2008 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament
The 2008 NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse tournament was the 38th annual championship tournament. It ran from May 10 to May 26, 2008, with 16 teams competing. Syracuse won the title, defeating Johns Hopkins 13–10 in the final at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, in front of about 49,000 fans.
How the tournament worked
- The first round was played on May 10–11 at the home field of the top-seeded team.
- The quarterfinals were held on May 17–18 at two neutral sites: Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland, and Schoellkopf Field in Ithaca, New York.
- The semifinals and finals were played on Memorial Day weekend.
- The NCAA Selection Committee chose 16 teams: seven automatic conference bids and nine at-large bids.
- Automatic bids came from Canisius (MAAC), Colgate (Patriot), Hofstra (CAA), Notre Dame (GWLL), UMBC (AE), Loyola (ECAC), and Cornell (Ivy). The ACC did not receive an automatic bid that year.
- At-large bids went to Duke, Virginia, Syracuse, North Carolina, Johns Hopkins, Maryland, Denver, Navy, and Ohio State.
Highlights from the tournament
- First round upsets included Ohio State beating Cornell 15–7; Navy defeating North Carolina 8–7; Notre Dame beating Colgate in overtime.
- Duke’s Matt Danowski set the NCAA career points record in the first round.
- Syracuse crushed Canisius 20–3; Johns Hopkins beat Hofstra 10–4; Virginia defeated UMBC; Maryland beat Denver.
- In the quarterfinals, Johns Hopkins beat Navy 10–4, and Maryland beat Virginia in overtime.
- In Ithaca, Syracuse beat Notre Dame 11–9, and Duke beat Ohio State 21–10.
The Final Four and beyond
- On May 24, Syracuse beat Virginia 12–11 in double overtime. Syracuse trailed for much of the game before a late rally. Mike Leveille scored five goals, and Dan Hardy added a key hat trick. Syracuse’s goalie, John Galloway, made crucial saves in the second half and overtime.
- Johns Hopkins defeated Duke 10–9 in the other semifinal. Hopkins goalie Michael Gvozden made 17 saves, and Kevin Huntley had four goals for Hopkins.
- The championship game on May 26 featured Syracuse and Johns Hopkins. Syracuse won 13–10, setting a large attendance record for the event. Mike Leveille was the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, finishing with three points in the final. Dan Hardy added three goals for Syracuse, and Galloway earned praise for strong goaltending.
- Paul Rabil led Johns Hopkins with six goals and one assist in the final, while Gvozden had 20 saves, the most in a title game in years.
Top performers
- Top scorer: Mike Leveille, Syracuse (19 goals)
- Most Outstanding Player: Mike Leveille, Syracuse
- Notable goaltenders: John Galloway (Syracuse) and Michael Gvozden (Hopkins)
This tournament crowned Syracuse as the national champion, marking the program’s ninth NCAA title and the fourth for head coach John Desko.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 22:33 (CET).