The magic number is three for the Tigers. Should the Orange and Black win three more games in May, they will hoist the NCAA championship trophy for the first time since 2001.
On Saturday, No. 3 ranked and seeded Princeton lacrosse (14–3 overall, 5–1 Ivy League) will take on No. 5 ranked and No. 6 seeded Syracuse (12–5, 2–2 Atlantic Coast Conference) in the NCAA quarterfinals. Head Coach Matt Madalon’s squad is looking to get back to the Final Four for the first time since 2022. That year, Princeton lost to Maryland in the semifinal, 13–8.
“The keys for us are to clean in between the lines, win the ground ball battle, and no unnecessary transitions [given up],” Madalon told The Daily Princetonian.
Meanwhile, Syracuse star attacker Joey Spallina and his team are looking to get back to Memorial Day weekend for the first time since 2013 and their 28th time in program history.
Heading into Saturday’s matchup, both teams had polar opposite first-round games. The Tigers dominated No. 14 Towson 22–12 (11–6, 7–0 Coastal Athletic Association). The 22 goals were a season high for Madalon’s squad.
“All you can ask for out of that side of the ball,” Madalon said referring to his team’s offensive production. “I think every guy can step up on a different occasion. I think we wait to see who’s got the good matchups, and we try to help those guys be really opportunistic.”
Meanwhile, the Orange played the No. 13 ranked Harvard Crimson (10–5, 4–2 Ivy). Despite trailing 8–2 at halftime, Syracuse fought back to win in sudden-death overtime, 13–12.
“A really wild game in terms of a lacrosse game,” Madalon said, likely referring to the 10 penalties in what was an overly physical game. “I think ’Cuse just kind of stayed through and was able to pull it out at the end.”
“There were some really crazy fouls in that game. We’ve got to be a little more disciplined in that sense and try not to get caught up in that,” he added.
The biggest storyline in this game lies with a Syracuse player: graduate student midfielder Sam English ’23.
English was at Princeton for four years, but he only had one full season with the Tigers. His rookie season in 2020 saw the Ivy League pause play due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the Ivy League did not have any athletics due to the pandemic.
In 2022, as a junior playing in his first full season, English was a second-team All-Ivy selection and an honorable mention All-American. He finished with 28 goals, 17 assists, and eight caused turnovers.
“Sam is such a beloved Princeton guy,” Madalon said. “He had such a great career here, and he was so awesome as a teammate and leader and player.”
“Everyone’s happy for him, and then when you play against him, you kind of try to shut it out and play the other team for a week and don’t think too much about it,” Madalon continued.
During his senior year, English was on the Tewaaraton award watch list before he ruptured his spleen on the first possession in an April 8 game against Syracuse. English spent four nights in the hospital and missed the remainder of the year.
Now at Syracuse, English has become one of the best all-around players in college lacrosse. He was recently picked third in the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) draft by the California Redwoods. In 35 career games across two seasons with the Orange, English has 44 goals and 22 assists with 90 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers.
Princeton versus Syracuse will likely be the game of the week and should produce an instant classic, particularly on the offensive end. Both teams average over 13 goals per game, with the Orange ranking 10th in the nation with 13.59 and the Tigers right behind them, averaging 13.5.
Madalon called the Orange “one of the top five offenses in the country”, comparing their offensive units to Cornell, Maryland, Harvard, and North Carolina.
At the X, Syracuse has the best face-off specialist remaining in the tournament. Sophomore John Mullen has a staggering 65.2 percent success from the X in 2025, good for third in the nation. Mullen went a staggering 24 for 28 (85.7 percent) against Harvard last weekend.
Meanwhile, Princeton’s junior face-off specialist Andrew McMeekin ranks 42nd with just over 50 percent. For Princeton to be successful on Saturday, McMeekin needs to go toe to toe with Mullen and give his team enough possessions so they can succeed.
Defensively, the Orange did not play their best game against the Crimson. Goalkeeper Jimmy McCool had just five saves with a 29.4 save percentage, far below his season average, which is over 55 percent.
If Syracuse wants to be successful in containing a Princeton offense that has multiple scoring options and can break down zones, McCool will need to have a much better game and replicate his success in the conference tournament. In the ACC tournament, he made 30 saves across two games en route to an ACC title for Gait’s squad.
Offensively, Syracuse will need to find a way to put the ball past junior goalie Ryan Croddick. Croddick was named an honorable mention All-American and ranks third in the country, averaging over 14 saves per game.
For Princeton, they will need to continue to stay hot offensively. Defensively, the focus will be on Spallina and attacker Owen Hiltz. The duo have combined for 73 goals in 2025.
“Huge focus on those guys,” Madalon said. “If you can contain them and not let them get hot, you’ve got a really good chance.”
Syracuse and Princeton led the country with eight All-American selections each. Despite the eight selections, Princeton had no players on the first team. Mackesy and junior midfielder Chad Palumbo were second-team selections.
Opening face-off between both teams is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. EST on Saturday at the James M. Shuart Stadium in Hempstead, N.Y.
Hayk Yengibaryan is an associate News editor, senior Sports writer, and education director for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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