Instead, the Irish ran into a buzzsaw.

Top-ranked Princeton reeled off 11 consecutive goals in the first half and cruised to a 16-9 victory, earning the Tigers their first men’s lacrosse national championship in 25 years.

Things started well for the Irish, as Will Meharas, Josh Yago and Matt Jeffrey staked the Irish to a 3-0 lead just four minutes in.

That’s when Princeton received the wake-up call, stifling the Irish attack with a zone defense, while using a motion offense with constant picking and screening to baffle Notre Dame.

But the Tigers really dominated in every facet of the game — faceoffs, ground balls, you name it — in the first half. After tying the game at 3 by the end of the first quarter, Princeton compiled an 8-0 second quarter that really decided the game. Senior Chad Palumbo racked up four goals and an assist to lead the way.

Kevin Corrigan’s squad finishes the year at 13-3.

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Kevin Corrigan’s Fighting Irish men’s lacrosse team will play for its third title in four seasons, as 2nd-ranked Notre Dame pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 15-7 win over No. 6 seed Syracuse on Saturday in the national semifinals.

The Irish will face top-ranked Princeton, a 14-7 winner over Duke. The national championship game will also be played in Charlottesville, Monday at 1 p.m. on ESPN..

The No. 2 seed Fighting Irish (13-2) face Princeton in the national championship game on Monday, May 25, at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The Fighting Irish won the first two national titles in program history in 2023 and 2024.

While Notre Dame led for the majority of the game, Syracuse pulled within 9-7 on a Payton Anderson goal with 1:39 left in the third quarter. Notre Dame gained the momentum back and took control in the fourth quarter following a two-minute, non-releasable Orange penalty, scoring three goals with the man-up advantage to push its lead out to five with 13:12 left in the fourth quarter. That was part of six unanswered Fighting Irish goals during the fourth quarter.

Extra-man opportunities were one of the main stories of the game, as Notre Dame finished 5-for-6 and held Syracuse to 0-for-5. The Irish also added a score when down a man, their first of the season.

Josh Yago had a huge day for the Fighting Irish, with a hat trick and four assists as he totaled seven points. Brock Behrman added two goals and two assists, while goalie Thomas Ricciardelli made 14 saves.

Syracuse (13-6) was paced by Finn Thomson, who scored four goals, and Luke Rhoa, who scored a pair of goals. Jimmy McCool totaled 11 saves.

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Notre Dame’s “magical” scoring system led to a dramatic conclusion for the 95^th Blue Gold Game as Spencer Porath hit a 43 yard field goal on the final play to give the offense a 41-40 win over the defense in front of the 2^nd largest crowd to ever witness a Notre Dame spring football game.

Blue-Gold game crowds are typically impacted by three factors: seeing the next starting quarterback at Notre Dame for the first time, good weather, and excitement in the program.

There’s no doubt who Notre Dame’s starting quarterback will be in 2026 as CJ Carr is back for his 2^nd season leading the Irish. So that was in play as much as it was last year when he was still in a quarterback battle. But the weather was picture perfect with temperatures in the 60s on a sun splashed spring Saturday and there is unquestionably strong excitement surrounding the football program as Irish fans believe this is a team that could end Notre Dame’s national championship drought.

It resulted in 45,308 Irish fans attending, the 2^nd largest crowd in the nearly 100 year history of the Blue-Gold Game. Only the 2007 spring game, featuring the debut of Jimmy Clausen, resulted in more fans. The 2007 game had 51,852 fans.

The defense appeared to out play the offense over the course of the 12 series scrimmage but the ‘adjust it as we go’ scoring system led to a fun finish for the fans. After Ethan Logan intercepted Noah Grubbs late in the scrimmage, the defense took a 44-38 lead BUT the scoreboard quickly changed to 40-38, allowing Porath to lineup for the game winning field goal—which he made.

Even so, Irish offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock said after the game that the offense had a slow start Saturday.

“I wish we had started faster,” Denbrock said. “I thought we were pretty sloppy in the beginning and missed some things that we need to make sure we sure up–whether that’s decision making or protection checks. We just have to be sharper out of the gate than we were today. So I was a little disappointed in that. Not mad at them but just disappointed. I thought we picked it up as time went along. We were able to hit some big chunk plays which is kind of the foundation of what this offense is built on and we have to continue to get better at our consistency.”

Linebacker Jaylen Sneed, who intercepted a CJ Carr pass midway through the scrimmage, and led the way with 4 tackles, was named the Player of the Game.

“We were in zone—I stepped in, I stepped out and I saw Ethan tip it and then it kind of just landed in my hands,” Sneed said of the interception. “It felt good.”

With Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa out for the spring and Drayk Bowen limited, Sneed saw a lot of time on the field with fellow linebacker Jaiden Ausberry this spring. Sneed says that was a great experience because the two are best friends.

“They really haven’t played together a lot,” defensive coordinator Chris Ash said of Sneed and Ausberry. “They had to work together on communication, setting a front and adjusting things. They really hadn’t played the mike linebacker position so both of them did a lot of that this spring and it was new for them. I know they’ve had a lot of snaps here but playing mike and will is different. It was great to see those two guys over the course of the spring work together, communicate together and as we went through, they got better adjusting and playing with each other.”

Carr was just 7-of-15 passing for 55 yards as he led the 1^st team offense. He targeted Micah Gilbert five times early in the scrimmage for just one completion. Michigan transfer cornerback Jayden Sanders, starting at cornerback with star Leonard Moore out with a late camp injury, shut Gilbert down and was very effective throughout the day after playing nickel for most of spring practice.

Running back Aneyas Williams shed the red jersey from off season elbow surgery for the first time although whistles still blew on the first sign of contact. Williams showed his versatility as both a runner (10 carries, 38 yards, one touchdown) and a pass catcher (tied for a game high 3 receptions).

“The position I’m finally in, that I’ve been waiting for for the last two years, I couldn’t just sit there and watch,” Williams said of what led to him playing more this spring than initially expected. “I felt really good. I felt like I could go. I don’t know if my medical staff would agree but I just felt a better timeline than where I was.”

Denbrock says while Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price have moved on to the NFL, it doesn’t mean that the team’s expectation of the running back room’s production has to be less.

“My anticipation for Aneyas is the same as it’s always been—every time we’ve given him an opportunity and he’s stepped into a football game, he’s made something positive happen and I don’t see that being any different,” Denbrock said.

Nolan James Jr is expected to see a lot of time alongside Williams in the fall but saw just one carry for one yard during the Blue Gold Game.

Denbrock says the competition for the backup quarterback position will continue into the fall. Blake Hebert and Noah Grubbs are battling now with Teddy Jerrad arriving this summer.

Hebert had the best day of the quarterbacks, engineering two touchdown drives while completing 7 of 11 passes for 103 yards. He threw a 53 yard pass to Cam Williams that setup a Jonaz Walton 4 yard touchdown run. Later Hebert threw an 8 yard touchdown pass to Elijah Burress.

“I think Blake’s made tremendous progress from where he was a year ago to now,” Denbrock said. “I see a lot of signs of someone who understands our offensive structure a little bit better, understands kind of how to adjust it a little bit better. I like the direction he’s headed in. He did some really good things in the spring.”

Grubbs, who enrolled at Notre Dame in January after leading his high school to a state football championship, was 7-of-14 for 64 yards, including a touchdown pass to Devin Fitzgerald and the interception at the end of the scrimmage.

Denbrock says that end of the scrimmage was a great example for a young quarterback like Grubbs. Denbrock called the same play two times in a row.

“The first one he took his medicine and dropped it down to the back and we gained a first down on a little drop to the running back,” Denbrock explained. “I called the exact same play on the next play and he tried to force the dig and it got picked off. That’s a little bit about young quarterbacks and maturity and how they have to handle making decisions and making sure they don’t compromise what we are trying to do as a football team along the way. That’s a great lesson for him. As frustrating as it is to have it happen, there’s no greater teacher than him going through that, understanding that and now getting back for it.”

Notre Dame opens the 2026 season on Sunday, September 6^th at Lambeau Field against Wisconsin.

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Highlighted by Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza of Indiana and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, Indiana college and high school football talent were all over Thursday’s first round of the NFL Draft.

As expected, Mendoza was selected with the first pick of the draft by the Las Vegas Raiders. The quarterback became the first Indiana University player taken with the first pick of the draft since fullback Corbett Davis in 1938.  He goes to a Las Vegas team with a new coach in Klint Kubiak, who was the offensive coordinator for the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks last season.

Love was the third player selected in the draft, chosen by the Arizona Cardinals. The explosive Notre Dame star hugged his parents and head coach Marcus Freeman before emerging on the stage.  He is the highest draft pick for a Fighting Irish player since quarterback Rick Mirer was selected at #2 in the 1993 draft.

Both Indiana and Notre Dame wound up with two selections in the first round. Hoosier wide receiver Omar Cooper, Jr. was taken by the New York Jets with the 30th pick of the draft. Cooper, a graduate of Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, had 72 receptions for 1011 yards and 14 touchdowns last season.  It marks the first time IU has had two first-round selections in the same NFL Draft.

Love’s backfield mate, Jadarian Price, was taken with the final pick of round one by Seattle. Price stayed at Notre Dame despite lucrative NIL offers elsewhere and built his draft stock with 674 rushing yards, 13 touchdowns and dynamic special teams play, including a 100-yard kickoff return against USC.  It marks the first time the first two running backs taken in the draft were from the same school since Doak Walker and Paul Page from SMU in 1949.

The Chicago Bears added one more Indiana touch, drafting safety Dillon Thieneman. The Westfield High School alum began his career at Purdue, making six interceptions his freshman year, before transferring to Oregon for his final season.  Thieneman finished his three-year college career with 306 tackles and should help shore up the Bears secondary.

Round two of the draft is scheduled for Friday evening.

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That won’t be the case next season.

Michaela Mabrey, who has been part of the coaching staff since 2019, announced on Instagram Wednesday that she is leaving the program.

In her statement, Mabrey wrote “God has truly blessed me with the opportunity to coach at a place I love, alongside people I love, impacting players I love and I am forever grateful. I’m excited for what He has in store next.”

Mabrey was a two-time team captain during her playing days from 2012-2016, reaching three Final Fours.  She then started her coaching career with one-year stints at Miami, Fla., Miami (Ohio) and LSU, before coming onto Muffet McGraw’s staff in 2019.

Mabrey worked primarily with the Irish guards, helping develop the careers of Olivia Miles, Sonia Citron and Hannah Hidalgo during her Irish tenure. She also served as the program’s recruiting coordinator.

Mabrey’s statement offered no indication of her future plans, but also offered no indication of any issues with anybody in the program.

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Sunday night, the men received a commitment from point guard Braeden Smith, a 6-0, 170-pounder incoming senior. Smith spent the first two seasons of his college career at Colgate, where he was the Patriot League Player of the Year in 2025.  Smith transferred to Gonzaga for his junior season, averaging 5.1 points and 3.6 assists per game for Mark Few’s squad. He is the third addition from the portal for Micah Shrewsberry’s roster.

On Sunday, the Irish women picked up a commitment from Madison St. Rose, a 5-10 guard from Old Bridge, New Jersey. St. Rose helped lead Princeton to the NCAA tournament last season, earning all-Ivy League honors. She averaged 15.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game for the Tigers. If she has a flaw in her game, it’s three-point shooting. St. Rose connected on only 27 percent of her shots from behind the arc last season.

St. Rose is the second transfer of the weekend for Niele Ivey’s squad. On Friday, Louisville’s Anaya Hardy committed to the Irish. Hardy, an incoming junior and Detroit native, is a 6-3 forward who averaged 4.9 points and 4.2 rebounds per game last season for the Cardinals.

Both the Notre Dame men and women are expected to make more additions from the portal. Players have until Monday to enter the portal, but can commit to a team any time.

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That was evident at Notre Dame’s “jersey scrimmage” Saturday. Carr, the redshirt sophomore from Saline, Michigan, looked far different than the young man who barely won the quarterback job over Kenny Minchey last fall. He was in complete command, dissecting the Irish defense with on-target throws all over the field.

“More than anything he does with his physical talent, the ability he has to put our offense in position to have success because of what the defense is presenting is probably one of his greatest traits,” stated Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman afterwards. “You don’t have to have a coach tell you everything. He’s able to understand the play, he’s able to see what the defense is doing and put us in a position that usually ends up in a positive play.”

Many of those positive plays today were completions to Jordan Faison, who made six grabs including a 45-yard deep ball where he beat cornerback Mark Zackery IV in man coverage.  The connection that developed between quarterback and receiver last season has only become stronger this spring.

“That’s one consistent football player,” lauds Freeman, when asked about Faison. “Great players are consistent. What he did today is what he’s done all spring. Where’s he  has been able to get his level of play to gives him the chance to elevate even more.”

With it being a day of tackling, Nolan James, Jr. got the bulk of the first-team reps at running back, as Aneyas Williams still protects his elbow. James showed an uncanny ability of finding ways to pick up extra yards, especially after contact, as he showed when he scored on the opening goal line drill of the day.

“I’ve seen that since he stepped in the building,” noted Freeman. “He’s got a unique build. He has great contact balance. He’s hard to bring down. His brother is probably the best wrestler in the country for his age, and I tell Nolan he’d be a heckuva wrestler if he wrestled.”

As far as the second and third team offense is concerned, Noah Grubbs took all the snaps, as Blake Hebert sat out with a “minor” knee injury that he suffered in Friday’s practice. Grubbs  benefitted from the speed and hands of freshman Devin Fitzgerald, who made two touchdown grabs…one on a slant-and-go where he raced 65 yards and the other on twisting catch to stay in bounds in the end zone. While Fitzgerald currently does not appear to be in the top six of Notre Dame’s receiving depth chart, Freeman is not counting him out either.

“Here’s the mindset our guys must have…you have to master what you get,” notes Freeman. “I don’t care if it was against the threes, he made some big plays today. He’ll continue to be put in elevated positions to show what he can do against better competition. He’s made big plays like that throughout the spring.”

The defense had its moments, as Luke Talich came up with an interception…and in vintage Talich form, nearly turned it into a pick-six.

“You’ve got to be really intelligent to be able to grasp everything you’re asked to do at multiple positions,” Freeman says of Talich. “You’ve got to have a unique skill set to do multiple positions. Luke Talich has both of those. He has a physical body to play linebacker or nickel. He’s athletic enough and fast enough to play safety. We’ve got to find ways to get Luke Talich on the field.”

Defensive tackle Tionne Gray splitting a double team for a run stop, Rodney Dunham with a tackle for loss and sacks by Boubacar Traore and Ebenezer Ewetade were some of the other defensive highlights. Freeman also lauded the play of linebackers of Jaiden Ausberry and Teddy Rezac, who each made multiple tackles today.

Placekicker Spencer Porath was a perfect nine-for-nine in field goals today, with a long of 47. Porath also had the pressure put on him at the end of the scrimmage. Freeman rigged the score to be tied. A make would win for the offense. A defense would give the blue jerseys to the defense. Even with Jaylen Sneed doing jumping jacks and yelling at him just two yards to his right, Porath drilled the 40-yarder to officially give the offense the win.

“Spencer has been as consistent as any kicker we’ve had,” praises Freeman. “He’s done a good job learning how to kick with a new holder and Jasper (Scaife) has done an unbelievable job learning how to hold. That’s something new to him. Plus, Jasper has a huge leg and he’s learning how to punt American football and he’s done a good job with that.”

Overall, Freeman felt the rare chance to put his #1 offense vs. the #1 defense was the highlight of the day.

“The defense rotates a lot more than the offensive line with the first group.,” admits Freeman. “So now you’re going to be able to evaluate all those defensive guys against your #1 offensive line. You evaluate all your offensive linemen against different types of defensive lineman. That’s the intention of going good on good.  I think this is a great day for evaluation.”

Fans will get a chance to make their own evaluations a week from today when Notre Dame plays the annual Blue-Gold Game at Notre Dame Stadium. Tickets areb available.

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Prosper never wavered and her faith paid dividends.

The Notre Dame forward was selected with the 19th pick of Monday nights WNBA Draft by the Washington Mystics. The Montreal native joins former Irish teammate Sonia Citron in Washington.

 This year, Prosper started in all 36 of Notre Dame’s games and was named the ACC’s Most Improved Player. She also earned a spot on the All-ACC Second Team.

The 6-3 wing averaged 13.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.1 blocks per game, all career-highs. She shot 49 percent from the floor and 74 percent from the free throw line.

Prosper’s former Notre Dame teammate, TCU’s Olivia Miles, was taken with the second pick of the draft by the Minnesota Lynx.

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But not on the team where one of the mottos is “challenge everything”.

Offensive line coach Joe Rudolph has moved some of the pieces around this spring, moving left guard Guerby Lambert to right tackle, sliding starting left tackle Anthonie Knapp to left guard and moving backup guard Will Black to left tackle. Instead of things looking out of place, all the puzzle pieces seem to fit just right.

“Guerby has a real comfort on the right side of the line,” explained Rudolph after Notre Dame’s seventh spring practice on Wednesday. “Knapper, we felt has done a great job playing left, but we thought to get each guy into the spot that would allow them to shine the most, would be to move Knapp in and create a good competition on the left tackle, which Will has done a great job.”

“What you don’t know is how the guys will embrace it,” continues Rudolph. “There’s a lot of differences. Anthonie has just embraced it. He wants to know the intricacies of the position, the differences.”

“The biggest difference is things happen quicker,” admits Knapp, who was highly successful as a tackle, starting there in the opening game of his freshman year. “When you’re that deep in the box, the linebackers, the leverages and shifts, they happen quick. I feel at tackle, you have a little bit more finesse. You have a little bit more time to see things and react. You’re in a two-point stance. You can look at the whole box. In a three-point, you have to keep your eyes up, because things shift. No defense is going to play straight up. This isn’t high school anymore.”

Black was in high school in Canada just two years ago, and played primarily guard last year, but has made the adjustment well.

“I don;t know I would say I’m more comfortable,” notes the 6-7, 316-pounder. “I would just say I can use my length and athleticism to my advantage. Playing guard helped me play tackle and be a better run blocker. Going from guard to tackle is a lot different in the pass game. You have a lot more space, a lot more time and you have to be more patient with you hands.

Black certainly has earned the admiration of his teammates.

“Will Black’s ceiling is whatever Will Black wants his ceiling to be,” lauds guard Sullivan Absher. “He’s an incredibly gifted natural athlete. He’s got an incredible work ethic. He’s smart, he’s well-spoken, he studies in the film room.”

“This group of kids, they’re amazing” exults Rudolph. “To see these guys work through injuries, and issues and find solutions together, helping each other, is something I’m just proud to be a part of, because it’s something special.”

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Burton wrote on his account “After much thought and prayer, I’ve decided to enter the transfer portal. I’m beyond thankful to Coach Shrews for giving me a chance, and to my teammates and coaching staff for believing in me from the beginning. South Bend will always be home to me and it’s been a blessing to me to be able to represent my city. I’ll forever be grateful for the love, support and experiences this city has given me. I’m looking forward to what’s ahead and thankful for everything that has brought me to this point.”

Burton is expected to have offers from other schools which far exceed what he mas making from Notre Dame.

The 2023 Mr. Basketball in Indiana made an impact immediately on the Irish program, earning ACC Rookie of the Year honors in his freshman season.  As a sophomore, Burton was an Associated Press All-ACC selection, leading the conference in league scoring with a 23.5 points per game average.

Burton led the Irish in scoring average (18.5) for the first 10 games of his junior year. In the 10th game of the season on December 5, Burton injured his left ankle against TCU and did not play again the rest of the season.  Dynamic defensively, Burton still finished fourth on the team in steals, despite missing the last 2/3 of the year. Notre Dame plummeted from a 7-3 start to a final record of 13-18.

Burton is among six players to leave the program since the end of the season, including fellow starters Cole Certa and  Jalen Haralson, part-time starter Garrett Sundra and reserves Ryder Frost and Sir Mohammad. All of them have two or three years of eligibility remaining.

Head coach Micah Shrewsberry currently has eight players on the 2026-27 roster. Returning players are Tommy Ahneman, Logan Imes, Brady Koehler, Braeden Shrewsberry and Brady Stevens. Incoming freshmen are Jonathan Sanderson, Nick Shrewsberry and Gan Solongo. Notre Dame could add as many as seven players through the transfer portal, which officially opens Tuesday.

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