Good morning and thank you to those that paid the ultimate sacrifice on this Memorial Day. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:

1. North Carolina is back on top.

Taylor Moreno came up big, Sam Geiersbach scored the game-winner again and North Carolina brought home its first NCAA Division I women’s lacrosse championship since 2016. A sold out crowd and national television audience on ESPN saw the Tar Heels 14-13 thriller over Boston College.

@uncwlax tops @BCwlax 12-11 to win its first national title since 2016.

WHAT A GAME. TAR HEELS WIN. pic.twitter.com/GidawjZ9Li

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 29, 2022

2. North Carolina’s women finished a perfect season on Sunday. Can Maryland’s men do the same?

Cornell is the last team standing in Maryland’s pursuit of history as the Terps bring an unblemished record into the championship game. They'll find an opponent with some similar traits.

3. Tampa goes unbeaten with a new coach.

J.B. Clarke has won national championships before, but this time he did it a new home. The former Limestone coach led Tampa to the NCAA Division II men’s title in his first season leading the Spartans with an 11-7 win over Mercy.

4. It's back-to-back for RIT.

Union pushed RIT to the brink once more, but the Tigers rallied for a 12-10 win to capture their second straight NCAA Division III men’s lacrosse championship.

5. The wait is worth it for Middlebury.

Playing a full season for the first time since 2019, Middlebury went back to the hero of its 2019 champioship — Jane Earley. Earley scored six goals, including three straight to start a game-closing six-goal run in a 13-5 win over Tufts in the NCAA Divison III women’s championship game.

6. The tradition continues in the nation's oldest women's lacrosse event.

Massachusetts/Rhode Island captured its third straight championship in the top division of the USA Lacrosse Women’s National Tournament. MA/RI’s Giulia Colarusso scored three goals, including the game-winner and won the Heather Leigh Albert Award as the tournament’s outstanding player.

WHAT WE’RE READING

• ESPN with a look at how Jared Bernhardt is trying to make the move from NCAA lacrosse stardom to the NFL.

• Following the tragic shooting in a Buffalo supermarket, the Bandits' Dhane Smith is making his voice heard and using his platform to help raise money for the Buffalo Survivors Fund, and to hopefully enact change.

• Angela McMahon-Serpone, the head coach at the University of Massachusetts and an assistant coach on the USA U19 gold-medal winning team in 2019, is stepping down from that position to take a faculty and coaching position at Deerfield Academy. McMahon went 193-35 in 12 years leading UMass, guiding the Minutewomen into the NCAA tournament nine times.

• Steve Politi says that the late Tom Hayes would have loved this year’s Rutgers men’s lacrosse team.

• Sophomore midfielder Hugh Kelleher is making his presence felt for the Cornell men’s lacrosse team.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

The current first family of lacrosse — the Kirsts.

Brothers through everything.

After @CornellLacrosse’s win, CJ Kirst embraced his brother and @RUmlax goalie, Colin. pic.twitter.com/XPIaNHSuEA

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 28, 2022

North Carolina’s national championship wouldn’t have happened if not for an epic fourth quarter comeback against Northwestern in the semifinals. What an amazing performance by Sam Geiersbach.

SAM GEIERSBACH.

- Transfer from @SpiderWLAX

- Playing in her final season.

- Just wrote her name in @NCAALAX history.

Sit back and enjoy the goals that made a a legend and led a @uncwlax comeback. pic.twitter.com/xVhLE4plFn

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 27, 2022

WHAT’S ON TAP

1 pm. ESPN. Maryland vs. Cornell. Enjoy.

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