2026 NCAA Championship Bracket
2026 Statistics

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – North Carolina plays Maryland in the 2026 NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship Weekend on Friday, May 22, at 3 p.m. ET at Martin Stadium in Evanston, Illinois. The national semifinal contests will air on ESPNU.

The winner between the No. 2 seed Tar Heels and No. 3 seed Terrapins moves on to play either No. 1 seed Northwestern or No. 4 seed Johns Hopkins on Sunday, May 24, at noon ET on ESPN.

Winners of nine straight games, North Carolina (18-1) is in search of its fifth national title (2013, 2016, 2021, 2025).

In all, ACC schools have totaled 20 women's lacrosse NCAA championships. Since the ACC began sponsoring women's lacrosse in 1997, ACC teams have won 14 NCAA titles, including four of the last five with Boston College in 2021 and 2024 and North Carolina in 2022 and 2025.

ACC in the 2026 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship
Friday, May 8
James Madison 13, Notre Dame 12 (in Evanston, Ill.)
Boston College 10, Yale 4 (in Stony Brook, N.Y.)
Clemson 19, Davidson 6 (in Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Stanford 7, Penn State 5 (in Ann Arbor, Mich.)
Syracuse 8, Loyola Maryland 6 (in Annapolis, Md.)
 
Sunday, May 10
at No. 2 North Carolina 17, Clemson 6
at No. 5 Stony Brook 10, Boston College 9
at No. 6 Navy 11, Syracuse 10 (OT)
Stanford 13, at No. 7 Michigan 12
 
Thursday, May 14
at No. 2 North Carolina 14, Stanford 11
 
Friday, May 22 – Semifinals
No. 3 Maryland vs. No. 2 North Carolina | ESPNU | 3 p.m.
No. 4 Johns Hopkins vs. No. 1 Northwestern | ESPNU | 5:30 p.m.
Evanston, Illinois

Sunday, May 24 - Championship Game
Friday winners | ESPN | Noon
Evanston, Illinois

All times Eastern

ACC in the NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship
• Since 1997 when the league began sponsoring women's lacrosse, ACC teams have made 54 national semifinal appearances and 29 championship game appearances.
• ACC schools have totaled 20 national championships in the previous 42 NCAA Tournaments. The league has had at least one school in the national semifinals in 35 straight tournaments and in 40 of the 42 NCAA Tournaments all-time (dating to 1983). 
• Since the ACC began sponsoring women's lacrosse in 1997, ACC teams have won 14 NCAA titles, including four of the last five.
• An ACC team has played in the national title game 15 times in the last 16 tournaments. 

Noting ACC Women's Lacrosse
• UNC's Chloe Humphrey is nearing the ACC and NCAA single-season scoring records. With 102 goals this season, she is approaching the ACC record of 106, set by Boston College's Rachel Clark in 2025 and the NCAA record of 109, set by Northwestern's Madison Taylor in 2025.
• Currently the nation's leading scorer this season, Humphrey was named one of the five finalists for the 2026 Tewaaraton Award. Humphrey won the award as a freshman last season.
• Boston College, Clemson, North Carolina, Notre Dame Stanford and Syracuse earned NCAA Tournament bids. With six tournament participants, the ACC tied for the most teams of any conference in the 2026 field.
• The ACC has placed at least four teams in the NCAA Tournament in 21 consecutive seasons and 26 of the 29 years that the league has sponsored the sport. 
• North Carolina won its fourth national championship in program history in 2025, completing an undefeated season with a 12-8 victory over Northwestern in the title game. 
• North Carolina won the 2026 Allstate ACC Women's Lacrosse Championship on April 26 in Charlotte, N.C., downing Stanford in the final, 12-8, and earning the ACC's NCAA auto bid. It was UNC's ninth ACC title and second straight. Sophomore attacker Chloe Humphrey was named the championship's MVP for the second straight season.
• UNC (2016-19, 21-22, 25-26) and BC (2023-24) and have combined to win the last 10 ACC titles.
• North Carolina scored three of the six ACC Season Awards for 2026, with Chloe Humphrey (Attacker), Eliza Osburn (Midfielder) and Sam Forrest (Defender). (Awards Release)
• The 2026 All-ACC Team was announced April 21. UNC led all schools with eight selections, including five first-teamers. (All-ACC Release)
• Seven ACC teams were in the top 30 of the NCAA’s final RPI, with No. 2 North Carolina, No. 6 Syracuse, No. 11 Stanford, No. 14 Clemson and No. 19 Boston College among the top 20.
• Eight ACC women’s lacrosse teams are ranked among the top 25 teams in the latest IWLCA poll, the most among all conferences. Three ACC teams hold top 10 rankings, with North Carolina at No. 1, Stanford at No. 6 and Syracuse at No. 7. Also among the top 25: No. 12 Clemson, No. 13 Boston College, No. 16 Notre Dame, No. 21 Duke and No. 24 Virginia.
?• ACC teams finished 58-19 (.753) in non-conference play during the regular season.
• Now in its 30th season, ACC women's lacrosse expanded to 13 teams this year, as Florida State competed in its inaugural season.
• Sixteen current or former ACC players are part of the 22-woman roster for the 2026 U.S. World Lacrosse Championship Team. The championship will be contested July 24-August 2 in Tokyo. The team will be coached by current Boston College head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein.