# 2016 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament

The 2016 NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Championship was the 35th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of Division I NCAA women's college lacrosse. The semifinal and championship rounds were played at Talen Energy Stadium (the home of Major League Soccer's Philadelphia Union) in Chester, Pennsylvania from May 27–29, 2016. All other rounds were played at campus sites, usually at the home field of the higher-seeded team, from May 13–22.

## Tournament field

All NCAA Division I women's lacrosse programs were eligible for this championship, and a total of 26 teams were invited to participate. 13 teams qualified automatically by winning their conference tournaments while the remaining 13 teams qualified at-large based on their regular season records.

### Teams

| Seed | School | Conference | Berth type | RPI | Record |
| 1 | Maryland | Big Ten | Automatic | 1 | 19–0 |
| 2 | Florida | Big East | Automatic | 3 | 18–1 |
| 3 | North Carolina | ACC | Automatic | 2 | 16–2 |
| 4 | Syracuse | ACC | At-large | 4 | 17–5 |
| 5 | USC | MPSF | Automatic | 6 | 19–0 |
| 6 | Notre Dame | ACC | At-large | 7 | 13–6 |
| 7 | Penn | Ivy | At-large | 8 | 13–4 |
| 8 | Cornell | Ivy | Automatic | 12 | 13–4 |
| | Boston College | ACC | At-large | 20 | 10–8 |
| | Canisus | MAAC | Automatic | 33 | 13–6 |
| | Duke | ACC | At-large | 18 | 10–8 |
| | James Madison | CAA | At-large | 22 | 10–9 |
| | Johns Hopkins | Independent | At-large | 24 | 10–7 |
| | Louisville | ACC | At-large | 16 | 12–5 |
| | Loyola (MD) | Patriot | Automatic | 14 | 14–5 |
| | Massachusetts | Atlantic 10 | Automatic | 19 | 18–1 |
| | Northwestern | Big Ten | At-large | 10 | 10–9 |
| | Old Dominion | Atlantic Sun | Automatic | 35 | 16–3 |
| | Penn State | Big Ten | At-large | 15 | 11–6 |
| | Princeton | Ivy | At-large | 9 | 11–5 |
| | Stanford | MPSF | At-large | 13 | 14–4 |
| | Stony Brook | America East | Automatic | 11 | 16–3 |
| | Towson | CAA | Automatic | 5 | 15–3 |
| | Virginia | ACC | At-large | 17 | 9–8 |
| | Wagner | NEC | Automatic | 58 | 10–8 |
| | Winthrop | Big South | Automatic | 25 | 20–2 |

## Bracket

| First Round May 13 Regional Campus Sites | First Round May 13 Regional Campus Sites | First Round May 13 Regional Campus Sites | Second Round May 15 Regional Campus Sites | Second Round May 15 Regional Campus Sites | Second Round May 15 Regional Campus Sites | Quarterfinals May 21–22 Campus Sites | Quarterfinals May 21–22 Campus Sites | Quarterfinals May 21–22 Campus Sites | | Semifinals May 27 Talen Energy Stadium | Semifinals May 27 Talen Energy Stadium | Semifinals May 27 Talen Energy Stadium | Final May 29 Talen Energy Stadium | Final May 29 Talen Energy Stadium | Final May 29 Talen Energy Stadium |
| | | | 1 | Maryland* | 14 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Johns Hopkins | 8 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Virginia | 10 | | Johns Hopkins | 8 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Johns Hopkins | 12 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Johns Hopkins | 12 | | | | 1 | Maryland | 18 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | Massachusetts | 3 | | | | | | | |
| | Princeton | 12 | | | | | | | | Massachusetts | 3 | | | | |
| | Massachusetts | 13^ | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Massachusetts | 13^ | | Massachusetts | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 8 | Cornell | 6 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Canisius | 11 | 8 | Cornell | 6 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Cornell* | 15 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Cornell* | 15 | | | | | | | | 1 | Maryland | 19 | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | 4 | Syracuse | 9 | | | |
| | | | 5 | USC* | 14 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Stanford | 8 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Stanford | 9 | | Stanford | 8 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | James Madison | 8 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | James Madison | 8 | | | | 5 | USC | 11 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | 4 | Syracuse | 12 | | | | | | | |
| | Stony Brook | 11 | | | | | | | 4 | Syracuse | 12 | | | | |
| | Boston College | 9 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Boston College | 9 | | Stony Brook | 6 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 4 | Syracuse* | 7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | 1 | Maryland | 7 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | 3 | North Carolina | 13 |
| | | | 3 | North Carolina* | 15 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Duke | 10 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Loyola (MD) | 8 | | Duke | 10 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Duke | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Duke | 14 | | | | 3 | North Carolina | 10 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | 6 | Notre Dame | 6 | | | | | | | |
| | Northwestern | 15 | | | | | | | 6 | Notre Dame | 6 | | | | |
| | Louisville | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Louisville | 5 | | Northwestern | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 6 | Notre Dame* | 15 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | 3 | North Carolina | 12 | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | Penn state | 11 | | | |
| 7 | Penn* | 17 | | | | | | | | | | | Penn state | 11 | |
| | Wagner | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Wagner | 7 | 7 | Penn | 12 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Towson | 4 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Towson | 16 | | Towson | 4 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Old Dominion | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Old Dominion | 5 | | | | 7 | Penn | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | Penn State | 8 | | | | | | | |
| | Penn State | 16 | | | | | | | | Penn State | 8 | | | | |
| | Winthrop | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Winthrop | 6 | | Penn State | 14 | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 2 | Florida* | 13 | | | | | | | | | | |