One weekend, two champions

What can you add to commencement weekend to make it even more special? If you’re Richmond’s men’s and women’s lacrosse teams, you lift Atlantic 10 championship trophies and earn NCAA bids.

The men’s team got the fun started. On the first Saturday in May — as graduates of the law school, MBA program, and the School of Professional and Continuing Studies gathered on campus for their commencement ceremonies — the Spider men took the field at Robins Stadium and claimed the inaugural Atlantic 10 men’s lacrosse championship. It was the team’s ninth conference final in 10 years, and its fifth conference championship.

The men blew past rival High Point with a 15-8 win using a balanced offense, with 10 different Spiders scoring goals in front of nearly 2,000 fans. Junior midfielder Lance Madonna served up four of the Spiders’ six assists, and redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Zach Vigue saved 15 of the 23 shots on goal he faced. Senior attacker Dalton Young was named the tournament’s most outstanding player after a dominant performance in the semifinal and a strong showing in the final.

In addition to Madonna, Vigue, and Dalton, three other Spiders made the all-tournament team: graduate student attacker and midfielder Derrek Madonna, sophomore midfielder and defender Tommy Stull, and graduate student defender Jake Saunders.

The following day — as undergraduates capped a weekend of celebrations by turning their tassels — senior midfielder Lindsey Frank turned heads with an eye-popping six-goal performance at Cary Field just a few miles from campus. The Spiders won the game 20-13 and with it the A-10 women’s lacrosse championship.

Frank was named the tournament’s most outstanding player. Attacker and fellow senior Arden Tierney — the A-10’s offensive player of the year — put in three goals. The pair were named to the all-tournament team with three other Spiders: senior goalkeeper Emilie Bloyer, senior midfielder Sophia DiCenso, and first-year defender Jordyn Harrison.

With their conference championships, both teams earned spots in the NCAA tournament, and they watched the bracket announcements together in the Queally Athletic Center. The men drew No. 2 seed Virginia, a familiar opponent; the teams have played in nine of the past 10 seasons. The Cavaliers defeated the Spiders in the tournament’s opening round.

The women drew Marquette, a team they had never faced. “It’s so exciting, especially for the senior class,” said Frank. “We’ve been wanting this ever since we came in with COVID and everything.”

Frank and her teammates made the most of the opportunity, defeating Marquette 18-8. It was the Spiders’ first NCAA tournament win in lacrosse.

“I think this is an amazing day for Richmond lacrosse,” said Anne Harrington, head coach. “The team, I think, was prepared coming into this. They wanted to make that history and wanted to do that for everybody who’s come into this program before and laid the groundwork to get to this point.”

The Spiders fell in the second round to North Carolina, the defending national champion. The team finished the season with a 17-4 record, a conference title, and two players (Frank and Tierney) named All-Americans.