Starting this Saturday, the ESPN Family of Networks will air all 15 games of the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships. It starts with a quadrupleheader each on Saturday and Sunday including six games on ESPNU. It all culminates with the National Semifinals and Championship Game on Memorial Day Weekend at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.
Eamon McAnaney moves from the sidelines in previous years to the broadcast booth to become part of the main announcing team along with Quint Kessenich and Paul Carcaterra.
We have the full press release from ESPN looking at the field and also providing the announcing teams for the entire 15 game NCAA Lacrosse Championships.
Coverage of the 2012 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship Begins Saturday with First-Round Action
ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will combine to air all 15 tournament games
The 16-team bracket for the NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship was unveiled exclusively Sunday on ESPNU with Loyola (Md.) earning the top seed in the field. Tournament play begins with first-round action Saturday, May 12, featuring Syracuse at No. 3 Duke at noon ET on ESPN and ESPN3. The defending national champion, No. 5 Virginia will host Princeton in Sunday’s opening first-round game at 1 p.m., also on ESPN and ESPN3. The remaining first-round games will be shown on ESPNU and ESPN3, highlighted by a match-up between perennial contenders Denver and No. 8 North Carolina at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 12.
ESPN networks will provide exclusive coverage of all 15 games of the NCAA Championship for the sixth straight year. Coverage will be in high definition across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3 beginning Saturday, May 12, and concluding with the national title game on Monday, May 28.
ESPN has assembled some of the top lacrosse commentating teams for this year’s coverage of the NCAA Championship. ESPNU host Anish Shroff will be joined in studio throughout the Championship by analyst Quint Kessenich or Mark Dixon. Paul Rabil, former Johns Hopkins All-American who is widely known as one of the top players in the world, will be joining Shroff and Kessenich in studio on Sunday, May 13.
Early round announce teams include former Tewaaraton Award winner and Virginia attackman Matt Ward, former Brown All-American Jamie Munro, Johns Hopkins midfielder Mark Dixon and legendary former Army head coach Jack Emmer. ESPN newcomer this season, three-time Princeton All-American Ryan Boyle will also be part of the game action.
Veteran play-by-play voice Eamon McAnaney will be in the booth for his first championship weekend after spending several years as the sideline reporter. He will be joined by analysts Kessenich and Paul Carcaterra. Carcaterra will provide his analysis from the sidelines.
In 2012 the ESPN networks will air over 400 hours of NCAA Spring Championships coverage, increasing more than 30 hours from 2011. As part of ESPN’s extended rights agreement with the NCAA, spring championship programming highlights seven sports over eight weeks: Men’s Lacrosse, Men’s Volleyball, Baseball and Softball. For the first time, ESPN networks will also air the Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track & Field and Women’s Lacrosse Championships.
ESPN’s Coverage of the NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship
(Subject to change)
Date Time (ET) Game/Commentators Network(s) Sat, May 12 Noon First Round (Koskinen Stadium, Durham, N.C.)
Syracuse at No. 3 Duke
Eamon McAnaney and Paul CarcaterraESPN/ESPN3 2:30 p.m. First Round (Garber Field, Amherst, Mass.)
Colgate at No. 6 Massachusetts
Joe Beninati and Jack EmmerESPNU/ESPN3 5 p.m. First Round (Ridley Athletic Complex, Baltimore, Md.)Canisius at No. 1 Loyola
Mike Corey and Mark DixonESPNU/ESPN3 7:30 p.m. First Round (Fetzer Field, Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Denver at No. 8 North Carolina
Eamon McAnaney and Matt WardESPNU/ESPN3 Sun, May 13 1 p.m. First Round (Klockner Stadium, Charlottesville, Va.)
Princeton at No. 5 Virginia
Eamon McAnaney and Paul CarcaterraESPN/ESPN3 3 p.m. First Round (Homewood Field, Baltimore, Md.)
Stony Brook at No. 2 Johns Hopkins
Mike Corey and Mark DixonESPNU/ESPN3 5:15 p.m. First Round (Arlotta Stadium, Notre Dame, Ind.)
Yale at No. 4 Notre Dame
John Brickley and Jamie MunroESPNU/ESPN3 7:30 p.m. First Round (Ulrich Sports Complex, Bethlehem, Pa.)
Maryland at No. 7 Lehigh
Joe Beninati and Ryan BoyleESPNU/ESPN3 Sat, May 19 Noon Quarterfinal Game #1(Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, Md.)
Eamon McAnaney, Quint Kessenich and Paul CarcaterraESPN2/ESPN3 2:30 p.m. Quarterfinal Game #2(Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, Md.)
Eamon McAnaney. Quint Kessenich and Paul CarcaterraESPN2/ESPN3 Sun, May 20 Noon Quarterfinal Game #3(PPL Park, Chester, Pa.)
Eamon McAnaney, Quint Kessenich and Paul CarcaterraESPNU/ESPN3 2:30 p.m. Quarterfinal Game #4(PPL Park, Chester, Pa.)
Eamon McAnaney,Quint Kessenich and Paul CarcaterraESPNU/ESPN3 Sat, May 26 2:30 p.m. Semifinal Game #1 (Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.)
Eamon McAnaney, Quint Kessenich & Paul CarcaterraESPN2/ESPN3 5 p.m. Semifinal Game #2(Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.)
Eamon McAnaney, Quint Kessenich & Paul CarcaterraESPN2/ESPN3 Mon, May 28 1 p.m. National Championship (Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.)
Eamon McAnaney, Quint Kessenich & Paul CarcaterraESPN/ESPN3 3:30 p.m. NCAA Lacrosse Championship Post Game Show
Anish Shroff & Mark DixonESPNU
That’s it for this post.
