After what has felt like two separate seasons combined into one for the Virginia Cavaliers men’s lacrosse team, the ‘Hoos find themselves firmly in this year’s NCAA tournament as the fifth seed, earning a home game inside Klockner Stadium.
UVA enters the dance at 10-6 overall, fresh off a strong showing in the ACC Tournament, where a second win over No. 2-seeded Notre Dame and a 16-6 demolition over North Carolina now has this team poised and as confident as any group in the country in its ability
to get to the semifinals on Memorial Day weekend.
The Georgetown Hoyas enter Sunday as the automatic qualifier out of the Big East at 10-4 overall. Kevin Warne has his Hoyas playing balanced lacrosse, owning the 11th-best scoring offense and the 12th-best scoring defense nationally. They notched wins over Albany, Denver and Loyola, but came up short against three other tournament teams in Notre Dame, Richmond, and Syracuse.
The offense is ironically spearheaded by a combo of brothers in Liam Connor (21 G, 51 A) and Rory Connor (50 G, 13 A). Both lit the lacrosse world on fire last year while at Colgate, and they’ve continued that heater throughout 2026. Defensively, this team owns one of the better goalies most probably have not heard of in Anderson Moore; the junior is averaging 12 stops a game at 56% and has been a huge factor in the Hoyas not allowing double-digit goals in their last three games.
This should be a great one, with the ‘Hoos and Hoyas set to collide at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU. Here are two keys and a prediction for Sunday’s contest.
Two Keys
Jake Marek continuing his ACC tournament-heater
It’s no coincidence that once UVA solidified its goalie position with the elevated play of Marek, things took a positive turn. In his final year of college lacrosse, the Air Force transfer is playing some of the best ball of his career. He stopped 76% of UNC’s shots in the ACC title game for a total of 16 saves. That’s one of the most ridiculous percentages you will ever see in a game between two competent lacrosse teams. The kind of thing that just makes other teams shake their head on the sidelines.
The Hoyas can shoot it as a team. 33% collectively is no slouch, but UVA’s defense has helped its goalie out in the past two games by forcing favorable shots. Shots with defenders right in the gloves of shooters, low-angle chances down the alley; there haven’t been very many easy looks allowed by this defense these last few weeks. That’s all you can ask for as a goalie, and Marek’s already shown he can play big when this team needs it. Another big game will likely be needed against the Connor brothers and the Hoya offense.
Scoring depth
We see it time and time again: scoring depth is huge in May. Yes, the big dogs need to eat with guys like Brendan and McCabe Millon, Ryan Colsey, and Truitt Sunderland needing to continue their steady production; that is a given.
But as we saw in both of UVA’s wins over Notre Dame, along with others against Duke and North Carolina, it was the added offense from players like Chase Band, Hudson Hausmann, and Will Inderlied that helped this team get across the finish line. Those two or three extra ‘juice’ goals make all the difference in the tourney in general.
Still, it is especially true ahead of this game against a Georgetown team that sits inside the top-15 nationally in scoring defense. No one would be surprised to see another McCabe Millon masterclass, like the one against UNC in the ACC final, from a talent perspective. But points in bunches are usually tougher to come by come tournament time. Second line midfielders, defensive middies, close defenders, take your pick. A handful of supplemental goals would drastically swing things in UVA’s favor.
Prediction
The ‘Hoos are the hottest team in college lacrosse going into this tournament. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. From complete afterthought to title-contender in what legitimately felt like the blink of an eye. UVA has a serious shot to make noise in this tournament, so long as the offense continues to click as it has and the defense continues to hold up.
UVA’s defensive sliding has looked much improved compared to earlier in the season. The defensive midfield has followed in lockstep, and it’s played a pivotal role in Jake Marek’s success. The offense has the talent to score enough here, even if we see All-American Ty Banks play a great one-on-one cover game on either of the Millon brothers. I like UVA’s scoring depth to show Sunday night, and I think one or two unexpected goals ultimately swing this game the Cavaliers’ way.
Prediction: UVA 12, Georgetown 10
