 4 seed Virginia. The contest is scheduled for noon on ESPNU and will be played in Hempstead, N.Y. at Hofstra. Click for more info.
 
Hoyas Down Syracuse 18-8 to Advance to NCAA Quarterfinals
Georgetown earned its first NCAA Quarterfinals appearance since 2007 courtesy of an 18-8 victory over Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament First Round on Saturday night. The Hoyas trip to the quarterfinals is the 10th in program history. Jake Carraway and Declan McDermott led the Hoyas with five goals each while Dylan Hess added four of his own. Nicky Petkevich had two goals and two assists on the night while Graham Bundy Jr. found the back of the net twice. TJ Haley and Dylan Watson added a pair of assists each and Peter Thompson chipped in an assist as well. In goal, Owen McElroy collected 10 saves for his 10th double-digit save performance of the season and collected four ground balls. At the 'X', James Reilly won 14-of-28 (.500) faceoffs and added a game-high eight ground balls. As a unit, Georgetown's defense held the Orange to just 18 shots on goal in the game and held Syracuse scoreless in the third quarter. Georgetown tied the program record for wins in a season with 13 - matching totals from 1999, 2018 and 2019.
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No. 7 Denver’s Comeback Falls a Goal Short in NCAA First Round
Jackson Morrill led the Pioneers with four points on a hat trick and the single-season record breaking assist, his 37th of the season. Jack Hannah netted a hat trick of his own. Lucas Cotler and Ethan Walker had two goals apiece and Alex Simmons had three assists. TD Ierlan led the Pioneers at the faceoff dot, going 17-of-19 with 11 ground balls. Loyola led 9-4 at halftime. Denver rallied in the second half to make it a tight game. Loyola got the first two goals of the fourth quarter to extend its lead back to three with 7:02 to play. Walker responded with one 13 seconds later to make it 13-11. Ted Sullivan found the back of the net with 5:53 to go to pull the Pioneers back to within one. Olmstead scored the eventual game-winner to make it 14-12 with 3:19 to play, before Hannah's goal 19 seconds later to make it 14-13.
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The quarterfinal games will all be televised on ESPNU on May 22 at James M. Shuart Stadium in Hempstead, New York and May 23 at Arlotta Family Lacrosse Stadium in South Bend, Ind. The Division I semifinal and championship games, and the Division II and III championship games, will be held at Pratt and Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Conn., May 29-31 and hosted by Fairfield University. The Division I semifinals will be televised live on ESPN2 starting at Noon Eastern time, May 29. The championship game will be televised live on ESPN2 starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time, May 31.
 
Upcoming #BIGEASTmlax Schedule
Saturday, May 22 (Hempstead, N.Y.)
No. 5 GEORGETOWN vs. No. 4 Virginia, Noon (ESPNU)
 
#BIGEASTmlax NCAA Results
Saturday, May 15
No. 5 GEORGETOWN 18, Syracuse 8
Sunday, May 16
Loyola 14, No. 7 DENVER 13