LOVES PARK, Ill. – The Upper Midwest Lacrosse Conference (UMLC) moves to the Mercyhealth Sportscore Complex just outside of Rockford, Ill., for the 2023 conference tournament, which will be held on April 28-30.

Each UMLC division winner will receive an automatic berth to the 2023 MCLA National Championships presented by New Balance, which will be held at the Round Rock (Texas) Multipurpose Complex from May 8-13.

BRACKETS: DIVISION I | DIVISION II

The first round of the UMLC tournament commences on Friday with the Division II first round. Opening up the action at 3 p.m. is East third seed Dayton (7-4) battling West second seed Minn.-Duluth (5-6). They did not meet in the regular season this spring.

The winner will faceoff with Grand Valley State (8-2) on Saturday at noon.

Following at 3:30 p.m. is the West No. 3 seed St. John’s (4-7) rolling up on East second seed North Dakota State (4-7). This pair met on April 19 with the Bison taking a 9-7 win thanks to a four-point day from Mitch Rogers.

The winner draws St. Thomas (9-2) at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The opening Division I first round contest features West second seed Iowa State (5-6) crossing paths with East three seed Western Michigan (2-9). The two teams did not meet during the regular season.

The winner will face Michigan State (4-5) on Saturday at 3 p.m.

The Friday evening first round will come to a close with East second seed Purdue (6-8) playing West third seed Illinois (6-8) at 6:30 p.m. The Boilermakers edged the Illini on April 7, 11-10, thanks to four goals from Connor Glosner.

Minnesota (7-4) awaits the winner on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

“Tourney time is always exciting especially when the bid to nationals is on the line,” said UMLC director Derek Daehn. “I expect our players, coaches and fans to represent the Upper Midwest Lacrosse Conference and their respective schools on and off the field.”

Admission is free for all games and all six of the games over the weekend will be streamed thanks to the St. John’s and Minnesota staffs. Details on streaming will be available via the UMLC Twitter feed.

2023 Upper Midwest Lacrosse Conference (UMLC) Tournament
Loves Park, Ill. – April 28-30 – Mercyhealth Sportscore Complex

Division I

First Round – April 28
GAME 1: #3E Western Michigan v. #2W Iowa State, 6 p.m.
GAME 2: #3W Illinois v. #2E Purdue, 6:30 p.m.

Semifinals – April 29
GAME 1 winner v. #1E Michigan State, 3 p.m.
GAME 2 winner v. #1W Minnesota, 3:30 p.m.

Finals – April 30
Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.

Division II

First Round – April 28
GAME 1: #3E Dayton v. #2W Minn.-Duluth, 3 p.m.
GAME 2: #3W St. John’s v. #2E North Dakota State, 3:30 p.m.

Semifinals – April 29
GAME 1 winner v. #1E Grand Valley State, 12 p.m.
GAME 2 winner v. #1W St. Thomas, 12:30 p.m.

Finals – April 30
Semifinal winners, 10 a.m.