In an exciting NCAA lacrosse finals, Syracuse capped off a 14-1 season with its first NCAA championship and fifth overall lacrosse title as they defeated Johns Hopkins, 17–16. The Orangemen, led by Brad Kotz and Tim Nelson, scored eight straight goals in less than nine minutes in the second half to clinch the title after Hopkins had gone up 12–5 midway through the third quarter.
Syracuse was seeded second and hosted the first round and semifinal games. The Orangemen beat Penn, the seventh-seed, 11–8 at Syracuse's J.S. Coyne Stadium. In the semifinals in the Carrier Dome, the Orangemen beat Maryland 12–5 behind Randy Lundblad’s one goal and four assists and Travis Solomon’s 22 saves.
In the finals, the Blue Jays had a 12–5 lead with less than seven minutes to play in the third period when the Orangemen rallied. Syracuse outscored the Blue Jays 4–1 to close out the third period and then added six straight goals in the fourth to go up 15–13. Hopkins tied the score at 15, but goals by Brad Kotz and Lundblad gave the Orangemen a two-goal cushion with Del Dressell scoring the final Hopkins goal. Tim Nelson had two goals and six assists in the finals, to finish as the tournament’s leading scorer with 15 points. Kotz scored five goals, all in the second half and was named Most Outstanding Player. Travis Solomon made 18 saves for the Orange.
Late in the third quarter, team captain and defenseman Darren Lawlor scored a key goal left-handed which provided a spark for the Orangemen. Overcoming a seven goal deficit against a Hopkins team participating in its seventh straight title game, Lawlor and the other Orangemen seniors provided the spark. But the offensive punch came primarily from sophomores, including midfielder Brad Kotz of West Genesee and Tim Nelson, the transfer from North Carolina State. Nelson's pass to Randy Lundblad for an open-net goal with 1:09 left locked up the title for the Orangemen.
For Hopkins, Dressel was outstanding exhibiting one on one skills on par with the Orangemen's most athletic players, finishing with three goals and one assist in the finals.
Syracuse and Johns Hopkins would go on to meet in the NCAA finals five more times, the last time in 2008. This was Hopkins' seventh straight NCAA final.
Syracuse scoring – Brad Kotz 5, Randy Lundblad 3, Dave Desko 2, Tim Nelson 2, Art Lux 2, Darren Lawlor, Mike Powers, Tom Korrie
Johns Hopkins scoring – Del Dressel 3, Peter Scott 3, John Krumenacker 2, Bill Cantelli 2, Willy Odenthal 2, Kirk Baugher, Brent Ciccarone, Lee Davidson, Henry Ciccarone Jr.
Shots: Johns Hopkins 50, Syracuse 48
Saves: Syracuse Travis Solomon 21, Johns Hopkins Brian Holman 26, Larry Quinn 0
Location: Piscataway, New Jersey (Rutgers Stadium) - 5/28/1983
Attendance: 23,000
Semifinals
Team
1
2
3
4
Total
Syracuse
2
3
4
3
12
Maryland
0
1
2
2
5
Syracuse scoring – Art Lux 3, Mike Powers 2, Dave Desko 2, Randy Lundblad, John Schimoler, Brad Kotz, Jeff McCormick, Wayne Roemer
Maryland scoring – Jim Wilkerson 2, Tim Worstell, Tony Olmert, Mike Hubbard
