Vol. 10: Conference Championships and NCAA Tournament Bracket Breakdown
Fifteen conference title games are in the books, and 14 at-large bids heard their names called, setting the stage for an exciting 2021 NCAA Tournament field.
James Madison celebrates its fourth straight CAA title on May 9 after erasing a 12-9 deficit in regulation and taking down No. 8 Drexel. Photo courtesy: James Madison Athletics.
It’s finally here.
The NCAA Tournament is two days away, and we have our complete bracket.
Here are the top eight seeds:
North Carolina (18-0)
Northwestern (13-0)
Syracuse (14-3)
Boston College (13-3)
Notre Dame (9-6)
Florida (16-2)
Duke (9-7)
Stony Brook (14-2)
The only significant deviation for the Inside Lacrosse poll is Stony Brook bookending the seeded group, despite being ranked No. 5 heading into the NCAA Tournament. The Seawolves are one of two non-ACC/Big Ten teams to earn a seed, the other being Florida, which is slotted in at six after finishing the season on a 13-game win streak.
Before we dive into the bracket, let’s recap how we got to this point by running through the conference title games and the 15 automatic bids.
Conference Championship Rundown:
James Madison upset No. 8 Drexel for its fourth consecutive CAA title: The Dragons could taste their first-ever CAA Championship victory. But then JMU erased a three-goal deficit to force overtime. From there, redshirt sophomore midfielder Lizzy Fox did the honors, scoring the game-winner. Both goalies turned in epic performances. Notably, Drexel’s Zoe Bennett made back-to-back stops at the doorstep in the waning moments of regulation. That said, Molly Dougherty stole the spotlight. The Dukes’ netminder registered a season-high 16 saves in the win.
Fairfield beat Siena to hoist the MAAC trophy for third year in a row: The Stags’ 17th-ranked scoring defense (10.29 goals allowed per game) helped deliver the program its sixth MAAC Tournament title and third straight. Junior defender Caroline Mangan was named the Championship MVP after causing a trio of turnovers. Fairfield limited Siena—which entered scoring a league-best 15.15 goals per game—to eight scores.
Sophomore Libby Rowe looks to pass during Fairfield’s MAAC semifinal win over Niagara on May 6. She had two goals in the title game. Photo courtesy: shelleyburgersports.com.
No. 14 Denver extended its win streak to 15 with Big East title victory: Think about what you were doing on Feb. 28. That’s the last time Denver lost. Since, the Pioneers have been untouchable, even pulling out double- and triple-overtime wins. Denver’s Big East final didn’t feature quite the same drama. Senior midfielder Caroline Wiseman tallied a hat trick, and seven other Pioneers found the back of the net. Despite losing the draw control battle, 13-9, Denver forced 14 UConn turnovers and scooped up 18 ground balls, while holding the Huskies to 18 shots.
No. 7 Florida dominated Temple to claim AAC crown: The Gators absolutely obliterated the competition in the AAC Tournament. Florida outscored Cincinnati and Temple by a combined 38-10, earning the NCAA Tournament’s sixth seed in the process. Shannon Kavanagh starred, moving into third place on the program’s all-time goals list. The senior middie scored six times, including just two and a half minutes into regulation. She also netted a behind-the-back goal soon after. Temple was outshot, 35-14, and found itself playing with a running clock in the second half.
Shannon Kavanagh drives toward net amid Florida’s 19-4 victory over Temple in the AAC Championship on May 8. Photo courtesy: Hannah White/Florida Athletics.
Mercer’s unlikely SoCon Tournament run ended with a championship: The Bears entered the Southern Conference Tournament with a 5-7 record, having lost three of their previous four games. Then they took down the league’s top-two teams: Coastal Carolina and Furman, both of which had defeated Mercer in the regular season. The SoCon final went down to the wire, with Furman scoring the game’s final two goals to cut Mercer's lead to 14-13, however, graduate midfielder Lily Morin clinched the program’s third straight tournament title with a draw control.
Behind Livy Rosenzweig, No. 11 Loyola took home the Patriot League: Senior attacker Livy Rosenzweig set the program scoring record with five points, and senior goalkeeper Kaitlyn Larsson registered 11 saves, as the Greyhounds beat Lehigh, 11-6. The victory marked Loyola’s 11th consecutive win after the Greyhounds limped out to an 0-2 start earlier this season. It also signified the team’s fifth Patriot League title since joining the conference seven years ago.
No. 18 Jacksonville booked its ticket to the NCAAs with ASUN title: The Dolphins have bounced back from their lone loss of the season—a 13-12 defeat to Coastal Carolina on April 23—with five straight wins, four of which have seen them reach or eclipse the 20-goal mark. Jacksonville locked up the ASUN with a lower scoring yet dominant 13-8 win over Liberty. Sarah Elms, the unanimous ASUN Player of the Year, notched a game-high six goals in the championship. The Dolphins are now set for their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance, thanks to a glossy 11-1 record.
Mount St. Mary’s pulled out a dramatic victory over Wagner in the NEC final: The Mountaineers had to work for their 14th straight win and, more importantly, their first NEC title since 2005. Mount St. Mary’s trailed Wagner, 8-4, in the second half before rallying to score four consecutive goals, forcing overtime. Senior midfielder Beanie Colson logged the game-winner with just five ticks remaining in the extra frame. Senior defender Kaitlyn Ridenour collected NEC Tournament MVP honors.
No. 6 Stony Brook locked up its eighth straight American East Championship: The Seawolves own the American East. They’ve won 54 consecutive conference games—the longest conference winning streak in the NCAA—and, now, eight straight American East titles. Stony Brook beat second-seeded Albany, 16-9, never trailing in the contest. Ally Kennedy, the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, piled up five goals, and America East Co-Defensive Player of the Year Rayna Sabella recorded three caused turnovers and three ground balls in the first half alone.
Ally Kennedy works against a UMBC defender during Stony Brook’s 25-13 American East semifinal victory. Photo courtesy: Andrew Theodorakis/Stony Brook Athletics.
No. 15 Stanford remained undefeated while securing another Pac-12 title: The Cardinal have their second conference tournament championship in three years. Ali Baiocco and Katherine Gjertsen were behind Stanford’s 17-10 win over Colorado, as the duo scored five goals apiece. The Cardinal held a 17-12 advantage in the circle, jumped out to a 10-4 lead in the first half, and never looked back.
No. 2 Northwestern triumphed over No. 10 Maryland in the Big Ten final: Just like 2019, the Wildcats delivered Maryland a loss in the conference tournament championship. Izzy Scane continued to build on her Tewaaraton resume with a nine-goal effort—tying the Big Ten Tournament record for most goals in a game—en route to receiving tournament MVP honors. Maryland actually staked itself to a 5-1 lead, but Northwestern fought back to make it 7-7 by intermission. A 5-0 Wildcats run to open the second half was just the beginning of the end for the Terrapins.
No. 1 UNC once again bottled up No. 3 Syracuse in ACC Championship: The Tar Heels won their 15th straight ACC Tournament game, a conference tournament record, and their fifth consecutive ACC Championship. Jamie Ortega tallied five points (3 goals, 2 assists), and Katie Hoeg rewrote her own ACC Tournament assist record, finishing the competition with 14. But the story was the Tar Heels’ defense. UNC held Syracuse to just four goals. Goalie Taylor Moreno was named ACC Tournament MVP for the second time in her career, and senior defender Caroline Wakefield racked up five caused turnovers and four ground balls.
Led by Abby Hormes, High Point routed Radford for Big South bragging rights: Make it four in a row for the Panthers. They maintained their reign over the Big South with a resounding 20-7 win against Radford in the conference tournament final. Hormes, the nation’s second-leading goal scorer, kept doing her thing. The senior attacker mounted six goals and now has 279 career points, the most in High Point history. The Panthers’ 20 goals are the most any team has notched in a Big South final.
Abby Hormes cradles the ball at Vert Stadium during the 2021 season. She currently ranks second nationally in goals scored with 75. Photo courtesy: High Point Athletics.
No. 16 UMass won the A-10 for the first time since 2017, defeating Saint Joe’s: After a 1-2 start to the season, the Minutewomen have rattled off 14 wins in a row. Their most recent victory saw graduate attacker Kaitlyn Cerasi log seven points (4 goals, 3 assists), good for A-10 Tournament Most Outstanding Player accolades. The Minutewomen clobbered Saint Joe’s on the draw, 25-2, thanks to Caitlyn Petro, who became UMass’ single-season record holder for draw controls with a whopping 16 in the A-10 Championship. The Minutewomen ended the 18-7 win on a 15-3 run.
Robert Morris clinched its first-ever conference title and MAC perfect season: The Colonials are 14-2. And they just capped a 10-0 MAC slate with a 21-5 win over Detroit Mercy. Emilie Kim, Julia Koterwas, and Clio Kerr all nabbed hat tricks in a game that watched Robert Morris orchestrate a 13-0 run out of the gates. The Colonials are set to play Notre Dame in the first round of their first-ever NCAA Tournament.
Emilie Kim looks to embrace an open-armed Thalia Zolis during Robert Morris’ 21-5 win against Detroit Mercy on May 6. Photo courtesy: Justin Berl.
NCAA Tourney First-Round Matchups to Watch:
Notre Dame vs. RMU: The Colonials have never played in an NCAA Tournament game. They’ve got the 14th-ranked scoring offense in the country (15.62 goals per game), and the Irish’s defense, albeit weaker than expected, has had its moments (notably, limiting UNC to 11 goals back on April 10). Plus, Notre Dame dealt Robert Morris a 16-2 loss on March 6. How much have the Colonials improved?
Drexel vs. Rutgers: Aside from RMU, Drexel is the only other program is this year’s 29-team field that is on the verge of its first NCAA Tournament appearance. Rutgers hasn’t played in the dance since 1999. It’s been a historic year for both Cinderella’s. The Dragons were razor-thin close to winning their first-ever CAA Tournament title, and the Scarlet Knights beat Penn State, Johns Hopkins, and Maryland this season for the first time in program history.
Stanford vs. Denver: Two of the most underappreciated teams in women’s college lacrosse. Stanford is undefeated, and Denver is on a 15-game win streak. The Cardinal have the fifth-best scoring offense in the country (16.73 goals per game), and the Pioneers have the 10th-best scoring defense in the sport (8.56 goals per game allowed). This matchup features one of the game’s best playmakers (Stanford’s Ali Baiocco is second nationally in points per game) and an impressive goalkeeper (Denver’s Amelia Cole is 26th in save percentage).
Bracketology Nuggets:
The ACC got five top seeds in this year’s tournament, while the Big Ten only received four bids total. The conference-only slate hurt the Big Ten when it came to Selection Sunday. Remember, the Big Ten and MAAC were the only conferences to exclusively play league opponents this season. Time will tell if the scheduling strategy—put in place for COVID-19 safety—affects the Big Ten’s NCAA Tournament performance, too.
Why is Duke a seven seed? The Blue Devils are 9-7 and had just two wins over teams in this year’s NCAA Tournament field. The committee favored Duke because of its strength of schedule and competitiveness against marquee opponents, according to USA Lacrosse Magazine, despite the fact that the Blue Devils trailed the likes of Stony Brook, Loyola, and Stanford in RPI.
The “First Four Out” this year was comprised of Albany, Arizona State, Colorado, and Saint Joe’s, according to Christy Leach, chair of the NCAA Selection Committee and Stetson head coach, per USA Lacrosse Magazine.
Numbers to Know:
69.5% - shot percentage posted by Jamie Ortega this season, the highest of any player with more than one game played in 2021. She has 73 goals on 105 shots this year.
12.88 - caused turnovers per game by Denver, the most nationally of any team this season with more than one game under its belt.
13.75 - draw controls per game by UMass attacker Caitlyn Petro, tops in the country. No other player in the nation is within three draws of her game-by-game average.
Latest Inside Lacrosse Poll
NOTE: screenshots pulled from insidelacrosse.com
So this isn’t as relevant now that we’re on the brink of the NCAA Tournament. That said, it’s worth recognizing some of the week’s biggest movers. JMU skyrocketed to No. 11 after being just outside the Top 20 last time around. Conversely, Drexel fell out of the top 10 after its loss to the Dukes in the CAA Championship. Stanford is back to being No. 13 following its Pac-12 title. Virginia, now .500, continued to slide down to No. 16. The Cavaliers were bounced from the ACC Tournament in the quarters and have lost six in a row. Aside from JMU, Towson made the most significant jump this week. The Tigers used a 10-0 run to beat a normally stout Elon in the CAA quarters and then nearly upset then-No. 8 Drexel in the semifinals yet fell in overtime. Towson wraps conference tournament season at No. 20 in the Inside Lacrosse poll.
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