East will meet West in NCAA men's lacrosse finale

A cursory glance at the quartet of men's lacrosse teams bound for Championship Weekend in Philadelphia wouldn't appear to indicate that much has changed in the sport.

Three of them, after all, were in the semifinals last year, and the fourth, Johns Hopkins, is hardly a stranger to the event.

Delve a little deeper, however, and it becomes evident that the sport is still in an evolutionary period. First and foremost, either top-seeded Notre Dame or No. 4 Denver will have an opportunity to be the first team from a state not on the east coast to win a national championship.

The Fighting Irish and Pioneers will square off in Saturday's first semifinal contest at Lincoln Financial Field (1 p.m. ET, ESPN2). Even the other semifinalists, long-time powers Johns Hopkins and Maryland, are part of the expansion of the game as they play under the Big Ten banner for the first time this year.

"This is one of those things that's not relevant to what our team has to do, but I think it's very relevant to our sport and what's going on in our sport," Notre Dame coach Kevin Corrigan says. "You're missing something if you don't see the story of where this sport is — not only that us and Denver are here, but that nobody's surprised that we're here. That shows where the sport has come and, I hope, points to where it's going."

Indeed, this is Notre Dame's fourth appearance on semifinal Saturday in the past six seasons. The Fighting Irish have now been to the NCAA tournament in 20 of Corrigan's 27 seasons at the helm. Denver is a more recent regular. But since hiring coach Bill Tierney away from Princeton, where he led the Tigers to six NCAA crowns from 1992-2001, the Pioneers will be making their fourth Final Four trip in the past five years.

"It's really exciting being a part of that," Tierney says. "With the whole league thing, you have Notre Dame — an ACC school now — and Denver, a Big East school, and Maryland and Hopkins are Big Ten schools. That tells you a little bit about the fact that lacrosse is still in a growth stage."

The new affiliation with a league has served Johns Hopkins well. It's the most accomplished program of the foursome in terms of NCAA titles, but the Blue Jays have been absent from Championship Weekend since 2008. It looked as though that trend would continue for another year when they opened the season 4-6, but they've rattled off seven wins in succession, including a pair to capture the inaugural Big Ten tournament title, and reached Philadelphia despite being unseeded.

"It certainly is not lost on us what a privilege it is to be part of this," Blue Jays coach Dave Pietramala says. "Despite a few ups and downs, we've found our way and have been able to achieve several of our goals."

The Hopkins winning streak includes a 15-12 victory at Maryland in the regular season as well as last week's quarterfinal triumph against Syracuse, which was the No. 2 seed but was ranked No. 1 in most polls. The Terrapins, who held the top ranking themselves for portions of the season, lost a couple of games down the stretch but looked like a title contender while dispatching third-seeded North Carolina a week ago.

"It's kind of a catch-22 with a game like that," Maryland coach John Tillman says. "You want to build on that confidence, but we have to realize that every week is its own entity. We have to get ready for a really talented opponent. We're playing arguably the hottest team in the country right now."

NCAA MEN'S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP AT A GLANCE

Where:  Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia

When:  Saturday and Monday

Time, TV:  No. 1 Notre Dame (12-2) vs. No. 4 Denver (15-2), 1 p.m. ET, ESPN2.

No. 6 Maryland (14-3) vs. Johns Hopkins (11-6), 3:30 p.m. ET approx., ESPN2.

Championship Monday, 1 p.m. ET, ESPN2.

Notre Dame-Denver breakdown:

Coaches:  Kevin Corrigan (27th season at Notre Dame), Bill Tierney (sixth season at Denver).

NCAA championships:  Notre Dame none, Denver none.

Road to Philadelphia:  Notre Dame — Beat Towson 12-10, Albany 14-10. Denver — Beat Brown 15-9, Ohio State 15-13.

Key players:Notre Dame — Matt Kavanagh, Jr. (27 goals, 24 assists); Conor Doyle, Sr. (30 G, 20 A); Sergio Perkovic, So. (29 G, 7 A). Denver — Connor Cannizzaro, So. (55 G, 33 A); Wesley Berg, Sr. (50 G, 20 A); Zach Miller, So. (23 G, 32 A).

Quick sticks:  These long-time western rivals have maintained their regular-season series in the realignment era. The Pioneers took this season's encounter on March 7 in Denver 11-10 in overtime thanks to Miller's game winner. Denver's already potent attack got a boost when Cannizzaro transferred from Maryland to join his brother, Sean. Berg switched from attack to midfield but has been just as productive and is once again a Tewaaraton Award finalist. But Notre Dame, long known as a strong defensive squad, has increased its scoring output this season as well to average 13.5 goals a game. Kavanagh, a Tewaaraton finalist in his own right, leads the group but gets plenty of help.

Maryland-Johns Hopkins breakdown:

Coaches:  John Tilllman (fifth season at Maryland), Dave Pietramala (15th season at Johns Hopkins).

NCAA championships:  Maryland two (last 1975), Johns Hopkins nine (last 2007).

Road to Philadelphia:  Maryland — Beat Yale 8-7, North Carolina 14-7. Johns Hopkins — Beat Virginia 19-7, Syracuse 16-15.

Key players:  Maryland — Matt Rambo, So. (34 G, 16 A); Joe LoCascio, Sr. (29 G, 12 A); Kyle Bernlohr, Jr. (6.57 GAA, .589 save percentage). Johns Hopkins — Ryan Brown, Jr. (60 G, 14 A); Wells Stanwick, Sr. (26 G, 43 A); Shack Stanwick, Fr. (27 G, 23 A).

Quick sticks:  The Terrapins' offense might not look flashy, but it's methodical and efficient when it's working. Some key goals from its second midfield group last week could bode well in their rematch with the Blue Jays. Hopkins has been much better on the defensive end during the latter half of the season. Goalie Eric Schneider has been a big part of that, recording 15 stops against Syracuse last week.

NCAA WOMEN'S LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP AT A GLANCE

Where:  PPL Field, Chester, Pa.

When:  Friday and Sunday.

No. 2 North Carolina (17-3) vs. No. 3 Duke (16-4), 5 p.m. ET, ESPN3.

No. 1 Maryland (19-1) vs. No. 4 Syracuse (16-7), 7:30 p.m. ET approx., ESPN3.

Championship Sunday, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU.

North Carolina-Duke breakdown:

Coaches:  Jenny Levy (20th season at North Carolina), Kerstin Kimel (20th season at Duke).

NCAA championships:  North Carolina one (2013), Duke none.

Road to Chester:  North Carolina — Beat Florida 11-6, Penn State 11-8. Duke — Beat USC 17-9, Princeton 7-3.

Key players:  North Carolina — Aly Messinger, Jr. (38 goals, 16 assists); Sammy Jo Tracy, Jr. (37 G, 5 A); Caylee Waters, So. (.500 save percentage, 7.92 GAA). Duke —Kerrin Maurer, Sr. (43 G, 29 A); Brigid Smith, Sr. (37 G, 19 A); Katie Trees, Sr. (33 G, 21 A).

Quick sticks:  Levy and Kimel are the founding coaches of their respective programs, both of which began varsity competition in 1996. ... The Tar Heels have won nine of the past 12 encounters with the Blue Devils, including a 12-6 decision in Durham on April 17.

Maryland-Syracuse breakdown:

Coaches:  Cathy Reese (ninth season at Maryland), Gary Gait (eighth season at Syracuse).

NCAA championships:  Maryland 11 (last 2014), Syracuse none.

Road to Chester:  Maryland — Beat UMass 19-8, Northwestern 17-5. Syracuse — Beat Penn 13-10, Loyola 10-7.

Key players:  Maryland — Taylor Cummings, Jr. (58 G, 31 A); Megan Whittle, Fr. (64 G, 4 A); Brooke Griffin, Sr. (44 G, 19 A). Syracuse — Halle Majorana, Jr. (53 G, 36 A); Kayla Treanor, Jr. (57 G, 29 A), (); Ryley Donahue, Fr. (28 G, 15 A).

Quick sticks:  Reese is the third Terrapins coach to win the NCAA crown, joining her mentor Cindy Timchal and Sue Tyler. ... This is a rematch of last year's championship game, a 15-12 Maryland victory.