The 25-year drought is over as the Princeton Tigers regain glory at the top of the mountain, winning the NCAA Division 1 men’s lacrosse championship with a 16-9 win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Monday. It’s the seventh title overall for the Tigers, but it didn’t start easy as Notre Dame went up 3-0 in the first five minutes of the game. However, once Princeton put their foot on the gas pedal, they didn’t bother hitting the brakes, going on an 11-0 run into halftime. Chad Palumbo put up four goals in the first half as the Princeton offense became too much for Notre Dame’s vaunted defense. Tigers head coach Matt Madalon dialed up a game plan that Notre Dame didn’t see coming. Colin Burns also recorded a hat trick in this game, and Parker Reynolds and Nate Kabiri each put up 3 assists.
Princeton’s 7th title doesn’t diminish ND’s recent run of success
Coming out for the second half, it looked like Notre Dame made all their adjustments and started building momentum, cutting down the Tigers’ lead by outscoring them 4-2 in the third quarter. However, Princeton got things back on track outscoring Notre Dame 3-2 in the fourth. Princeton goalie Ryan Croddick made 13 saves on the day and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.
While this wasn’t the result that Notre Dame wanted, I can imagine that this loss is going to make them that much tougher. In fact, it might favor the Irish because the NCAA championship returns to Philadelphia in 2027, where they won back-to-back championships in 2023 and 2024. Notre Dame head coach Kevin Corrigan has a lot be proud of, adding to his resume with three championship game appearances in the last 4 years, winning twice. Watch out for the Irish in 2027.
