Dialed In: Your Lacrosse Fix For Friday, May 19

Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:

1. The NCAA Division I Women’s Final Four is set.

Let’s start with the story of the day.

Denver women’s lacrosse used a heroic defensive effort to take down the defending national champions, North Carolina, 5-4 at Chapel Hill. The win clinched the Pioneers’ first trip to the final four in school history, and served as No. 300 for coach Liza Kelly.

The Pioneers held the Tar Heels scoreless for the final 35 minutes. Yes, you read that correctly.

Click here for more from Evan Rogers.

DENVER IS HEADED TO THE FINAL FOUR.

HISTORY FOR @DU_WLAX.

Denver holds @uncwlax scoreless for over 35 minutes en route to a victory. pic.twitter.com/cogJg3xGVk

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 18, 2023

The other three NCAA Women’s quarterfinals were not as close — with the top seeds advancing in convincing fashion.

• No. 1 seed Northwestern used another huge performance from Izzy Scane to cruise to a 16-6 victory over Loyola in Evanston. Scane dropped 10 points on seven goals and three assists to lead the Wildcats to another final four appearance, where they’ll meet Denver in Cary, N.C. Click here to read more.

• No. 2 Syracuse was slow out of the gates, but found its offensive grove in the minutes before halftime. Olivia Adamson chipped in four goals, two assist and nine draw controls to lead the Orange to a 13-7 victory over James Madison at the Dome. Click here for the full recap.

• No. 3 Boston College is headed to the final four for a sixth straight season. Belle Smith and Jenn Medjid combined for 15 points to lead the Eagles to the 20-6 win over Notre Dame in Newton. Click here to read more.

2. The Division II women’s final four gets underway in Indianapolis tonight.

A mix of powerhouses and newcomers make up the final four teams remaining in the bracket. One winner will be crowned on Sunday afternoon. Click here for the full preview.

WHAT WE’RE READING

• Matt DaSilva with an awesome piece on the USSS vs. FBI Charity Game, which will be played for the fourth time this weekend in Annapolis, Md.

• Taylor Cummings touches on changes to the NCAA women’s tournament schedule that could make games easier for fans to consume. Click here for “Taylor’s 10.”

• Georgetown might have sat at 0-3 early this season, but the Hoyas knew what they had. Patrick Stevens checks in on a Georgetown team headed to the NCAA quarterfinals.

• Inside Lacrosse named its Division I Women’s All-American teams.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

Izzy Scane can pretty much find space to score using any dodge. Here she is putting defenders in a blender.

IZZY MAKING EM DIZZY.

The @nulax star puts them on spin cycle and the Cats are up big in the first half. pic.twitter.com/pzNHAhd4PM

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 19, 2023

Emma Ward and Meg Carney putting the exclamation point on Syracuse's big win.

CUSE MOVES ON TO THE FINAL FOUR IN STYLE. @CuseWLAX goes BTB to BTB to clinch a 13-7 win over @JMULacrosse. pic.twitter.com/UjuVbAOZRA

— USA Lacrosse Magazine (@USALacrosseMag) May 18, 2023

WHAT’S ON TAP

• The Division II women’s final four takes place tonight in Indianapolis. Then, we have chaos all weekend in Division I, II and III.

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