Men’s lacrosse: Virginia draws road game at Loyola in first round of NCAA Championship

Virginia has received an at-large bid to the 2018 NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championship and will travel to No. 6 seed Loyola in the first round on Saturday (May 12) at 7:15 p.m., at Ridley Athletic Complex. The game will be televised live on ESPNU. The 2018 NCAA Tournament is only the second instance where Virginia has been unseeded in its 38 overall tournament appearances.

Virginia, ranked No. 9 in the USILA coaches poll and No. 10 in the Inside Lacrosse/Maverick media poll, enters the NCAA Tournament with a 12-5 overall record. The 12 wins are the most by the Cavaliers entering the NCAA Tournament since the 2010 squad had 14. Loyola, ranked No. 6 in the coaches and media polls, earns the AQ as the champions of the Patriot League and enters the NCAA Tournament with a 12-3 record.

This is Virginia’s 38th tournament appearance overall, third behind Johns Hopkins (46) and Maryland (41). Virginia has won five NCAA titles. The only other season UVA was unseeded while receiving a bid to the NCAA Tournament was 30 years ago in 1988. That season UVA went 2-1 in the NCAA Tournament, winning at No. 7 seed Yale in double overtime and at No. 2 seed Johns Hopkins in overtime.

The winner of this game faces the winner of Saturday game between Yale (No. 3 seed) and UMass in the quarterfinals at James M. Shuart Stadium, in Hempstead, N.Y., on Saturday (May 19). The quarterfinals will be televised on ESPNU.