1971 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship

The 1971 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Tournament was the first annual Division I NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship tournament. [cite web|url=http://www.ncaa.com/history/default.aspx?id=88000|title=Division I Men's Lacrosse History|last=|first= |date=|publisher=NCAA.com|accessdate=2008-05-30] 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 NCAA title based on regular season records. Eight NCAA Division I college men's lacrosse teams met after having played their way through a regular season, and for some, a conference tournament. The tournament culminated with the finals held at Hofstra University in front of 5,458 fans.

The Cornell Big Red, who posted a 13–1 record during the season, led by coach Richard M. Moran and star players Bob Rule, John Burnap, Bob Shaw, and Alan Rimmer defeated the Maryland Terrapins 12–6. Cornell won 13 straight game en route to the title, losing only their opening game by one goal to Virginia. Canadian-born Al Rimmer scored six goals in the finals to lead Cornell. [cite web|url=http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1084971/index.htm|title=Big Red Votes Itself No. 1|last=Carry|first=Peter |date=June 14, 1971|publisher=SportsIllustrated.com|accessdate=2008-05-30] Rimmer, from Toronto, led Cornell with 43 goals and 31 assists for 74 points for the season. He ended his career as the all-time Cornell record-holder in career points with 80 goals and 82 assists for 162 points. [Associated Press. "Cornell Eyes NCAA Stick Title". SYRACUSE POST-STANDARD. June 3, 1971. pg. 18]

This was Cornell's first lacrosse title since winning the USILA championship in 1907. [cite web|url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Intercollegiate_Lacrosse_Association#Team_Championship_Records|title=United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Team Championship Records|last=|first=|date=|publisher=Wikipedia|accessdate=] 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. [Associated Press. "Cornell Eyes NCAA Stick Title". SYRACUSE POST-STANDARD. June 3, 1971. pg. 18]

Frank Davis' (#12) four goals against Army in the semi-finals ensured Cornell's place in the national championship.

Tournament bracket

8TeamBracket | RD1=First Round
RD2=Semi-Finals
RD3=FinalsJune 5, 1971
group1=
group2=

score-width=
team-width=

RD1-seed1=
RD1-team1= Cornell
RD1-score1=10
RD1-seed2=
RD1-team2=Brown
RD1-score2=8

RD1-seed3=
RD1-team3=Army
RD1-score3=19
RD1-seed4=
RD1-team4=Hofstra
RD1-score4=3

RD1-seed5=
RD1-team5=Navy
RD1-score5=9
RD1-seed6=
RD1-team6=Virginia
RD1-score6=6

RD1-seed7=
RD1-team7=Maryland
RD1-score7=10
RD1-seed8=
RD1-team8=AirForce
RD1-score8=1

RD2-seed1=
RD2-team1=Cornell
RD2-score1=17
RD2-seed2=
RD2-team2=Army
RD2-score2=16

RD2-seed3=
RD2-team3=Navy
RD2-score3=7
RD2-seed4=
RD2-team4=Maryland
RD2-score4=10

RD3-seed1=
RD3-team1=Cornell
RD3-score1=12
RD3-seed2=
RD3-team2=Maryland
RD3-score2=6

References