Duke defeated Notre Dame Fighting in the final, 6–5 in overtime, capturing the Blue Devil's first men's lacrosse championship.

In order to host the event, Baltimore competed against Boston; Denver; Columbus, Ohio; and East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Baltimore promoted its strong lacrosse heritage and M&T Bank Stadium's close proximity to a wide range of hotels, restaurants, and shopping centers.

All four Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) teams received at-large bids for the fourth straight year: Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, and Duke.

Ivy League runners-up Cornell, independent Johns Hopkins, Loyola of the ECAC, and Hofstra of the CAA were also selected.

[5] Notable teams considered to be "on the bubble" for selection, but not chosen, included Georgetown and Villanova of the Big East, Yale and Brown of the Ivy League, Drexel and UMass of the CAA.

[5] The selection of some at-large teams such as Notre Dame and Johns Hopkins instead of Georgetown, which missed the tournament for the third straight season, was considered a questionable snub by some analysts.

It marks the fourth consecutive semifinal appearance for the Blue Devils and third NCAA quarterfinal victory over North Carolina in the last four years.

[15] In the first semifinal, Notre Dame once again used its stifling defense led by goalie Scott Rodgers to beat a third straight seeded opponent in No.

The slow pace of regulation did not continue into overtime, as Duke Sophomore CJ Costabile, a long stick midfielder, won the opening faceoff cleanly and sprinted straight downfield to score just 5 seconds into the extra period.

[18] After the championship, Duke attackman Ned Crotty was honored with the Tewaaraton Trophy for the most outstanding Division I men's lacrosse player.