Men’s lacrosse soars past Dartmouth on senior night to secure the Ivy league regular season title

On Sherrerd field, No. 2 Princeton men’s lacrosse earned their first Ivy League regular season title since 2015. 

“They set the standard,” Head Coach Matt Madalon said of the thirteen graduating members of the class of 2026 on their senior night game. With six goals, four from senior midfielder Chad Palumbo and two from senior midfielder John Dunphey, the class of 2026 showed the Tigers' prowess today, even on a rainy midday game. 

After a back-and-forth first quarter that saw four ties, the Tigers made a clear shift after the break, gaining the lead for the remainder of the game. The game took place under less-than-ideal weather.

“It was a little nasty,” Madalon said about the rain. “We are always happy to be down on 52, but I wish we had better weather for our seniors.” 

The Tigers started off on unsteady ground, losing two goals to Dartmouth early in the first quarter. Palumbo was the first on the board for the Tigers, over six minutes into the game. Dunphey followed less than a minute later to tie up the game at 2–2. 

“It was really a sloppy first half,” Madalon told The Daily Princetonian. “They played, they executed early on. We had a couple mistakes in the middle of the field.”

Dunphey agreed, stating that the team took “steps to clean ourselves up throughout the game and just make plays. We’re still looking to play a full 60-minute lacrosse game, so we’re just taking steps. This is one step on the track to the big goal.”

Junior midfielder Tucker Wade followed to get Princeton in their first lead of the game, but Dartmouth responded immediately. Junior attacker Nate Kabiri tallied another goal for the Tigers, but Dartmouth again responded with one of their own to tie the game at 4–4 . 

The Big Green found the back of the net once more, but Palumbo finished the quarter with a goal assisted by Kabiri to keep the game tied at 5–5. 

Something shifted after the first quarter — the Tigers found their footing and did not look back. With five Princeton goals to only one for Dartmouth, the Tigers ended the half up 10–6. 

Senior goalie Ryan Croddick aided in the effort, with junior goalie Colin Vickrey subbing in for the end of the fourth quarter. In total, the two Tigers had ten saves, seven to Croddick and three to Vickrey.

The momentum shift clearly gave the Tigers the confidence they needed to surge. “We all know that there is no limit for us, so even when a team hangs in for a little bit, confidence doesn’t waver,” Palumbo told the ‘Prince.’ 

With goals from junior attacker Colin Burns, first-year midfielder Parker Reynolds, sophomore attacker Porter Malkiel, sophomore attacker Aidan McDonald, and another for Dunphey, the Tigers had clearly shifted the momentum of the game. 

Senior face-off specialist Andrew McMeekin delivered another star performance of the game, helping Princeton win 23 of 27 face-offs. 

“He executes,” Palumbo said regarding McMeekin’s performance. “Today was just a little window into how hard he works, into the consistency he takes to his life, both on and off the field, week in and week out. And you just saw it show itself today.”

The third quarter followed the same pattern, one goal from Big Green to five Tiger goals. Kabiri clearly wanted to end his time at Sherrerd Field on top, and that he did. With two more goals, Kabiri became the first ever Princeton player to have three seasons with 30 goals and 25 assists.

Ending the third quarter 15–7, the Tigers were able to get more 2026’s on the field for their senior night game.  

Kabiri got his 30th goal for the season in the final quarter, with junior midfielder Carson Krammer getting the last Tiger goal of the afternoon. After two Dartmouth goals, the Tigers ended the game 17–9, holding the Ivy trophy they haven’t secured in over ten years.

“It's a little bittersweet, but still awesome to get it done,” Madalon said of sharing the Ivy title with reigning national champions Cornell. However, the Tigers will have ample opportunity to prove their dominance next week with the start of the Ivy League tournament. 

The Tigers face off against Yale in Ithaca, N.Y. on Friday, May 1 to kick off a weekend that will surely be full of intense and incredible lacrosse.

Cadigan Perriello is an assistant Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’ 

Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.