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Utah lacrosse team reaches NCAA tournament for first time

Utes beat Air Force 11-9 for ASUN title and berth in Men’s Lacrosse Championship tourney.

The University of Utah Lacrosse program punched its ticket to the 2023 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship on Sunday, earning its first berth into the tournament after winning the ASUN Championship.

Utah will face No. 3 seed Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., in the first round on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. MDT on ESPNU.

Utah won the ASUN Championship on Sunday with an 11-9 victory over Air Force on the heels of its second straight regular season title. Utah finished regular season ASUN play 9-0, becoming just one of five schools in the country to finish conference play undefeated.

Utah is 14-0 all-time in regular season conference games after going 5-0 in 2022. Utah’s 12 total victories this season is the most in school history with the Utes’ 11 straight wins also counting as a school record.

Through 16 games this season, Utah ranks second nationally in assists per game (9.27), points per game (26.33) and scoring offense (17.07), also ranking third in ground balls per game (38.20) and is fourth in scoring margin (+4.73).

The Utes led the ASUN in assists, ground balls, points, goals and turnovers per game, also leading in clearing percentage and scoring margin. Utah is the only team in Division I lacrosse that has six different players that have scored over 20 goals with Jordan Hyde (49), Ryan Stines (37), Tyler Bradbury (32), Koa Todd (28), Jared Andreala (26) and Carson Moyer (23) all reaching the feat. Hyde ranks 13th nationally and first in the ASUN in goals per game (3.13), also ranking fourth in the country and first in the league in shot percentage (.495). ASUN Tournament MVP Cole Brams leads the ASUN in ground balls per game, averaging 8.27, which also ranks 13th nationally. He is also 17th in the country in faceoff percentage (.572). In two seasons under head coach Andrew McMinn, who owns the most wins in program history (22-8 at Utah, 98-73 in his career), have broken 70+ school records.