No. 1 seed Princeton thrashes Notre Dame for men’s lax title

Field Level Media|published: Mon 25th May, 20:16 2026

May 25, 2026; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Princeton Tigers attack Chad Palumbo (10) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the first quarter in the NCAA Mens Lacrosse National Championship game at Scott Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Chad Palumbo tallied four goals, Colin Burns had three and Princeton used a dominant second quarter to roll to a 16-9 victory over Notre Dame in the NCAA men's lacrosse national championship game Monday in Charlottesville, Va.

It marked the Tigers' first national title in men's lacrosse since 2001 and the program's seventh overall.

The top overall seed in the tournament, Princeton rolled past Marist and defeated Penn State by four to reach the national semifinals held at the University of Virginia. The Tigers defeated Duke 14-7 to set up a showdown against the No. 2 seed, Notre Dame, which had beaten No. 6 Syracuse 15-7 on Saturday.

The Fighting Irish took an early 3-0 lead before Princeton rattled off 11 straight goals to end the half. Eight of those came in the second quarter.

"We're so proud of this group," Princeton coach Matt Madalon said on the ESPN broadcast. "I'm so proud of what is behind me. It took years in the making."

Palumbo, who beat cancer in high school, added an assist for a five-point game.

Tucker Wade and Jake Vana scored two goals apiece for the Tigers and goalie Ryan Croddick made 13 saves. He tallied 33 saves across the Duke and Notre Dame games and earned the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award.

Thomas Ricciardelli made a season-high 19 saves for Notre Dame. Josh Yago and Will Angrick led the Irish with two goals apiece.

--Field Level Media

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