NCAA Lacrosse Championships This Weekend

FOXBOROUGH, Massachusetts (Ticker) -- This year's NCAA Division I lacrosse Final Four will have a different feel only because it will be contested in New England for the first time. Otherwise, it will be business as usual as the event - to be played at Gillette Stadium, the home of the NFL's New England Patriots - features four of the sport's perennial title contenders.

In Saturday's semifinals, top seed Duke (18-1) takes on No. 5 John Hopkins (10-5) in a rematch of last year's championship game and No. 2 Virginia (14-3) battles No. 3 Syracuse (14-2). The winners clash for the title on Monday. While Brown hosted the Division I title game in 1985 and 1987, this marks the first time the Final Four will take place outside one of lacrosse's traditional hotbed areas since the championship weekend format was adopted. Still, crowds of close to 50,000 are expected for both the semifinals and finals.

Duke is hoping the third time is a charm, as the Blue Devils lost to John Hopkins in the 2005 and 2007 national championship games. The high-scoring Blue Devils are riding a 10-game winning streak, and their 18 victories are an NCAA single-season record. Duke leads the nation in scoring, averaging 15.5 goals per game. It is led by senior attackmen Matt Danowski and Zack Greer, who rank first and second nationally in points with 94 and 91, respectfully. Sophomore Max Quinzani has chipped in 59 goals, second only to Greer's total of 64, which leads the nation. Duke defeated Johns Hopkins, 17-6, in Durham on April 5, with Greer scoring a game-high six goals. The Blue Devils reached the semifinals with a 21-10 win over Ohio State last week.

John Hopkins is making its 37th straight tournament appearance - the NCAA's longest active streak in any Division I team sport. The Blue Jays relied on their defense to advance to the 28th Final Four, holding Navy scoreless for more than 30 minutes during one stretch in last week's 10-4 victory. Last season's 12-11 title-game win over Duke gave John Hopkins its ninth lacrosse national championship.

A winner of four national crowns, Virginia is making its 31st tournament appearance - second only to Johns Hopkins. However, the Cavaliers are fortunate to be in the Final Four, having survived a pair of one-goal games earlier in the tournament - 10-9 against Maryland-Baltimore Country and 8-7 over Maryland in the quarterfinals last week. Virginia has a penchant for close games, edging Syracuse, 14-13, early in the season.

The Orange rallied from three one-goal deficits in the second half to hold off upstart Notre Dame, 11-9, in their quarterfinal game. Syracuse reached the semifinals for the eighth time in 10 years under coach John Desko, who captured national championships in 2000, 2002 and 2004.