Men's Lacrosse Stuns No. 15 Bates, Soars into First National Quarterfinal

Parker Benningfield

Box Score

Hope HOPE 20-0

Bates BATES 12-6

Hope HOPE

20-0

Final

May. 09, 2026

Bates BATES

12-6

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	3	4	F
Hope HOPE	1	4	4	5	14
Bates BATES	3	4	3	2	12

Game Recap: Men's Lacrosse | 5/10/2026 1:10:00 AM | Alan Babbitt

Men's Lacrosse Stuns No. 15 Bates, Soars into First National Quarterfinal

Hope wins, 14-12, on a historic Saturday night in Lewiston, Maine

The Hope College men's lacrosse team graduated to elite status on a chilly and wet Saturday night in Lewiston, Maine.

The unbeaten Flying Dutchmen won at 15th-ranked Bates College, 14-12, to punch their first ticket to the NCAA Division III elite eight next weekend — and the first by any MIAA lacrosse team. Hope is also reported to be the first unranked team to reach the national quarterfinals since the Division III national championships began in 1980.

At 20-0, the Flying Dutchmen are the lone remaining undefeated team in the field that will determine the other seven national quarterfinalists on Sunday, May 10, while their nine seniors are walking at graduation at Ray and Sue Smith Stadium. Commencement is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.

"Fantastic," head coach Michael Schanhals said to start his opening remarks at the post-game press conference. "I'm so proud of these guys. They have been disciplined. They've worked, worked, and worked every day. They proved it tonight that they could get out there and take whatever punch that came their way. They kept running, kept working, kept sharing the ball with each other. It's really a fantastic testimony to their effort and their love for each other. I love these guys, so proud."

Hope, which three-peated as MIAA regular-season champion this season, topped a nationally-ranked opponent for the second time in two days. The Flying Dutchmen defeated No. 18 Ithaca College, 14-11, on Friday.

Against Bates, Hope rallied for a historic victory by scoring five of the game's final six goals.

The Flying Dutchmen struck with the game-winner from sophomore attack Preston Hoexum of Ada, Michigan (Forest Hills Eastern) with 1 minute, 56 seconds remaining, then the clincher from sophomore Weston Godbold of Lowell, Michigan (Lowell) with 22 seconds remaining.

Hoexum topped the Flying Dutchmen with three goals, giving him 63 on the season that is one shy of matching the Hope career record set by Gunnar Elder in 2016.

Junior attack Gibson Heethuis of Hudsonville, Michigan (Hudsonville), contributed a team-high five points on two goals and a game-high five assists. Heethuis extended his program record for assists for 75 and upped his season goal total to a career-high 62.

Godbold finished with two goals, as did sophomore attack Jack Zuiderveen of Hudsonville, Michigan (Hudsonville).

The Flying Dutchmen overcame a Bates barrage of 57 shots and 25-of-30 faceoff wins. Bates led by three goals twice during the first half and two 51 seconds into the fourth quarter.

Senior goalie Jack Balmforth of Livonia, Michigan (Detroit Catholic Central) stopped 11 shots. Bates (12-6) also committed 20 turnovers to Hope's 12.

"A big part of our game plan is that pressure that we put on any opponent," said Jack McNamara, a senior midfielder from Ada, Michigan (Forest Hills Central). "Time after time again, it's the body punches that get to teams. We just stick to our script and to our discipline. Eventually, they'll toss the ball away or they'll have a dumb turnover or something like that. We've got to take advantage of that and we were able to tonight. We didn't let the highs get too high or the lows get too low. We just stuck with it, kept throwing the jab and advanced."

At commencement, McNamara and his fellow graduating seniors can revel in the thrill of graduation — for a day. Then, the focus will shift to preparing to face on the road the winner of the third-round game between No. 2-ranked Bowdoin College and No. 11 Stevens Institute of Technology.

"We've got a lot of opportunities coming forward," said John Foster, a senior defender from Ada, Michigan (Forest Hills Central). "We've stayed true to being in the moment and having each other's back every day. [The Bates game] was just a testament to having fun and playing the game we love, giving it one more push at the end."