NEW YORK, N.Y. – The CBS College Sports Network will debut a documentary about the 1989 national championship game featuring Johns Hopkins and Syracuse on Sunday, May 24 at 2:30 p.m. The documentary recognizes the 20th anniversary of that legendary matchup and is entitled “Legends: The 1989 NCAA Lacrosse Championship.” It provides an in-depth look at how the game impacted and helped grow the sport of lacrosse, and how it stands as perhaps the greatest lacrosse game ever played.
The Orange and Blue Jays combined to win eight of the previous 11 NCAA titles heading into the 1989 championship game. The contest was played in front of a then-record 23,893 fans at Byrd Stadium on the University of Maryland campus.
The 1989 Syracuse squad was an offensive juggernaut led by Canadian twin brothers Gary and Paul Gait. Johns Hopkins was led by senior defensemen Dave Pietramala. Overall, the game featured 17 players who earned All-America honors in 1989, including Gary Gait, who is widely considered the best lacrosse player ever, and Pietramala, who is widely considered the best defenseman ever. With his brother occupied by Pietramala, Paul Gait scored four goals on his way to tournament MVP honors as Syracuse defeated the Blue Jays, 13-12. The game came down to a shot from point-blank range in the final seconds that was stuffed by Orange goalie Matt Palumb.
The documentary features numerous interviews with players and coaches from the 1989 Syracuse and Johns Hopkins teams, including: Roy Simmons Jr. (SU head coach in 1989), John Desko (1989 SU assistant coach and current Orange head coach), Gary Gait, Palumb, Steve Scaramuzzino (SU 1989 team captain), Pietramala, Don Zimmerman (1989 JHU head coach), Quint Kessenich (1989 JHU goalie), Brendan Kelly (1989 JHU team captain) and Bill Dwan (1989 JHU defenseman and current JHU assistant coach).
CBS College Sports is available in the Syracuse area on Time Warner Cable’s digital sports tier (Ch. 242).