No. 2 seed Maryland men’s lacrosse falls 13-10 to top seed Cornell in National Championship

Photo courtesy of an Cox/Maryland Terrapins

For six consecutive quarters, Cornell attacker CJ Kirst was held to just one score — his worst stretch of the season. Early in the NCAA Tournament championship game, Maryland men’s lacrosse shut down the top pick in the 2025 Premier Lacrosse League draft. 

Until it didn’t.

Five minutes into the third quarter, Kirst broke out of his offensive slump, leaving the Terps in a situation it has rarely faced: trailing by multiple goals in the second half. 

Backed by Kirst’s six-goal performance, No. 2-seeded Maryland (14-4) fell 13-10 to No. 1-seed Cornell (18-1) in the NCAA Championship on Monday at Gillette Stadium. The loss marks the second straight season in which Maryland lost in the title game.

Kirst scored just once in the first half, but after halftime, the senior seized control.

The Tewaaraton Award Finalist received the pass at the top of the attacking zone with Will Schaller bearing down on him. Kirst made a quick spin move to gain a sliver of separation and charged towards the cage. Embracing Schaller’s physicality, he positioned himself right in front of the goal and snuck the ball past goalie Logan McNaney, putting Cornell ahead 7-5. That was just the start.

While Schaller has usually embraced the challenge of slowing down the opposing team’s best attacker, the USA Lacrosse first-team All-American struggled to contain Kirst’s elite skill set, erupting for five second-half goals.

The Big Red’s top-ranked offense at 15.89 goals receives contributions from almost everyone who steps on the field, led by Kirst. That plethora of weapons was on display all game long, notably in the first quarter.

Cornell secured scores from two unlikely sources in the opening period — attacker Ryan Waldman and midfielder Brian Luzzi. The duo entered the game with just 20 tallies on the season. 

Unlike Cornell, Maryland’s calling card has been its defense. The unit entered Monday’s contest conceding just 7.82 goals per game — second-fewest in the nation.

One of the biggest reasons for Maryland’s defensive success has been the play of McNaney. The graduate student was stellar in the first quarter, recording four saves. He finished the game with 11 saves.

While Cornell’s offense scuffled in the opening quarter, the Terps’ unit didn’t fare any better. Maryland generated just one first-quarter tally on ten shots. 

The Terps’ offensive ball movement and patient shot selection were out of sync, resulting in several easy saves for Cornell goalie Wyatt Knust and five first-half turnovers. Knust finished with 12 stops. 

But both attacking units emerged in the second quarter. Cornell attacker Ryan Goldstein contributed two scores, aiding his team to a 6-5 halftime lead. But attacker Eric Spanos kept Maryland afloat and within striking distance, adding two goals.

Despite not having one alpha attacker for chunks of the season, Spanos has been that player in the NCAA Tournament. The senior posted just two goals in the three contests leading up to the tournament, but has 11 tournament goals, including a four-goal performance against Syracuse on Saturday.

But Cornell’s resurgent offense after the first quarter was too much to overcome.

The Big Red exploited favorable matchups, allowing Kirst and Goldstein to take over in the second half. The pairing combined for Cornell’s last nine goals of the afternoon.

Braden Erksa and Zach Whittier attempted to keep pace, accounting for four of Maryland’s five second-half tallies. However, the Terps couldn’t get the timely stops they needed to claw back into the contest.