Notre Dame Lacrosse Opens NCAA Run Against Jacksonville
No. 2-seed notre dame lacrosse opened NCAA Tournament play against Jacksonville at Arlotta Stadium on Sunday, May 10, with a noon ET start. The game put the Irish back in the bracket after winning two of the last three NCAA Championships, including titles in 2023 and 2024.
Arlotta Stadium and Jacksonville
The meeting was the second in program history between Notre Dame and Jacksonville and the first in postseason play. Notre Dame had won the only previous matchup, a 19-7 season opener in Jacksonville on Feb. 16, 2014.
This time, the setting was different. Notre Dame was at home, seeded No. 2, and playing at Arlotta Stadium in a first-round game that aired on ESPNU.
Notre Dame's postseason record
The numbers around the Irish explain why this opening game drew attention. Notre Dame owns a 30-26 record in 28 trips to the NCAA Championship, and it has gone 17-11 in first-round tournament games. In its last 14 first-round appearances, it is 13-1.
That edge has carried deeper into May. Notre Dame has advanced to the quarterfinals in 13 of the last 15 NCAA Tournaments, reached Championship Weekend seven times since the 2010 season, and made the NCAA Championship field in 19 of the last 20 tournaments. This was also the 16th time the program earned one of the eight national seeds, and the 15th time in the last 18 seasons that it did so.
What the seeding showed
Notre Dame's recent track record against ranked teams adds another layer. Since the beginning of the 2023 season, the Irish are 30-9 against ranked opponents, with 17 of those 30 wins coming by five or more goals. They have also reached the title game on Memorial Day four times in program history, including twice in the last three seasons.
For a home first-round game, the task was simple: protect Arlotta Stadium, where Notre Dame is 11-3 in NCAA Championships play, and continue the run that has taken the program to the final weekend in 2001, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2023 and 2024. Jacksonville was the matchup in front of them, but the broader test was whether the Irish could turn another national seed into another May advance.
