Madonna Wins 2026 Men's Lacrosse Tournament Title

LIVONIA, Mich. - Box Score | Photo Gallery For the second time in program history and the first time since 2018, Madonna University has claimed the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Men's Lacrosse tournament title. The Crusaders, ranked #1 in the nation, were pushed to the brink by Indiana Tech on Saturday afternoon in Livonia. 

Spencer Guppy scored the go-ahead goal with 2:04 remaining, and Madonna held on for a 15-14 win over Indiana Tech on Saturday afternoon in Livonia, Mich. The one-goal finish capped a game that swung sharply in both directions, with Madonna building an early five-goal cushion, Indiana Tech erasing it by halftime and the teams trading momentum throughout the second half.

Madonna seized control in the first quarter after falling behind on Collin Howard's opening goal at 9:03. Benjamin Reidy answered at 7:55 to start a surge, and the Crusaders poured in six goals in the quarter to take a 6-1 lead. DeMario Williams' goal with 2:53 left in the quarter pushed the margin to five and set the tone for a fast start.

Indiana Tech responded with its best stretch in the second quarter. Daniel Young scored early to make it 6-2, and Cam Fewster became the centerpiece of the comeback. Fewster scored at 9:32 off an assist from Ryan Tedesco to pull Indiana Tech within 7-5, then tied the game 8-8 with a man-up goal at 3:52. Indiana Tech scored seven times in the quarter, including one of its four power-play goals, to wipe out Madonna's early advantage before halftime.

The second half stayed tight. Rico Hart scored 40 seconds into the third quarter to put Madonna back in front, 9-8, but Jacob Myers answered 14 seconds later for Indiana Tech. Reidy later scored to extend the lead to 11-9, and Madonna carried that margin into the fourth quarter. Ryan Calloway tied the game at 11-11 early in the final quarter, but Guppy scored at 9:47 to give Madonna a 13-11 edge. Fewster answered again in the closing minutes, scoring at 3:53 to bring Indiana Tech within one and then converting another man-up chance at 3:21 to level the score at 14-14.

That set up the decisive sequence. Guppy finished his third goal of the game with 2:04 left, and Madonna's defense and goalie Jonathan Bendfeldt made it stand. Bendfeldt turned away 20 shots over 60 minutes, a critical number in a game where Indiana Tech put 34 shots on goal and finished with 60 total attempts. Sam Park made eight saves for Indiana Tech.

Madonna also found advantages in the possession game, winning 20 of 33 faceoffs and collecting 31 ground balls to Indiana Tech's 26. Hart finished with three goals and two assists, Reidy added three goals and one assist, and Guppy scored three times, including the winner. Fewster led Indiana Tech with four goals and three assists in a standout effort that nearly carried the visitors all the way back, but Madonna's early burst and Guppy's late finish proved enough.

Madonna will earn the WHAC's automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship May 12-16 in Decatur, Ala. With four total at-large bids up for grabs, the remainder of the WHAC will await the tournament selection show on May 4 at 6 p.m. est.

All-Time Tournament Champions

2013: Davenport
2014: Davenport
2015: Davenport
2016: Davenport
2017: Lourdes
2018: Madonna
2019: Indiana Tech
2020: No Tournament - COVID
2021: Indiana Tech
2022: Indiana Tech
2023: Indiana Tech
2024: Indiana Tech
2025: Concordia
2026: Madonna