Welcome to On the Run. Here's what you need to know about what happened in college lacrosse this weekend, plus some little things that I loved. Quick and easy to read while you're on the run!

Today’s writeup in a snapshot 📸:

• 👀 The Headliner: #2 Maryland Beats #1 Notre Dame

• 🤝 Supporting Cast: Ivy/ACC Challenge in NC

• 🎯 Quick Hits: Chris Kavanagh Defying Physics

• 📈 On the Rise: Brown’s Connor Foley

👀 The Headliner: #1 v #2 Showdown in ATL

The storyline that stole the show this weekend.

It made sense over 10,000 fans turned out to Georgia Tech’s campus for this one.

#1 vs #2, 2024 NCAA Championship Game rematch, 70 degrees and sunny. What more could you ask for?

Well, if only it was a one-goal game, last minute thriller.

And it was. Of course it was. It just had to be.

Up one goal, goalie Logan McNaney kicked away Chris Kavanagh’s game-tying attempt in the last minute to secure the win for the Terps.

Eric Spanos led the way for Terps once again with 4 points (3G, 1A) including this beautiful skip over the defense to Bryce Ford as the shot clock was running out.

Ford, Daniel Kelly and freshman Jack Schultz had multi-goal outings. We knew the attack line of Spanos, Braden Erksa and Kelly would score goals, but the Terps being able to get big time games from their midfield is super important for them going forward.

Defensively, Will Schaller had one of the most impressive defensive performances I’ve seen this year, not just guarding Kavanagh tightly, but scooping up groundballs in traffic, making goal-saving plays and winning the runout after McNaney’s last-minute save for the Terps.

Notre Dame are still the favorites to win the National Championship, but they are not as good as last year.

That’s not exactly a hot take. My colleague Matt Dunn mentioned this on our Monday morning call, but our perception of what a National Championship team looks like is probably a little skewed because of how good teams like 2022 Maryland and 2024 Notre Dame were.

It’s basically impossible to replace two generational players in after graduating Pat Kavanagh and Liam Entenmann, yet the Irish are still clearly a Top 2 team in the nation.

While I’m sure Kavanagh would want both his in-between the legs shot (for the record, I thought this was a fine decision) and his doorstep lefty shot back to tie the game, he still finished with 4 goals.

Jake Taylor and Jordan Faison had multi-goal outings, and there’s really nothing to be worried about for this Notre Dame team.

Notre Dame is still really, really good. And it might just be enough to win another National Championship. But it’s not going to be the breeze it was in 2024.

 🤝 The Supporting Cast

The things that weren't maybe the star of the weekend, but still important.

1. Princeton Shows Out in Ivy League/ACC Challenge

The Ivy League/ACC Challenge is one of my favorite weekends all season.

Like last year, Princeton and UPenn traveled to North Carolina to faceoff against UNC and Duke on Friday and Sunday.

Princeton won both of their contests while UPenn dropped both to UNC and Duke. Here’s the full results:

• UNC beat UPenn 16-8 on Friday

• Princeton beat Duke 15-14 on Friday

• Princeton beat UNC 14-12 on Sunday

• Duke beat UPenn 11-6 on Sunday

A few takeaways on each team below:

Princeton

The Tigers seem to be every bit of the title contenders I thought they would be, winning back-to-back games against formidable ACC opponents this weekend.

The depth of scoring for Princeton stood out this weekend. Ten different players scored on Friday against Duke with Coulter Mackesy leading the way with four goals. On Sunday, Chad Palumbo had four goals (great to see after a quiet start to the year) as nine players scored for the Tigers.

Their offense is as advertised, and they are firmly in one of Top 5 teams in the nation.

Duke

Despite big-time performances from Patrick Jameison (11 saves) and Benn Johnston (5G, 1A), the Blue Devils fell short against Princeton on Friday in one of the games of the year so far.

But it was nice to see them take care of business on Sunday against UPenn as they held the Quakers to just one second half goal while Johnston, Eric Malever and Luke Grayum all had multi-goal efforts.

I highlighted sophomore LSM Mac Christmas last week, but he has the most goals by a pole (6) in a season since CJ Costabile (7) in 2012—and they’ve only played six games this year.

The Blue Devils have a lot of new faces and moving parts, but if Jameison, Johnston and McAdorey can play at elite levels game in and game out, Duke will be fine.

UNC

Like their ACC counterpart, UNC dropped a one-goal game to Princeton on Sunday after taking care of UPenn on Friday. Dom Pietramala had a hat-trick in each game while freshmen midfielders Mason Szewczyk and Caden Harshbarger and defenseman Chase Cellucci are getting better and better with each game.

Ty English had two goals in both games and is really boosting the offensive midfield after playing mainly SSDM last season and oh, and they still have Owen Duffy.

UNC still has to prove themselves in the ACC, but Pietramala is one of the hottest players in the nation and forms one of the best duos in the nation with Duffy.

UPenn

Their offense needs work, but Cam Rubin had six goals on the weekend and is stamping his mark as one of the best shooting midfielders in the nation while Emmet Carroll impressed in cage.

This weekend could be very beneficial to the Quakers down the road as they clean up their weaknesses, particularly on offense.

2. JHU Beats UVA 13-12

The Blue Jays just keep finding ways to win games.

Hunter Chauvette had 5 goals while sophomore Charlie Iler stepped up in Russell Melendez’s absence with three points (1G, 2A).

They aren’t winning in that convincing fashion, but winning tough games is a sign of a good team. And JHU is just that.

The Blue Jays have some really nice pieces of both sides of the ball and tournament experience. They’ll be dangerous come May.

As for UVA, it’s panic time. They have no margin for error; they have to make the ACC tournament (and maybe win the tournament?) to have a chance at making the NCAA tournament.

🎯 Quick Hits

The weekend's standout plays, hustle moments, and everything in between.

📈 On the Rise

Spotlighting players and teams who are setting themselves up for big things ahead.

1. Jack Schultz (Midfield - Maryland)

The freshman had two goals against Notre Dame on Saturday, including one on First Team All-American SSDM Ben Ramsey. He has good size and nice shake to his game, but his confidence stands out. If he can keep playing like this for the Terps, watch out.

2. Matt Jeffrey (Midfield - Notre Dame)

Jeffrey was 0 for 4 shooting on Saturday, but he looks like he belongs out there. The first thing I noticed from Jeffrey was him absolutely shaking his SSDM in the 3rd quarter but missing wide. Then, in the 4th quarter, with Notre Dame down one out of a timeout, Jeffrey was on the field. Not only that, he made the gorgeous feed to Kavanagh on the doorstep before McNaney made the save. It’s only a matter of time before Jeffrey gets on the scoreboard, but his impact is already felt, and the talent is evident.

3. The Colgate vs Army Patriot League Final Matchup

Colgate and Army manhandled their first in-conference opponents, with Colgate winning over Loyola 18-6 and Army dominating Lafayette 15-5.

Unless an upset happens in the Patriot League tournament, these two teams are more likely than not going to meet in the conference title game, and what a game it will be.

4. Connor Foley (Goalie - Brown)

In his first year as a starter, the sophomore is averaging 15 saves per game with a save percentage of 61%. Oh, and he has a goal on the season too.

Read previous week’s here:

• Read Week 0

• Read Week 1

• Read Week 2

• Read Week 3