(Photo Courtesy of Cornell Athletics)

The 2023 Ivy League tournament gets underway on Friday, May 5 with the semifinals. The championship game will be on Sunday, May 6.

Cornell is the top seed. The tournament is being hosted by non-men’s lacrosse playing Columbia.

The Bracket

The Teams

No. 1 Cornell (11-2, 5-1 Ivy League)

Following a season in which the Big Red made it to the national title game, Cornell has stayed in that elite tier. The Big Red’s only two losses have come against Harvard and Army West Point.

Star Player: CJ Kist, Attack

A potential Tewaaraton finalist, Kirst has continued to be the leader of this offense as he has put up 76 points off 58 goals and 18 assists. Kirst leads the nation in goals (4.56) and points (5.85) per game.

X-Factor: Chayse Ierlan, Goalie

The senior has been as solid an anchor for the Big Red defense, making 161 saves with a 55.9% save percentage.

Player to Watch: Michael Long, Attack

Playing in just five games due to injury this season, Long has brought it each time he has stepped on the field. He has 11 goals and eight assists for 20 points to this point and has played and started each of the past four games.

No. 2 Penn (7-5, 4-2 Ivy League)

After a bumpy start, the Quakers have picked up the pace in conference play with its only two losses since over the past nearly two months came against Cornell and Brown.

Star Player: Sam Handley, Penn

A big time playmaker, Handley has led this Penn offense with 51 points off 28 goals and 23 assists this season. He has three game-winning goals to his name this spring.

X-Factor: Clutch Time

It’s well-known by now that Penn plays a lot of close games. And in those situations they show often show their clutch DNA. Penn has won two overtime games (Saint Joseph’s and Penn) this season while also beating Yale in a one-goal (17-16) game and Georgetown in two-goal (9-7) game. The Quakers fell to Villanova and Brown in one-goal games.

Player to Watch: Emmett Carroll, Goalie

Carroll has stepped into the starting goalie spot this season and thrived, making 158 saves with a 54% save percentage to anchor a fairly strong Penn defense.

No. 3 Princeton (6-6, 4-2 Ivy League)

After making Championship Weekend a year ago, Princeton has has an up and down season marred by injuries. An OT loss to Cornell in a battle for the top seed last week helped push them down to the No. 3 seed.

Star Player: Couler Mackesy, Attack

The sophomore has been electric this season, tallying 65 points off 45 goals and 20 assists. He is second in the nation, behind CJ KIrst, in points per game (5.42) and fourth in goals per game (3.75).

X-Factor: Jake Stevens, Midfield

The most notable of Princeton’s full stable of horses at the midfield, Stevens does it all. He has 15 goals and four assists for 29 points this year and has also grabbed 29 ground balls and caused four turnovers.

Player to Watch: Sean Cameron, Midfield

Cameron has started each of the past three games and tallied five goals during that time.

No. 4 Yale (8-4, 3-3 Ivy League)

Yale has a really high-flying offense but when it comes to the other end it hasn’t been as pretty this season. Yale had to earn a win over Harvard last week to clinch this final spot in the Ivy League tournament.

Star Player: Matt Brandau, Attack

A veteran, Brandau leads Yale with 57 points off 31 goals and 26 assists this season.

X-Factor: Jared Paquette, Goalie

Paquette has been the Bulldogs’ savior on defense a lot this season as he has made 172 saves with a 52.9% save percentage. He is third in DI in saves per game (14.33).

Player to Watch: Chris Lyons, Attack

Another massive piece of the Yale offense, Lyons leads Yale in goals with 49 while also having assisted on six more to give him 49 points on the year.

Tanner’s Picks

Semifinals

Yale vs Cornell: Cornell

Penn vs Princeton: Princeton

Championship

Cornell vs Princeton: Cornell