May 5, 2008

by Paul Ohanian, Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff

Three-time defending national champion Northwestern earned the No. 1 seed for the 2008 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament and hosts Notre Dame in one of eight opening round games this Sunday, May 11.

Pairings for the 16-team field were announced Monday evening.

The Wildcats (17-1) earned the American Lacrosse Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by defeating Vanderbilt, 14-3, in Sunday's ALC final.

Northwestern was one of six conference champions to claim an automatic bid. Others included Virginia (ACC), Temple (Atlantic 10), Syracuse (Big East), Towson (CAA) and Penn (Ivy League).

Five conferences received multiple bids, led by the ACC, which claimed four spots, and the Big East, which netted three.

Ivy champion Penn is the tournament's No. 2 seed and hosts Patriot League champion Colgate (11-9), which won an NCAA play-in game against Marist, in the opening round. Penn (14-1) brings a 12-game winning streak into the tournament, and handed top-seed Northwestern its only loss of the season on April 27.

ACC runner-up Maryland (17-2) is the No. 3 seed and hosts Temple (13-6). Maryland's only loss since March 1 was by one goal to Virginia in the ACC final.

ACC champion Virginia was awarded the No. 4 and hosts conference foe North Carolina (12-6) in the opening round. Virginia defeated the Tar Heels, 16-5, during the regular season.

Syracuse, the Big East champion, is the No. 5 seed. The Orange (16-2) brings a nine-game winning streak into its first round match-up against CAA champion Towson (13-5). Syracuse defeated the Tigers, 22-5, on March 19.

Big East runners-up Georgetown (12-6) and Notre Dame both received at-large bids. Georgetown is the No. 6 seed and hosts Duke (11-7) in the opening round. The Blue Devils defeated the Hoyas, 12-11, on March 15.

Vanderbilt (13-5) received a second ALC bid and visits Ivy League runner-up Princeton in the opening round. The Tigers (12-4) were awarded the No. 8 seed.

The America East also had two conference teams selected to the field. Boston University (17-2) claimed the league title and has won 14 straight games, including a 15-3 win over Sacred Heart in Saturday's NCAA play-in game. The seventh-seeded Terriers host league rival New Hampshire, an at-large selection, in a rematch of the America East championship game.

First Round Match-ups (with seeds)
#1 Northwestern (17-1) vs. Notre Dame (12-6)
#2 Pennsylvania (14-1) vs. Colgate (11-9)
#3 Maryland (17-2) vs. Temple (13-6)
#4 Virginia (14-3) vs. North Carolina (12-6)
#5 Syracuse (16-2) vs. Towson (13-5)
#6 Georgetown (12-6) vs. Duke (11-7)
#7 Boston Univ (17-2) vs. New Hampshire (13-5)
#8 Princeton (12-4) vs. Vanderbilt (13-5)