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Women's Lacrosse

ACC Teams Start 2026 NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship on Friday

2026 NCAA Championship Bracket
2026 Statistics

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – The 2026 NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship begins on Friday, May 8, at campus sites. Six Atlantic Coast Conference programs have earned bids to the tournament, with five starting play on Friday, while No. 2 seed North Carolina opens tournament action on Sunday, May 10, following a first-round bye.

Boston College, Clemson, Notre Dame, Stanford and Syracuse kick off tournament play at neutral sites on Friday. All opening-weekend games will stream on ESPN+.

The second-round winners will advance to the quarterfinals, which will be played Thursday, May 15, on ESPNU.

The winner of the four quarterfinal games will advance to the national semifinals at Martin Stadium in Evanston, Illinois. The semifinal games will be shown on ESPNU at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 22. The championship game will air on ESPN on Sunday, May 24, at noon ET.

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.

2026 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship
Friday, May 8 – First Round
Notre Dame vs. James Madison (in Evanston, Ill.) – 4 p.m.
Boston College vs. Yale (in Stony Brook, N.Y.) – 4 p.m.
Clemson vs. Davidson (in Chapel Hill, N.C.) – 5 p.m.
Stanford vs. Penn State (in Ann Arbor, Mich.) – 6 p.m.
Syracuse vs. Loyola Maryland (in Annapolis, Md.) – 7 p.m.
 
Sunday, May 10 - Second Round
Clemson/Davidson at No. 2 North Carolina – Noon
Boston College/Yale vs. Stonehill/No. 5 Stony Brook – Noon
Syracuse/Loyola Maryland vs. No. 6 Navy/UMass – 1 p.m.
Stanford/Penn State vs. No. 7 Michigan/Mercer – 1 p.m.
Notre Dame/James Madison at No. 1 Northwestern – 2 p.m.
 
All times Eastern
All games this weekend air on ESPN+

Noting ACC Women's Lacrosse
• Boston College, Clemson, North Carolina, Notre Dame Stanford and Syracuse earned NCAA Tournament bids. With six tournament participants, the ACC is 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. 
• The ACC has totaled 19 national championships and had at least one school in the national semifinals in 35 straight tournaments and in 39 of the 41 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. 
• Since 1997, ACC teams have made 53 national semifinal appearances and 29 championship game appearances. The ACC has had at least two teams competing in the NCAA's Championship Weekend in seven straight tournaments and 20 all-time.
• 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.
• Currently the nation's leading scorer this season, Humphrey was named Tuesday as one of the five finalists for the 2026 Tewaaraton Award. Humphrey won the award as a freshman last season.
• 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)
• 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.
• 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.
• ACC teams finished 58-19 (.753) in non-conference play during the regular season.
• 11 ACC players were nominated for the 2026 Tewaaraton Award. That was the most of any conference.
• 16 ACC players were named 2026 Midseason All-Americans by Inside Lacrosse, most of any conference. Eight more were named honorable mention. North Carolina led all ACC programs with four midseason All-Americans.
• Five ACC players earned First-Team All-America honors on Inside Lacrosse's midseason team: UNC's Sam Forrest, Chloe Humphrey and Eliza Osburn, BC's Shea Beaker and Stanford's Kate Bellissimo.
• 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.