On Friday afternoon, the Boston College women’s lacrosse team will face off against the Yale Bulldogs in the first round of the 2026 NCAA tournament. This is the first time since 2017 that BC is not ranked as a top-8 seed in the tournament, the same year the Eagles made it all the way to the program’s first-ever Final Four appearance, eventually losing the title game to Maryland. It’s due to the up-and-down regular season that BC had, going just 9-7 overall which is their worst winning percentage
since 2016.
BC began the season on a 3-game losing streak, losing to #1 Northwestern and #30 Notre Dame in Chestnut Hill and then #9 Michigan in Atlanta. Then they got through their ACC schedule with a few key losses to #2 North Carolina, #22 Virginia, and #31 Duke, sending them tumbling down the rankings from their usual spot in the top-10. BC did manage to gain regular season victories over #6 Syracuse and #11 Stanford, but then fell to Stanford in the ACC tournament shortly thereafter. The Eagles have shown an ability to scrape together wins, but not at the same elite level as years past.
The regular season is over now, and it’s win or go home for everybody. This is the typically the worst time of year to bet against the Eagles, who have made it to eight-straight Final Fours and counting, winning two national titles along the way. And their path to the Final Four is about as favorable as you can get for a non-seeded team. They’re in the #4/#5 part of the bracket, so they won’t have to go through annual stalwarts Northwestern, North Carolina, or Maryland to reach the Final Four in Chicago. Their path includes a first-round match-up with #21 Yale, then potential games against #5 Stony Brook and #4 Johns Hopkins if they keep advancing. Both Stony Brook and Yale were teams that Boston College defeated last season in their run to the Final Four at Gillette Stadium.
Their opening game against Yale could turn into a slugfest. BC was able to pull out a low-scoring 7-4 game against Syracuse in April, and I would expect that a contest against Yale’s staunch defense may look similar. Bulldog goalie Niamh Pfaff is one of the best in the nation, and the defense around her excels at clearing the ball and avoiding fouls. BC will have to lean heavily on senior goaltender Shea Dolce to keep them in the game, who is having a down-year by her standards but is a very experienced postseason player.
If BC makes it through that game, Stony Brook could be a much tougher test. The Seawolves are on a 13-game winning streak since their loss at Johns Hopkins on March 8th. They also took #1 Northwestern down to the wire in a 13-12 loss in February, and have wins over #8 Colorado, #13 Denver, and #16 Princeton. Stony Brook gets it done with stifling defense as well, never allowing more than 13 goals in a game all season. They also have a top-10 scoring offense, but I would expect that to come back down to Earth a little bit in the NCAA tournament when they’re not facing the dregs of the CAA.
Finally, if BC manages that upset, they would have a likely date with #4 Johns Hopkins for the right to go to Chicago. The Blue Jays play in the Big Ten in women’s lacrosse, and had an impressive record this season with wins over #5 Stony Brook, #6 Syracuse, #15 James Madison, #18 Penn State, #29 Penn, and #31 Duke. They did lose some of their biggest games of the season, though, losing to #3 Maryland, #9 Michigan, and twice to #1 Northwestern. They no doubt earned their spot as a top-4 seed in this tournament, but can be exploited on defense in the right situation. If top BC goal-scorers Molly Driscoll, Marissa White, Giulia Colarusso, and Kylee Colbert can get going, the Blue Jays may have a hard time stopping them. It would take al ot of things to break right for the Eagles, but they are absolutely in play to attend their ninth-straight Final Four.
Boston College faces off against Yale in the first round on Friday May 8th at 4PM ET. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
