Find out the Orange's path to a potential national championship
The Syracuse women's lacrosse team will play Loyola Maryland in the opening round of the 2026 NCAA tournament. The Orange ended the regular season with a 13-5 record a 7-3 record in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play. Faceoff between the Greyhounds and Orange is set for Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
ESPNU's production mistake
For the viewers watching during ESPNU's bracket reveal, they likely noticed the production mistake during the broadcast. While previewing the matchup featuring Princeton and Rutgers, ESPN accidentally revealed the rest of the bracket which included Syracuse's matchup against Loyola. The camera then cut to the Rutgers watch party then back to the bracket where Syracuse's name was then hidden. After a few moments, the matchup between Syracuse and Loyola was revealed a second time.
Scouting the Greyhounds
Loyola will enter Friday's matchup with a 12-7 overall record and a 7-2 overall record in conference play. The Greyhounds' most recent loss was a 13-11 loss to Army in the Patriot League Conference Championship game.
Regular season rematch
Friday's matchup will not be the first time these two teams square off this season. In February, Syracuse defeated Loyola 15-7. The Orange led 6-4 at halftime, but then went on to score seven unanswered goals in the third quarter to help secure the win. Leading the way for the Orange in the early season victory were Molly Guzik and Joely Caramelli, who both who scored three goals.
Looking at the rest of the field
Northwestern will enter this year's tournament as the top overall seed. The Wildcats have played in the national championship game the past three seasons with their most recent title win coming in 2023. Fellow ACC member North Carolina enters the field as the No. 2 seed. The Tar Heels are the defending national champions. Twenty- nine schools will compete to be crowned this year's national champion.
Syracuse's NCAA tournament history
The Orange have yet to win a national championship in the program's history. Syracuse was close in 2012, 2014 and 2021 when they reached the national championship game. The Orange lost to Northwestern 8-6 in the 2012 title game and just two years later lost to Maryland 15-12. In Gary Gait's final season in 2021, Syracuse lost 16-10 to Boston College.
Since it's inaugural season in 1998, the Orange have qualified for the NCAA Tournament 22 times. The Orange have appeared in the national semifinals 10 times.
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