Harvard men’s lacrosse will travel to Houston, Texas, for a neutral site matchup against the University of Michigan Wolverines. The game is scheduled for Saturday, March 7 at 3:00 PM EST and will be held at the Kinkaid School. The contest will be broadcast live on the Corrigan Sports Network.
The Crimson enter the game with a 4-0 record after defeating Marquette 19-10 in their last outing. This marks the second time under head coach Gerry Byrne that Harvard has started a season with four consecutive wins. Under Byrne, Harvard’s best start was a 6-0 run in 2024. The team holds a 2-1 record in neutral site games during his tenure.
Two players, Sean Jordan and Jack Speidell, were recognized on the NEILA Team of the Week following their performances against Marquette. Speidell achieved a career-high nine points and seven goals in that game.
Teddy Malone and Jack Speidell currently lead Harvard with 19 points each this season. Malone has scored 13 goals while Speidell leads with eight assists. As a team, Harvard has posted a .364 shooting percentage, ranking fourth nationally. They also rank fifth in points per game (24.0) and have averaged 9.25 assists per game, which is sixth in the nation and leads the Ivy League.
Harvard’s defense has limited opponents to just 34 goals over four games and forced 70 turnovers, causing 29 of them directly.
Regarding national rankings, Harvard remains No. 1 in the KANE Footwear Inside Lacrosse Media Poll this week with one first-place vote. USA Lacrosse Magazine places them at No. 4 for the second straight week, while they are ranked No. 6 by USILA Coaches—their highest since being ranked No. 3 in program history back in 1990.
The upcoming opponent, Michigan Wolverines, holds a record of three wins and three losses so far this season. Their victories came against Mercyhurst, Marquette, and Detroit Mercy; losses were to Lehigh, Army (ranked No.11), and Denver (ranked No.17). Michigan has outscored its opponents by a margin of 82-58 this year and maintains an efficient .343 shooting percentage.
Key players for Michigan include Luke Shannehan with a team-leading 24 points and Nick Roode who leads with twenty goals scored this season.
In recent matchups between these teams over four seasons, Harvard has won three out of four meetings against Michigan. In series history dating back to their first meeting in 2012—an eleven-seven win for Harvard—the Crimson now lead overall by four games to one.
Head Coach Gerry Byrne is now serving his seventh season at Harvard and has led the program to two NCAA Tournaments as well as an Ivy League Tournament appearance last year—the first since 2016—and recently became “the first head coach to lead his team to a win over a No.1 ranked team in program history.”
Associate Head Coach Neil Hutchinson continues to guide an offense that ranks among national leaders: fourth-best shooting percentage (.364), fifth-most points per game (24), sixth-most assists per game (9.25), and eighth-most goals per game (14.75).
On February 21st at Jordan Field, Harvard made history by defeating then-No.1 Syracuse with a score of thirteen-twelve—its first ever victory over a top-ranked opponent—with Nathan Cobery scoring late for the win after Sean Jordan contributed defensively.
Players John Aurandt IV and Graham Stevens received Ivy League Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week honors respectively for their roles in that upset victory over Syracuse.
Next weekend’s contest serves as another test before Ivy League play begins for Harvard as they continue their road stretch.
