Inside Lacrosse Podcasts

Championship Wrap Up with Princeton’s Ryan Croddick and Chad Palumbo
Princeton caps a dominant postseason with its first national title in 25 years, and D-Fly & Dixie break down every angle of Championship Weekend in Charlottesville. From Princeton’s blistering second‑quarter run to Notre Dame’s costly mistakes, the guys unpack how the Tigers seized control and never let go. They also revisit Saturday’s semifinals, where discipline—and a couple of pivotal moments—separated the winners from the rest.

The episode dives deep into the stunning coaching news at Virginia, including Lars Tiffany’s departure, Kevin Cassese’s rapid promotion, and what insiders were really saying in Charlottesville. Dixie shares behind‑the‑scenes stories from Media Day, his battle with illness, and why stepping away from lacrosse Twitter has been life‑changing.

Finally, national champs Chad Palumbo and Ryan Cradock join the show to reflect on Princeton’s historic run and the celebration that followed.

GIVE & GO
In this week’s summer-themed Give & Go, the guys talk about upcoming plans for the summer, including concerts, vacations and other activities they are excited about now that the college lacrosse season has come to a close.

Fresh off Princeton's 16-9 win over Notre Dame in the NCAA Championship, a sweaty and exasperated Nick Ossello joins IL's Terry Foy and Larken Kemp to discuss the Tigers' zone defense, groundball superiority and flow-state offense.

From there, they dive into the Tewaaraton race, unpack the Semifinals, break down the latest news on the saga surrounding Lars Tiffany's firing, discuss Charlottesville as a host venue and finish up by talking about Northwestern's ninth national championship — complete with a touch of controversy.

NCAA Championship Weekend Preview
Oh, how the season flies by. The college lacrosse season moves like a blink. In early February, teams are grinding through freezing practices and games, breath visible in the air, the whole journey still ahead of them. And then, almost instantly, the cold is gone, the stakes rise, and every game feels like it carries a season’s weight.

By late May, only four teams remain. The noise is louder, the weather warmer, and the margin for error gone. Championship Weekend arrives like a rush, the final sprint toward a trophy that suddenly feels both impossibly close and hard‑earned. It’s one of the sport’s quiet wonders: a season that starts in the cold and ends in a blaze, faster than anyone expects.

D-Fly and Dixie enlist friends Richard Chizmar and Evan Washburn to help get you set for what should be a fantastic weekend of lacrosse in Charlottesville. First, best-selling author and Virginia Lacrosse parent Chizmar weighs in on the coaching news and gives elite Charlottesville restaurant recommendations. Then, Dixie and his broadcast teammate Washburn break down the two semifinal matchups. 

GAME PREVIEWS
Saturday, May 23
Scott Stadium, Charlottesville, Va.

Duke (11-4) vs. No. 1 Princeton (15-2) | noon | ESPN2 | Princeton -1.5/24.5
No. 6 Syracuse (13-5) vs. No. 2 Notre Dame (12-2) | 2:30 p.m. | ESPN2 | ND -2.5/23.5

Odds to win the NCAA title going into Championship Weekend: ND +175, Princeton +180, Duke +430, Syracuse +500

GIVE & GO
In this week’s Championship Weekend-themed Give & Go, Dixie and Evan recount some of their favorite memories of college lacrosse’s pinnacle.

Once again, IL's Terry Foy and Nick Ossello press record during the fourth quarter of the final game of the weekend — this time it wasn't as dramatic as Duke closed out Georgetown, 16-6, to become the fourth team to punch its ticket to Saturday's NCAA Semifinals in Charlottesville, Va.

Rewinding to Saturday, they begin with Syracuse's dramatic 13-11 win over North Carolina, replete with injury drama, an important missed (non-reviewable call), a field surface controversy and most importantly, vindication for the sport's biggest star? From there, they dive into Notre Dame's pull-away win over Johns Hopkins, highlighted by Josh Yago's legacy game. They unpack Princeton's similar pull-away win over Penn State to start Sunday, itself marked by injury drama.

Last week was by far our most-listened to episode of the season. We really appreciate it and we hope all our new listeners enjoy this one, too!

As spring turns to summer, IL's Terry Foy talks to NextRep founder Logan Frank about his new app, a marketplace launching in the DMV that will match prominent high school and college lacrosse players with aspiring young athletes looking to follow in their footsteps.

What's most interesting about Frank and his plan is that he's done it once before — during the pandemic, when he was went home from Susquehanna. He shares what he learned from that experience, how he's been plagued by the desire to launch this app and how he hopes to see it grow.

The latest episode of the D‑Fly & Dixie Podcast arrives just in time for quarterfinal weekend, and the guys bring back longtime friend of the show Christian Swezey to help break down all four matchups. They open with a look back at a wild first round — including Johns Hopkins’ gritty road win at Cornell, where the Blue Jays “won a playoff game on the road with a goalie who made three saves” and Luke Martin earned two bananas from the Blue Jays’ banana crew. From travel‑day chaos to behind‑the‑scenes ops decisions, Christian shares what really shapes NCAA tournament success.

The crew then dives into each quarterfinal, starting with Hopkins–Notre Dame, where the Irish’s defensive backbone and the emergence of goalie Thomas Ricciardelli take center stage. They examine whether Syracuse can finally break through against UNC after two losses, debate Penn State–Princeton as potentially the weekend’s best game, and unpack how Georgetown’s toughness — galvanized by the team rallying around teammate James Caretta, who is battling cancer — has fueled the Hoyas’ surge into the final eight.

Packed with insight, storytelling, and quarterfinal stakes, it’s one of the most comprehensive breakdowns of the season.

GAME PREVIEWS
Saturday, May 16
Shuart Stadium, Hempstead, N.Y.
Johns Hopkins (10-5) vs. No. 2 Notre Dame (11-2) | noon | ESPNU | ND -2.5/20.5
No. 3 North Carolina (13-4) vs. No. 6 Syracuse (12-5) | 2:30 p.m. | ESPNU | UNC -1.5/23.5

Sunday, May 17
Delaware Stadium, Newark, Del. 
No. 8 Penn State (10-5) vs. No. 1 Princeton (14-2) | noon | ESPNU | Princeton -1.5/22.5
Georgetown (11-4) vs. Duke (10-4) | 2:30 p.m. | ESPNU | Duke -1.5/23.5

GIVE & GO
In this week’s fashion-themed Give & Go, the episode closes with hot takes on best and worst uniforms in college lacrosse, sparked by Vermont’s green‑and‑gold look and spiraling into a tour of fashion takes, from Hopkins’ endless combinations to the "brutal" High Point and Richmond kits.

What a weekend of college lacrosse!

If you want to relive it all, join IL's Terry Foy, Nick Ossello and Larken Kemp as they press record with about 9:00 to play in Georgetown's win over Virginia, highlighted by their reaction to Jack Ransom's acrobatic no-foul goal. From their, they rewind back to ’Cuse's harrowing survival vs. Yale, Hopkins' OT win at Cornell and Larken shares his thoughts on the Committee's decision to send Duke to Richmond before they dive into the Blue Devils win.

Rounding up the weekend, they discuss North Carolina, Penn State, Notre Dame and Princeton advancing to the Quarterfinals in comparatively comfortable fashion.

MAY MADNESS
The latest episode of the D-Fly & Dixie Podcast dives headfirst into the opening weekend of the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Tournament, with special guest Ed Lee of The Baltimore Sun joining the show. Dan, Dixie, and Ed start by surveying one of the most wide‑open brackets in recent memory, discussing momentum teams like Princeton, Richmond, Virginia, Penn State, and Army. They also unpack the season‑long turmoil at UMBC, with Ed detailing the prolonged and confusing administrative handling of the Ryan Moran situation. Continuing to get Ed’s expertise on local college sports, the trio then shifts to Maryland’s rare absence from the NCAA field for the first time in 22 years and a brutal school year overall for Terps athletics. 

From there, they break down all eight first‑round matchups, offering analysis on every game. Packed with insight, storytelling, and tournament energy, it’s one of the most comprehensive May Madness previews the show has ever delivered.

GAME PREVIEWS
Saturday, May 9
UAlbany (11-5) at No. 3 North Carolina (12-4) | Noon | ESPNU
Army (13-3) at No. 8 Penn State (9-5) | 2:30 p.m. | ESPNU
Johns Hopkins (9-5) at No. 7 Cornell (11-4) | 5 p.m. | ESPNU
Duke (9-4) at No. 4 Richmond (14-1) | 7:30 p.m. | ESPNU

Sunday, May 10
Jacksonville (11-5) at No. 2 Notre Dame (10-2) | Noon | ESPNU
Marist (12-4) at No. 1 Princeton (13-2) | 2:30 p.m. | ESPNU
Yale (9-5) at No. 6 Syracuse (11-5) | 5 p.m. | ESPNU
Georgetown (10-4) at No. 5 Virginia (10-6) | 7:30 p.m. | ESPNU

GIVE & GO
In this week’s media-themed Give & Go, the guys discuss the best press boxes and media game‑day experiences in college lacrosse, with Ed praising Hofstra’s legendary media fridge and Dixie shouting out Homewood, the Dome, and Dorrance Field. 

The eighth Premier Lacrosse League season gets underway this weekend in Salt Lake City, the debut Women's Lacrosse League season starts next weekend in Providence and all of it will air on ESPN after the leagues inked a five-year extension with the Worldwide Leader.

On the eve of the opening whistle, IL's Terry Foy went to the leagues' New York City office to sit down with President and Co-Founder Paul Rabil about all that and more. Check out one of the most insightful and candid conversations about the state of pro lacrosse that you'll hear this year.