Lions Sweep Yale and NYU, Await Penn or Princeton!
Dear Columbia Men’s Lacrosse alumni and friends,
Thank you again for your support of our team! Make It 8 gives a hearty congratulations to the Columbia Men's Lacrosse Club on its dominating sweep of Yale and NYU this weekend! The Lions first faced off seeking their seventh straight win dating to 2001 against the Bulldogs. They took control of the game from the opening possession and grabbed a 5-2 lead at the break on this sweet feed from midfielder and former Dartmouth player Kieran Gunn GS '23 to attackman John Drotos CC '25 for the score (video above!)!
Later on captain Jake Bernstein '24 extended the Lions' lead with this laser from 15 yards out to the top corner!
The Lions finished off an 8-4 win with an outstanding defensive effort that kept the Bulldogs to the outside and allowed few good shots! Goaltender Mike Yang '24 was there to stop those that got to the cage!
After a one hour break the Lions picked up right where they left off with a stout defensive effort that controlled the tempo against crosstown rival NYU! By halftime Columbia had built a 5-1 lead to which Kieran Gunn added with this amazing run off a second-half faceoff!
The Lions went on to an 8-2 triumph in the 2023 Battle of Manhattan, easily avenging last year's overtime defeat!
With the doubleheader sweep the Lions are now 3-4 on the season and have defended home turf well with a perfect 3-0 record! They now await the winner of the Princeton-Penn game, to be played tomorrow night in Philadelphia, as their opponent in the semifinals of the Ivy Club Lacrosse Championship presented by Make It 8! The semifinal game will be played either next weekend or the following weekend depending on which potential opponent advances.
For additional updates and photo content from the Lions' 2023 season and all Ivy Club Lacrosse Championship games please follow us on Instagram: Make It 8 (@makeit8lax) • Instagram photos and videos
Make It 8 is proud to promote competition among the Ivy lacrosse programs, varsity or club, and the old city rivals who have enriched the games for our program over the years! We stand committed to making another tournament, one broadcast on ESPN the first weekend of May, an event hosted by a home team in New York City. Perhaps one in which the Make It 8 Founders' Cup (front on the left, back on the right below) is awarded to the best of eight Ivy teams. Donate here: Make It 8 2023 Season Campaign
Thank you again for your support!
Sincerely,
The Make It 8 Board