1971 NCAA lacrosse tournament
The 1971 NCAA lacrosse tournament was the first annual tournament hosted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to determine the team champion of college lacrosse among its members in the United States.
| 1971 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | May 22–June 5, 1971 | ||||
| Teams | 8 | ||||
| Finals site | Hofstra Stadium Hempstead, New York | ||||
| Champions | Cornell (1st title) | ||||
| Runner-up | Maryland (1st title game) | ||||
| Semifinalists | Army (1st Final Four) Navy (1st Final Four) | ||||
| Winning coach | Richie Moran (1st title) | ||||
| MOP | Tom Cafaro, Army, Army | ||||
| Attendance | 5,458 finals | ||||
| Top scorer | Tom Cafaro, Army (18 goals) | ||||
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Prior to this the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) had voted for the national champion and, subsequently, awarded the Wingate Memorial Trophy for the college lacrosse title based on regular season records.
In the inaugural final, top-seeded Cornell defeated Maryland, 12–6. The championship game was played at Hofstra Stadium at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York with 5,458 fans in attendance.
This was Cornell's first lacrosse title since winning the USILA championship in 1907. Cornell was 1–4–1 against Maryland up to this point, in a series that began with Cornell's 2–1 win in 1921. The teams played a 2–2 tie in 1922, and Maryland won by 11–1 in 1929, 14–2 in 1951, 17–10 in 1963 and 13–6 in 1965.
For this tournament as well as the 1972 tournament, the Wingate Memorial Trophy was presented to the winner.