The University of Richmond men’s lacrosse team will host its first-ever NCAA Tournament game at Robins Stadium, welcoming Duke on Saturday, May 9 at 7:30 p.m., according to a May 3 announcement. The match will be broadcast on ESPNU.
This event marks a significant milestone for the Richmond Spiders, who secured the Atlantic 10 Conference’s automatic bid and their seventh overall NCAA Tournament appearance after defeating Saint Joseph’s in the conference championship. The win gave Richmond its third Atlantic 10 title in four years and marked the team’s first consecutive conference championships since the 2022–23 season.
For the first time, Richmond is seeded in the tournament and enters with a record of 14–1. The team has won 23 of its last 25 games and holds a program-best RPI ranking of three. Earlier this year, Richmond achieved its highest national ranking ever at No.1 following victories over other tournament teams Virginia, Cornell, and Georgetown.
Statistically, Richmond leads all Division I programs in scoring offense (16 goals per game), scoring margin (+7.79), shot percentage (35.1%), and winning percentage (.929). They are also second nationally in points per game (25) and third in assists per game (9). Defensively, they rank third with just over eight goals allowed per contest.
Duke arrives at the tournament with a record of nine wins and four losses overall, including one win in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The two teams have faced each other ten times previously; their most recent meeting was a close contest last year when Duke narrowly defeated Richmond by one goal at Robins Stadium.
The winner between Richmond and Duke will advance to face either Virginia or Georgetown on Sunday, May 17 at Delaware as part of quarterfinal action hosted by Hofstra and Delaware. Semifinals are scheduled for May 23 with the championship set for May 25 at Scott Stadium on the University of Virginia campus.
