The sound you heard coming from Charlotte this weekend was the No. 1 Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team sending a warning shot to the nation.
The reigning national champions plowed through the ACC Tournament by routing No. 5 Virginia in Friday’s semi-finals before dismantling No. 6 Duke in Sunday’s championship game.
This is Notre Dame’s third ACC Tournament championship all-time and marks the first time the Fighting Irish have won both the regular season and conference tournament championships.
Notre Dame got things started early as Jake Taylor scored just over 2:30 into the game. Reilly Gray, Taylor, and Chris Kavanagh combined to put the Fighting Irish up 5-0 before Duke finally scored in the closing moments of the first quarter.
Notre Dame would score three more times in the second to stretch the lead to 8-2 at halftime.
Duke scored twice to start the third period to get within four, but wouldn’t get any closer as Notre Dame would stretch the lead back to six, 11-5, by the third quarters end.
Notre Dame would score five times in the final period to close with a 16-6 victory over the team they beat in last year’s national championship.
Notre Dame now turns to the NCAA Tournament where they’ll be the odds on favorite to repeat as national champions.