The PLL Championship Series is an annual winter lacrosse tournament in the lacrosse sixes format. It is hosted by the Premier Lacrosse League. It features the top four teams in the regular season standings of the previous Premier Lacrosse League season. The inaugural championship series occurred in 2023.
Announced in May 2022, the Championship Series was created for a variety of reasons: incentivize a teams regular season finishing position (as of 2023 only the last place team in the standings does not qualify for playoffs in the PLL), provide more playing opportunities for PLL players that do not play in the NLL, aid in the broader push for lacrosse's inclusion in the Olympics, and to create more inventory for the PLL's broadcasting partners.
The four qualifying teams were allowed to roster 12 players, ten field players and two goalkeepers.
Lacrosse sixes and rule differences The lacrosse sixes format is a version of lacrosse which aims to provide greater access to lacrosse by eliminating barriers of entry. This format is also designed to be more applicable for the modern olympic framework. The Championship Series selected this format as part of its broader push to be included in the 2028 Olympics.
The typical major changes for Lacrosse Sixes are as follows:
6 against 6 rather than 9 against 9 (excluding goalkeepers) 30 second shot-clock 4, 8-minute quarters Goalkeepers begin play when a goal is scored, face-offs only occur at the beginning of each quarter Field size is 70 by 36 meters Everyone plays on both sides of the field No long poles are permitted No shot back up, a missed shot results in a change of possession all of the time rather than possession being determined by who is closest to the ball when it goes out
For the Championship Series, the PLL also included a 13-yard 2-point arc.
Results
2023 Championship Series The 2023 Championship Series took place from February 22, 2023 to February 26, 2023. The round-robin games took place from February 22, to February 24. The semifinals games took place on February 25, and the finals took place on February 26. The participants were the Whipsnakes, the eventual champion Chrome, the Archers, and the eventual runner-up Atlas
Round Robin Round-robin teams are listed in their 2022 PLL regular season standings order.
Bracket
Finals Winning teamRunner-upScoreVenueWinners PurseRef.Chrome LCAtlas LC24-23The St. James (Springfield, VA)$120,000
References:
2024 Championship Series The 2024 Championship Series featured the top 4 regular season finishers of the 2023 Premier Lacrosse League season; including the 2023 PLL Champion Utah Archers. The other competing teams were the eventual champion Boston Cannons, Philadelphia Waterdogs, and California Redwoods. It took place from February 14-19, 2023 at The St. James in Springfield, VA. Round robin play was from February 14-17, 2024, the semifinals were on February 18, and the finals were on February 19.
Round Robin Round-robin teams are listed in their 2023 PLL regular season standings order.
Bracket
Finals +Winning teamLosing teamScoreVenueRef.Boston CannonsPhiladelphia Waterdogs23-22 (OT)The St. James (Springfield, VA)
Notable Statistics The 2024 Championship Series final saw a 24% increase in average viewership on ESPN2 and a 42% increase in viewership on ESPN+. There was a 32% increase in attendance with a 46% increase in total ticket revenue.
2025 Championship Series The 2025 PLL Championship Series (sponsor name Lexus PLL Championship Series), took place on February 11 - 17, 2025 at The St. James in Springfield, Virginia – marketed as Washington, D.C.. The top four PLL teams from the 2024 regular season – New York Atlas, Boston Cannons, Maryland Whipsnakes and the 2024 PLL Champion Utah Archers competed in a round-robin, six-on-six tournament inspired by the Lacrosse Sixes game that will be played at the 2028 Summer Olympics. Round-robin play started on Tuesday, February 11 and continued through Saturday, Feb. 15, with PLL semifinal occurring Sunday, Feb. 16 and championship game on Monday, Feb. 17.
Round Robin
Round-robin teams are listed in their 2024 PLL regular season standings order.
Feb 11, 8:00pm Maryland Whipsnakes 13—25 New York Atlas Stats Feb 12, 6:00pm Boston Cannons 21—29 Utah Archers Stats Feb 13, 6:00pm Maryland Whipsnakes 21—34 Boston Cannons Stats Feb 14, 7:00pm New York Atlas 20—23 Utah Archers Stats Feb 15, 5:00pm New York Atlas 15—23 Boston Cannons Stats Feb 15, 7:00pm Maryland Whipsnakes 25—29 Utah Archers Stats
Playoffs
Feb 16, 5:00pm New York Atlas 23—24 (OT) Boston Cannons Stats Feb 17, 12:30pm Boston Cannons 21—14 Utah Archers Stats
2026 Championship Series
Rosters Source: California Redwoods +#NameNationalityHeightWeightCollegeGrad yearHigh SchoolHometownRef.2Andrew McAdorey5 ft 8 in190 lbsDuke2025St. Anthony'sManorville, New York3Carter Rice5 ft 11 in191 lbsSyracuse2025Boston College High SchoolMilton, Massachusetts4Dylan Molloy6 ft 0 in215 lbsBrown2017St. Anthony'sSetauket, New York5Romar Dennis6 ft 5 in225 lbsLoyola2017St. Mary's RykenHuntingtown, Maryland12Brian Tevlin5 ft 11 in190 lbsNotre Dame2023Seton Hall PrepLivingston, New Jersey23Chris Merle6 ft 1 in200 lbsVirginia2021Westhampton BeachWesthampton Beach, New York34Josh Balcarcel5 ft 7 in175 lbsMarist2025Delaware ValleyMilford, Pennsylvania42Zach Vigue6 ft 0 in220 lbsRichmond2025ApexApex, North Carolina43Matt Knote5 ft 10 in220 lbsUMass2024Eastport-South ManorSpeonk, New York70BJ Farrare5 ft 8 in175 lbsPenn2023McDonoghOwings Mills, Maryland81Connor Cmiel6 ft 2 in195 lbsOhio State2025St. IgnatiusRocky River, Ohio88Aidan Danenza6 ft 3 in220 lbsDuke2024St. Anthony'sMuttontown, New York91Michael Boehm5 ft 10 in170 lbsMichigan2024St. IgnatiusRocky River, Ohio
Carolina Chaos +#NameNationalityHeightWeightCollegeGrad yearHigh SchoolHometownRef.3Chris Aslanian6 ft 3 in205 lbsHobart2019HunWestfield, New Jersey4Cole Williams6 ft 5 in220 lbsJohns Hopkins2021LoyolaMarriottsville, Maryland9Ray Dearth6 ft 2 in205 lbsHarvard2025RidgefieldRidgefield, Connecticut14Austin Kaut6 ft 1 in225 lbsPenn State2014Springfield-DelcoMorton, Pennsylvania15Ross Scott5 ft 9 in175 lbsRutgers2024West LinnWest Linn, Oregon16Mark Glicini6 ft 1 in200 lbsYale2016MahwahMahwah, New Jersey19Jackson Eicher6 ft 4 in220 lbsArmy2025EpiscopalWarrenton, Virginia20Brendan Nichtern6 ft 0 in185 lbsArmy2022MassapequaMassapequa, New York27Shane Knobloch5 ft 9 in200 lbsRutgers2024MoorestownMoorestown, New Jersey30Sergio Perkovic6 ft 4 in225 lbsNotre Dame2017Brother RiceBloomfield Hills, Michigan41Charlie Bertrand6 ft 3 in215Virginia2021BaldwinsvilleBaldwinsville, New York45JC Higginbotham6 ft 0 in200 lbsBellarmine2024Plano WestPlano, Texas50Christian Scarpello5 ft 11 in200 lbsRutgers2018MadisonMadison, New Jersey
Denver Outlaws +#NameNationalityHeightWeightCollegeGrad yearHigh SchoolHometownRef.0Graham Bundy Jr.6 ft 1 in200 lbsGeorgetown2024MICDSSt. Louis, Missouri2Fulton Bayman5 ft 10 in175 lbsGeorgetown2025Lovett SchoolAtlanta, Georgia5Lance Madonna5 ft 11 in165 lbsRichmond2024East Syracuse-MinoaEast Syracuse, New York9Jack VanOverbeke6 ft 1 in185 lbsHigh Point2024Benilde-St. Margaret'sSt. Paul, Minnesota13Zach Geddes6 ft 1 in190 lbsGeorgetown2022Belmont HillWinchester, Massachusetts20Jack Gray6 ft 1 in200 lbsDuke2025CulverSan Rafael, California21Justin Anderson6 ft 0 in190 lbsNorth Carolina2021CentennialLas Vegas, Nevada24Owen McElroy6 ft 1 in190 lbsGeorgetown2022Avon Old FarmsRidgewood, New Jersey30Logan McNaney5 ft 10 in185 lbsMaryland2025SalisburyCorning, New York40Dylan Gergar5 ft 11 in200 lbsPenn2023SevernAnnapolis, Maryland57Greg Weyl6 ft 2 in210 lbsMercyhurst2018PittsfordPittsford, New York59Mikie Schlosser6 ft 2 in190 lbsMichigan2017DavisDavis, California91Ryan Cohen5 ft 9 in183 lbsMichigan2025Avon Old FarmsBoca Raton, Florida
New York Atlas +#NameNationalityHeightWeightCollegeGrad yearHigh SchoolHometownRef.0Eric Malever6 ft 1 in190 lbsDuke2025Woodward AcademyAtlanta, Georgia2Matt Traynor6 ft 2 in193 lbsPenn State2025Malvern PrepDowningtown, Pennsylvania5Tyler Carpenter5 ft 10 in180 lbsDuke2024SalisburyDurham, North Carolina8Myles Jones6 ft 5 in250 lbsDuke2016Walt WhitmanHuntington, New York15Jack Koras5 ft 11 in185 lbsMaryland2024Loyola BlakefieldLutherville, Maryland22Michael Rexrode6 ft 0 in215 lbsRutgers2018Loudoun CountyLeesburg, Virginia25Christopher Davis6 ft 3 in215 lbsCornell2025EssexEssex Junction, Vermont26Bryan Costabile6 ft 2 in215 lbsNotre Dame2020Mount St. JosephSykesville, Maryland30Brian Phipps5 ft 9 in180 lbsMaryland2010SevernAnnapolis, Maryland47Kyle Jackson5 ft 9 in163 lbsMichigan2016The Hill AcademySarnia, Ontario48Max Krevsky6 ft 2 in200 lbsYale2025Cumberland ValleyHarrisburg, Pennsylvania57Chet Comizio5 ft 10 in185 lbsVillanova2023DelbartonBasking Ridge, New Jersey88Will Mark6 ft 4 in200 lbsSyracuse2024Proctor AcademyDanville, California
Round Robin
Round-robin teams are listed in their 2025 PLL regular season standings order.
Feb 27, 7:00pm New York Atlas 22 - 32 Denver Outlaws Stats Feb 28, 5:30pm Denver Outlaws 14 - 26 California Redwoods Stats Feb 28, 7:30pm Carolina Chaos 24 - 25 New York Atlas Stats Mar 1, 11:30pm California Redwoods 23 - 21 Carolina Chaos Stats Mar 5, 5:00pm Carolina Chaos 26-18 Denver Outlaws Stats Mar 6, 7:00pm New York Atlas22-23 California Redwoods Stats
Playoffs
Mar 7, 5:30pm Denver Outlaws 23—22 Carolina Chaos Stats Mar 8, 1:00pm Carolina Chaos 24—16 California Redwoods] Stats
Golden Stick Award The Golden Stick Award is given to the player that had the most points during the Championship Series. +YearPlayerTeamPoints (Scoring Points, Assists)Ref.2023Romar DennisAtlas LC38 (34 SP, 4 A)2024Kieran McArdlePhiladelphia Waterdogs38 (26 SP, 12 A) 2025Matt CampbellBoston Cannons35 (23 SP, 12 A) 2026Shane KnoblochCarolina Chaos34 (30 SP, 4 A)
All-Tournament Team +YearGoalieMidfielderAttacker2025Colin Kirst (Cannons)Mason Woodward (Archers)Beau Pederson (Archers)Asher Nolthing (Cannons)Myles Jones (Atlas)Matt Campbell (Cannons)2026Austin Kaut (Chaos)Brian Tevlin (Redwoods)Matt Traynor (Atlas)Charlie Bertrand (Chaos)Andrew McAdorey (Redwoods)Shane Knobloch (Chaos)
References