The 2011 NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Championship was the 30th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of Division INCAA women's college lacrosse.[1] The first two rounds of the tournament were played at the home fields of higher-seeded teams from May 14–21, and the semifinal and championship rounds were played at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium in Stony Brook, New York from May 27–29.[2] All NCAA Division I women's lacrosse programs were eligible for this championship, and a total of 16 teams were invited to participate.
Northwestern defeated Maryland, 8–7, to win their sixth national championship, and first since 2009. This would subsequently become the sixth of Northwestern's seven national titles in eight years (2005–2009, 2011–12) as well as the seventh of the Wildcats' eight consecutive appearances in the championship game (2005–12). This was also a rematch of the previous year's final, won by Maryland.
The leading scorer for the tournament was Shannon Smith from Northwestern (22 goals). Smith was also named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Tournament field
A total of 16 teams were invited to participate. 9 teams qualified automatically by winning their conference tournaments while the remaining 7 teams qualified at-large based on their regular season records.
