Johns Hopkins and Penn State Set to Play for Big Ten Men’s Lacrosse Tournament Championship
Photo by Dakota Moyer
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 1 seed Johns Hopkins and No. 2 seed Penn State will advance to the 2026 Big Ten Lacrosse Tournament championship game. Both schools won a share of the regular season title, and it marks the second time the two schools will square off against each other in the tournament finals.
Johns Hopkins (9-4, 3-2) held on against No. 5 seed Michigan (6-9, 2-3), 14-12, in the first semifinal matchup at SHI Stadium.
The second quarter saw intense back-and-forth action, and with the Wolverines down 7-5, goalie Hunter Taylor took matters into his own hands. The senior captain carried the ball towards half field, and after going unmarked by a Johns Hopkins defender, he committed to attacking the lane and sent a shot to the back of the net to make the score 7-6. However, Johns Hopkins still entered the locker room with an 8-7 advantage after a goal from Chuck Rawson.
The Blue Jays opened the second half with four straight goals to take a 12-7 lead, but Michigan stormed back with five straight goals of their own to tie the game at 12 apiece with 8:09 remaining in the fourth. Hunter Chauvette and Brooks English then scored two solo goals to put Johns Hopkins up 14-12. For the last 6:41, both teams remained scoreless which cemented the win for the Blue Jays. Chauvette led all players with five points on the evening.
In the second game of the evening, Penn State (8-5, 3-2) bested Maryland (7-6, 3-2) in a defensive battle. After the Nittany Lions took a 5-3 lead after the first three quarters, Liam Matthews opened the quarter with a Penn State goal to take a three-goal lead. However, the Terps responded with two consecutive scores from Jack Schultz and Braden Erksa to trail by just one at 6-5 with 6:12 remaining on the clock.
After goals from each team, Penn State’s Andrew Beard scored a goal to put the Nittany Lions up 8-6 with 1:30 remaining, ultimately icing the game. Maryland was only able to earn one more possession but failed to score, securing the win for Penn State. Hunter Aquino, last year’s Big Ten Freshman of the Year, led all scorers with a hat-trick and also added a caused turnover in the winning effort.
Johns Hopkins and Penn State will meet at 12 p.m. ET Saturday in the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game, marking a rematch of the 2019 Championship game, which was also at SHI Stadium. Penn State claimed the title in a 18-17 win, the highest scoring tournament game in conference history. If the Blue Jays win, it will be their first Big Ten Tournament Championship title since 2018.