The 2019 season was unlike any other in Adelphi’s deep championship pedigree. The Panthers did not hold the top spot in the Nike/US Lacrosse Division II Women’s Top 20 at any time during the year, but now finish the year on top after an underdog run through the postseason to claim their ninth NCAA Division II women’s lacrosse title and their fourth in the past six years. 

Less than three weeks after hitting the low point of the season, a surprising loss at home to Merrimack in the Northeast-10 tournament’s quarterfinal round, Adelphi regrouped with four straight postseason wins, capped with an 11-5 victory over West Chester in the national championship game. 

Adelphi improved to 9-1 all-time in championship games, with four of those victories coming against West Chester (2004, 2006, 2010, 2019). The Golden Rams, champions in 2002 and 2008, finished as national runner-up for the eighth time.

“That loss to Merrimack certainly got our attention and forced us take a closer look at some of the things we were doing,” Adelphi coach Pat McCabe said. “It hurt, and we had to do a reset.” 

The 2019 Panthers may not be heralded as the best Adelphi team ever, but in the end, they were once again the last team standing.

“We weren’t dominant this year, but we were good, and good enough,” McCabe said. “That was just who we were.”

West Chester finished the year ranked second. The Rams tied a school record for wins in a season, finishing 20-3 overall.

Regis, the last undefeated team in the country, finished 20-1 on the year and ranked third. 

Nike/US Lacrosse
Division II Women’s Top 20

Also considered: Bentley, Molloy, Mount Olive, New Haven, Pace, Seton Hill

* NCAA champion
** NCAA finalist
*** NCAA semifinalist
**** NCAA quarterfinalist
***** NCAA tournament contender

Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings

Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women

HOT

Colorado Mesa (+5)

An up-and-down season for the Mavericks ended on a high-note, despite losing to No. 3 Regis in the NCAA quarterfinals. One week after falling in the RMAC tournament’s semifinal round to Lindenwood, CMU exacted a little revenge, upsetting the Lions in the NCAA tournament’s opening round. CMU snapped a 14-game losing streak to Lindenwood while making its first NCAA appearance.

Adelphi (+4)

For the first time in its 10-year NE10 history, Adelphi failed to reach the league’s championship game, getting bounced by unranked Merrimack. The Panthers responded by capitalizing on a second chance provided by the NCAA tournament, winning four straight postseason games and another NCAA title. The run started with a 16-3 beat-down of archrival LIU Post, an 8-7 overtime win over No. 2 Le Moyne, a seven-goal win over undefeated Regisand the final win over West Chester. Impressive.

Queens (N.C.) (+3)

The Royals enjoyed quite the bounceback season. After starting 2019 unranked, Queens marched through the South Atlantic League and then posted two NCAA upsets over Tampa and Rollins to win the NCAA’s South Regional. The Royals carried a 16-game winning streak into their first-ever appearance in the NCAA semifinals, and finished with an overall 19-3 record.

NOT

LIU Post (-3)

LIU Post’s final game in Division II was not one to remember. The Pioneers exited in the opening round of the NCAA tournament with a lopsided 16-3 loss to their rival Adelphi. LIU Post fell behind 5-0 early, and managed just one goal over the game’s final 43 minutes. The Pioneers reclassify to Division I next year.

Mercy (-3)

Mercy entered the NCAA tournament riding the momentum of its first ECC championship, but could not harness that energy further, falling 17-7 at Le Moyne in the opening round. Senior All-American Hunter Isnardi had three goals in the loss and finished the year with a single-season school-record 99 goals.