Salisbury, Tufts to Meet for Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship

The Division III men’s NCAA championship game matchup is set, and it’ll be a meeting between two storied D-III programs.

Salisbury and Tufts will do battle in Philadelphia on Sunday, May 26, at 4 p.m. for the Division III crown.

But how did they get there? They had to dispatch two other Division III beasts on Sunday.

NCAA DIVISION III MEN’S
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Sunday, May 28, 4 p.m. — Salisbury (22-1) vs. Tufts (22-0)

TUFTS 15, RIT 11

There won’t be a three-peat in 2023. Tufts dispatched the two-time defending champion Tigers of RIT, using a six-goal run in the middle of the game to create a little separation in a 15-11 win.

A 4-4 game after the first quarter was immediately broken open by the undefeated Jumbos. Tufts scored all four goals in the second quarter and the first two of the third quarter, taking a 10-4 lead. Tommy Swank scored three goals in the run, with Charlie Tagliaferri, Kyle Adelmann and Cam Delcristo each chipping in one.

Tufts took a 13-6 lead when Kevin Christmas deposited his only goal of the game with 4:20 left in the third quarter, but RIT didn’t go quietly. The Tigers closed on a 5-2 run but ultimately couldn’t get the offense going consistently enough in the fourth quarter.

Tufts outshot RIT 61-39 and caused fits for the Tigers on the clear (26-for-33). Overall, there were 44 combined turnovers in the game (24 by RIT).

SALISBURY 12, CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT 8

Make it an even 20 title game appearances for Salisbury after Sunday’s 12-8 win over Christopher Newport.

Like Tufts in the other semifinal, a big run in the middle of the game was enough for Salisbury to withstand a late push from the Captains. Christopher Newport led 3-2 after the first quarter, but Salisbury responded with seven of the next eight goals — a streak that run through Braden Glushakow’s goal with 13:18 left in the fourth quarter.

Up 9-4, Salisbury allowed three in a row to CNU — one each from Brett Jackson, Drew Miller and Andrew Cook — before erasing that spurt with three of its own. Cross Ferrara bookended a Jack Dowd goal to make it 12-7.

Salisbury last played Tufts on May 21, 2022, in the NCAA quarterfinals and lost 17-10.