Frantic Ending Leaves Adelphi at No. 1 in Final Division II Men's Top 20

We've reached the end of the long and winding road of the Division II season, having followed a yellow (and black) brick road all the way to an Adelphi title. The Panthers played Tampa in Gillette Stadium in an instant classic, punctuated by a Kyle Lewis overtime winner. 

It’s back-to-back titles for the Panthers, the first team to go back to back since Merrimack in 2018 and 2019. Naturally, they finish No. 1 in the USA Lacrosse Division II Men's Top 20.

In the title game, the biggest lead either team held belonged to Tampa, which led 7-5 for 11 seconds. Otherwise, teams were within one goal of each other for the duration. The game was tied at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 8. Vincent McDermott’s four goals, all unassisted, were massive. He was able to win against short-stick defenders from the low wings throughout the day, applying constant pressure to the Spartan defense.

One of the biggest goals of the game was actually not a goal at all. With 15 seconds left, a shot by Zack Friend was saved by Dylan Renner, but a rebound popped loose in front of the crease. A battle for it ensued, which Renner joined. The ball eventually bounced toward the top of the box, where Friend picked it up and fired toward an empty net while falling down. The ball went in, and Tampa began to celebrate what it thought was a one-goal lead with 12 seconds to play, but the Tampa sideline had called for a timeout when Friend picked the ball up. The goal came off the board, Tampa couldn’t get a good look in regulation’s final 12 seconds, and it was time for overtime.

In OT, Adelphi won the faceoff and never gave Tampa a chance. A shot from McDermott missed the net, but Adelphi backed it up and used its timeout. Lewis got the ball up top, hit a hard right-to-right split dodge, and stung the far pipe on the run to win the title.

The D2 season closes the book on some truly great stories. While the top spot in the poll was either occupied by Adelphi or Tampa all year, there was tremendous parity throughout the rest of the Top 20.

Continue below to see the entire Top 20, which is compiled by USA Lacrosse Magazine staff and contributors.