CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Two of the best teams in the nation will square off this weekend as the No. 9 Harvard Crimson host the No. 2 Princeton Tigers. The No. 9 Crimson (9-2, 3-1 Ivy) will take on the No. 2 Tigers (9-2, 3-1 Ivy) on Cambridge Day, in front of what is expected to be a capacity crowd at Jordan Field. The Frisbie Family Head Coach for Harvard Men's Lacrosse, Gerry Byrne, and his Crimson have already locked up a spot in the Ivy League Tournament but will need to knock off the Tigers to keep their hosting chances alive. The team will also celebrate its senior class in a ceremony prior to the first faceoff at 1:00 PM.
 
The teams will compete on Cambridge Day, which is Harvard Athletics' biggest event of the Spring. A day centered around bringing our Crimson and Cambridge community together, there is something for everyone to enjoy. From food trucks and live music to yard games and beer gardens, this family-favorite annual event is one you can't miss. The top 10 lacrosse matchup is the marquee event of the day and will see thousands of fans flock to the Harvard Athletics campus to take part in what should be a historic day on the banks of the Charles River.
 

What to Know

Who: No. 9 Harvard vs. No. 2 Princeton
When: 1:00 PM EST, Saturday April 18
Where: Jordan Field/Boston, Mass.
What: Cambridge Day – Harvard Athletics' biggest event of the year!
Camps: Learn more about the Crimson Lacrosse Academy hosted at the Harvard Athletics Campus by the Harvard Men's Lacrosse Coaches for rising 4th-8th grade boys at Byrne-Method.com
 

Cambridge Day 2026

Harvard lacrosse is excited to join Harvard Athletics and the Cambridge community to celebrate Cambridge Day on Saturday, April 18. The biggest event of the year will bring the Harvard and Cambridge communities together to celebrate another great year of Harvard athletics. There is something for everyone to enjoy at the event, from food trucks and live music to yard games and beer gardens, this family-favorite annual event is one you can't miss.
 
Over 13 food vendors will be in attendance and several businesses will have set ups behind the field on our Local Business Boulevard. The event is selling fast so don't miss out on your chance to be a part of the festivities and get your tickets now at GoCrimson.com/tickets
 

Quick Hits

• The Crimson enter the contest with a 9-2 record following a loss to Yale (Apr. 11).
• Despite the loss, Harvard locked up the first spot in the Ivy League Tournament.
• This will be the first time in program history that the Crimson will appear in back-to-back conference championship tournaments.
• This will be the sixth matchup with a ranked opponent for Harvard this season.
• The No. 2 Tigers are the third top-five team Harvard has battled in 2026.
• Harvard is 3-2 against ranked opponents this season.
• Harvard and Princeton will clash on the field for the 92nd time this weekend in a rivalry that dates back to 1881.
• Harvard last defeated Princeton in 2022 at Jordan Field when the Tigers were ranked No. 3 in the nation.
• Princeton has defeated Harvard in the past four meetings, with the past three meetings being decided by three goals or less.
• Teddy Malone leads the team with 30 goals and is third in the Ivy League with 2.73 goals per game.
• Teddy Malone (40), Jack Speidell (36), John Aurandt IV (32) and Logan Ip (30) all have eclipsed the 30-point mark this season.
• Graham Stevens owns a .550 save percentage which ranks third in the Ivy League.
• Nathan Cobery ranks third nationally with a .525 shooting percentage.
• Harvard's offense has posted 13.36 goals per game, the 11th-best mark nationally.
• The Crimson offense is the second-most efficient unit nationally with a 37.0-percent rating this season.

 

By the Numbers

3 – Goals for Logan Turley vs. Brown, the most in a game in his career.
4 – Inside Lacrosse Midseason All-Americans for Harvard.
5 – Man-up goals for Andrew Perry in 2026, the most in the Ivy League.
5 – Or more opponent scoring droughts of 15 or more minutes for Harvard this season.
6 – Times Harvard has reached nine wins in the past 30 years.
7 – NCAA RPI Ranking for Harvard men's lacrosse.
8 – Ivy League weekly awards for Harvard this season.
10 – Caused turnovers for SSDM Owen Guest this season, the 10^th most in the nation by a short-stick.
12 – Years since Harvard last started 3-0 in the Ivy League.
22 – Saves for Graham Stevens against BU (Mar. 24), a new career high.
28 – Ground balls for Nathan Cobery this season, the fifth-most for an attack nationally.
30 – Goals for Teddy Malone, the third most in the Ivy League.
53 – Shooting percentage for Nathan Cobery, the best clip in the NCAA.
65 – Years since Harvard last posted at least nine wins in its first 10 games.
107 – Goals for Teddy Malone, the seventh-most in program history.
176 – Turnovers forced by the Harvard defense this season.
 

In the National Rankings

NCAA RPI – 7
USILA Coaches Poll – 10
Inside Lacrosse Media Poll – 9
USA Lacrosse Magazine Rankings – 8
Lacrosse Reference LaxELO – 14
NEILA Coaches Poll – 2
 

Scouting Princeton

• Princeton comes into the matchup ranked second nationally after posting a 9-2 record so far in 2026. The Tigers are also 3-1 in Ivy League play.
• This will be the eighth ranked matchup for Princeton this season. The team is 5-2 against ranked foes this season.
• The only losses Princeton has taken this year have been to No. 14 Penn State (Feb. 14) and No. 10 Cornell (Mar. 21).
• Nate Kabiri leads the team in points with 48 after posting 24 goals and 24 assists.
• Chad Palumbo's 25 goals are a team best.
• Andrew McMeekin owns a .545 faceoff percentage and has grabbed 75 ground balls on the year.
• Jack Stahl and Hunter Spiess are the Tiger's top two poles, logging 16 and 12 caused turnovers, respectively.
• Princeton owns 96 assists on its 158 goals this season. The team ranks fifth nationally with 8.73 assists per game.
• The Tiger offense has poured in 14.36 goals per game this season, the fourth best mark in the NCAA.

 

Crimson vs. Tigers – Series History

• Harvard and Princeton have met 91 times in series history.
• The Crimson trails in the all-time series, 25-65-1.
• Harvard last defeated the then No. 3 Tigers in 2022 in a 19-16 thriller at Jordan Field.
• Each of the last three meetings have been decided by three or fewer goals.
• The sides squared off twice last season. Princeton won the regular season matchup, 13-11 and the Ivy League Tournament semifinal matchup, 11-8.

 

Active Stat Leaders vs. Princeton

Goals: Speidell (6), Malone (6)
Assists: Malone (2), Ip (4)
Points: Malone (8), Speidell (7)
Ground Balls: Barraco (10), Speidell (7)
Caused Turnovers: Jordan (3), Muller (3)
Faceoffs: Barraco (22), Henehan (2)
Saves: Stevens (30)
Goals Allowed: Stevens (24)
 

Lacrosse Reference Metrics

• Harvard is ranked 14th in the Lacrosse Reference LaxELO rankings.
• The Crimson owns the second most efficient offense in the nation, scoring on 37.0-percent of its possessions.
• It's cumulative efficiency of 39.7-percent ranks seventh in the NCAA.
• The team's cumulative shooting percentage of 38.2-percent is the third best in the nation.
• The team's strength of record – +0.75 expected wins – is the sixth-best mark nationally.
• Harvard has played the 10^th hardest schedule in the nation.

 

At the Helm

The Frisbie Family Head Coach for Harvard Men's Lacrosse, Gerry Byrne, is in his seventh season at the helm of the program in 2025-26. The team has experienced success under Coach Byrne, posting a 41-26 record and a 14-14 mark in Ivy League action. Byrne has guided the Crimson to two NCAA Tournaments and has led the program to back-to-back Ivy League Tournaments in 2025 and 2026, the first time in program history the team will appear in consecutive conference championships. Most recently, Coach Byrne made history, becoming the first head coach to lead his team to a win over a No. 1 ranked team in program history.
 

Turn and Byrne

Jordan Field has become a safe haven for Harvard under Byrne in the past six seasons. The skipper has led his team to a 27-7 record in Cambridge since taking over in 2020. That mark also features a 21-2 record against unranked opponents in games held at Jordan Field. The last loss came against Colgate (an eventual NCAA Tournament team) last February. Harvard has also had success against ranked foes, posting three top-five wins at Jordan Field.
 

The Class of 2026

Harvard men's lacrosse will honor its seniors in a pregame ceremony this Saturday in a part of its senior day celebration. The 11-player group has become one of the most successful classes in program history, helping Harvard collect 32 wins, the fourth most by a single class in the nearly 150-year history of Harvard lacrosse. The group has also led the team to back-to-back Ivy League Tournaments and guided the program to an appearance in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.  
 

Offensive Firepower

Picking up where it left off in 2025, Harvard's offense – led by the Associate Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator Neil Hutchinson – has continued to turn in impressive performances in 2026. The offense ranks inside the top 20 in the NCAA with a 34.6-percent shooting clip (2nd), 20.36 points per game (18th), and 13.36 goals per game (11th).
 

A Game of Runs

Harvard has shown its ability to pull away from its opponents this season by going on impressive scoring runs. Most notably in the game against Michigan (Mar. 7), Harvard used a 13-2 run in the final 40 minutes of the game to pull away and post a 17-7 victory. The streak featured two scoring runs of six goals. Harvard has posted 12 scoring runs of four or more goals this season.
 
Recently, in the contest against No. 20 BU (Mar. 24), Harvard used a five-goal run in the third quarter to take back the lead and fuel an eventual win. This past weekend against Brown, Harvard posted four straight fourth-quarter goals to comeback and defeat the Bears, 12-10. The Crimson allowed just one goal early in the final frame before standing tall defensively for the final 14-plus minutes.
 

Bullseye!

The second most accurate team in the nation, Harvard owns a shooting percentage of 34.6 on the season to rank second in the NCAA. Led by one of the most consistent shooters in the NCAA, Nathan Cobery (3rd, 52.5-percent), Harvard has worn down opposing goaltenders with its ability to get shots on target. 61.9-percent of Harvard's shots have been on cage this season, one of the best marks in the country.
 
Harvard posted a 50-percent shooting percentage against Marquette (Feb. 28) with 19 goals on 38 shots. The clip was the highest in a game since the 2023 season when Harvard scored 23 goals on 43 shots against Providence. It was just the fourth time the team has eclipsed the 50-percent shooting clip in a game since 2010.
 

Teddy Reaches the Century Mark

Senior attack Teddy Malone passed the 100 career goals milestone in the matchup against Dartmouth (Mar. 20) to become just the 12th player in program history to score 100 goals. Now with 107 career tallies, Malone is in seventh place on the all-time scoring list.
 

Spidey and His Amazing Friends

One of the most talented attackmen in the Ivy League, Jack Speidell is picking up where he left off in 2025. A dynamic playmaker, Speidell has shown off his ability as a distributor this season and is second on the team with 12 assists. A Team 91 LI alum, Speidell now owns 36 points on the year and recently eclipsed the 100 career points milestone. The St. Anthony's product produced a nine-point outburst against Marquette (Feb. 28) the highest total for a Crimson player since Sam King '25 reached the same total in the 2025 matchup against Marquette.
 

Up Next

The Crimson will complete its regular season schedule next weekend when it travels to upstate New York to take on the Cornell Big Red. Harvard and Cornell are set to square off at 12:00 PM at Schoelkopf Field in Ithaca and the all the action will stream live on ESPN+.