The Cornell–Princeton lacrosse rivalry is a college lacrosse rivalry between Princeton University and Cornell University and their respective men's lacrosse teams, Princeton Tigers and Cornell Big Red.
| First meeting | April 10, 1922 Princeton 11, Cornell 1 |
|---|---|
| Latest meeting | May 3, 2026 Princeton 19, Cornell 9 Ithaca, NY |
| Next meeting | TBD |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 90 |
| All-time series | Cornell, 45–43–2 |
| Largest victory | Princeton, 19–1 (1936) Cornell, 23–5 (1985) |
| Longest win streak | Cornell, 22 (1968–1989) |
| Current win streak | Princeton, 1 (2026–Present) |
![](http://wiki.nitrosworld.org/wiki/File:Cornell_"C"_logo.svg){kind=logo}
The rivalry stems from the dominance of the two programs in the Ivy League, where in the first 69 seasons (1956 through 2026 seasons, excluding pandemic canceled years of 2020 and 2021), Cornell won 34 Ivy League lacrosse championships (21 outright, 13 shared) and Princeton won 28 league titles (18 outright, 10 shared). The next nearest team in lacrosse titles is Brown University, which has won 11 (five outright, six shared)[1] The Ivy League awards the league championship to the team with the best record at the conclusion of the regular season. In the event two or more teams are tied with identical records, the title is shared with no tie breaking mechanism. The teams shared the title in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2010 (also with Brown and Yale University), 2015 (also with Brown), and 2026.
History
editIn October 2011, CornellBigRed.com described the Cornell–Princeton lacrosse rivalry as "The marquee matchup in Ivy League lacrosse".[2] Cornell has won four NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championships (1971, 1976, 1977, 2025)[3] and four pre-NCAA era national championships (1903, 1907, 1914, 1916).[4] Princeton claims six NCAA championships (1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001)[5] and six pre-NCAA era national championships (1884, 1885, 1937, 1942, 1951, 1953).[3] The most recent Ivy League title for both Cornell and Princeton was in 2026 when they shared the championship with identical 5-1 records.
Although the two schools have a long rivalry, they did not oppose each other in postseason play until the quarterfinals of the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship at Hofstra University's Shuart Stadium.[6] Cornell won 6–4.[7]
In 2010, Princeton defeated Cornell 10–9 in the inaugural Ivy League lacrosse championship tournament and received the league's automatic berth to the 2010 NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship.[8] Cornell would win the 2011 Ivy League tournament, defeating Harvard 15–6 in the final.[9] Princeton defeated Cornell in the semifinals of both the 2013 and 2015 tournaments, but fell to Yale in the championship game both times. Cornell won the Ivy League tournament again in 2018 and 2025 (defeating Princeton 20–15 in the 2025 championship game) while Princeton won in 2023, 2024 and 2026 (defeating Cornell 19-9). Princeton has won four tournament championships to Cornell's three, with both trailing Yale's five tournament championships.
The teams first met in 1922, with Princeton winning 11–1.[5] Cornell leads the series 45–43–2 over 90 games.[2]
Rival accomplishments
editThe following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs.
| Team | Cornell Big Red | Princeton Tigers |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-NCAA National Titles | 5 | 6 |
| NCAA National Titles | 4 | 6 |
| NCAA Final Four Appearances | 15 | 11 |
| NCAA Tournament Appearances | 32 | 25 |
| NCAA Tournament Record | 40–27 | 33–17 |
| Conference Tournament Titles | 3 | 4 |
| Conference Championships | 34 | 28 |
| Tewaarton Award Recipients | 3 | 0 |
| Lt. Raymond Enners Award Recipients | 7 | 2 |
| Consensus First Team All-Americans | 57 | 78 |
| All-time Program Record | 826–502–27 | 721–502–18 |
| All-time Winning Percentage | .620 | .588 |
Game Results
edit| Cornell victories | Princeton victories | Tie games |
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References
edit- ↑ "2011 Ivy League Men's Lacrosse: Release Eleven • May 4, 2011" (PDF). IvyLeagueSports.com. May 4, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 15, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- 1 2 "Men's Lacrosse Announces 2012 Schedule". CornellBigRed.com. October 18, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- 1 2 "The NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship formerly known as the Wingate Memorial Champion". United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association. Archived from the original on September 30, 2011. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- ↑ "2009Cornell Big Red Men's Lacrosse" (PDF). CornellBigRed.com. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
- 1 2 "Men's Lacrosse Record Book" (PDF). Princeton University. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 25, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- ↑ Delaney, Brian (May 15, 2009). "A New Stage for Cornell-Princeton Rivalry". Lax. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- ↑ "Syracuse reaches lacrosse semis; Cornell ousts Princeton". USA Today. May 16, 2009. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- ↑ "Princeton Downs Cornell in First-Ever Men's Lacrosse Ivy League Tournament Championship Game: Tigers secure automatic berth to 2010 NCAA tournament with overtime win". The Cornell Daily Sun. May 9, 2010. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ↑ "Cornell Offense Comes Alive in Second Half as Big Red Claim 2011 Men's Lacrosse Tournament Championship : The Ivy League". Archived from the original on January 29, 2012. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
- ↑ "Cornell All-Time Results" (PDF). Retrieved March 17, 2019.