1983 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament

The 1983 NCAA Division I lacrosse tournament was the 13th annual tournament hosted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to determine the team champion of men's college lacrosse among its Division I programs at the end of the 1983 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse season.

Syracuse defeated Johns Hopkins in the championship game, 17–16, to claim the Orangemen's first NCAA national title.

The final was played at Rutgers Stadium at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey.

Overview
In an exciting NCAA lacrosse finals, Syracuse capped off a 14-1 season with its first NCAA championship and fifth overall lacrosse title as they defeated Johns Hopkins, 17–16. The Orangemen, led by Brad Kotz and Tim Nelson, scored eight straight goals in less than nine minutes in the second half to clinch the title after Hopkins had gone up 12–5 midway through the third quarter.

Syracuse was seeded second and hosted the first round and semifinal games. The Orangemen beat Penn, the seventh-seed, 11–8 at Syracuse's J.S. Coyne Stadium. In the semifinals in the Carrier Dome, the Orangemen beat Maryland 12–5 behind Randy Lundblad’s one goal and four assists and Travis Solomon’s 22 saves.

In the finals, the Blue Jays had a 12–5 lead with less than seven minutes to play in the third period when the Orangemen rallied. Syracuse outscored the Blue Jays 4–1 to close out the third period and then added six straight goals in the fourth to go up 15–13. Hopkins tied the score at 15, but goals by Brad Kotz and Lundblad gave the Orangemen a two-goal cushion with Del Dressell scoring the final Hopkins goal. Tim Nelson had two goals and six assists in the finals, to finish as the tournament’s leading scorer with 15 points. Kotz scored five goals, all in the second half and was named Most Outstanding Player. Travis Solomon made 18 saves for the Orange.

Late in the third quarter, team captain and defenseman Darren Lawlor scored a key goal left-handed which provided a spark for the Orangemen. Overcoming a seven goal deficit against a Hopkins team participating in its seventh straight title game, Lawlor and the other Orangemen seniors provided the spark. But the offensive punch came primarily from sophomores, including midfielder Brad Kotz of West Genesee and Tim Nelson, the transfer from North Carolina State. Nelson's pass to Randy Lundblad for an open-net goal with 1:09 left locked up the title for the Orangemen.

For Hopkins, Dressel was outstanding exhibiting one on one skills on par with the Orangemen's most athletic players, finishing with three goals and one assist in the finals.

Syracuse and Johns Hopkins would go on to meet in the NCAA finals five more times, the last time in 2008. This was Hopkins' seventh straight NCAA final.

Tournament outstanding players

 * Brad Kotz, Syracuse (Named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player)