Women's Lacrosse Final Four Schedule is Another Slap in the Face to the Sport

Once again the women receive inequitable treatment compared to the men.

As if the scheduling for the women's lacrosse NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals was bad enough, it is even worse for the Final Four. The Final Four games are scheduled for Friday, May 28th. The first game between North Carolina and Boston College starts at 12:00 p.m. while the second game between Northwestern and Syracuse begins at 2:00 p.m. The men play at 12:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 29th. 

So while the men get the weekend for games, when more viewers are available to watch, the women are on a Friday. When more viewers are working or at school. Once again, the same round of the tournament, the women are on a weekday while the men get the weekend. 

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"WHY are the @NCAALAX women's final four games at 12pm & 2pm on a FRIDAY?" former Maryland lacrosse star Taylor Cummings posted on Twitter. "Kids are still in school & adults have work. Two of the best games all year long & the only way most will be able to watch is on replay. This year's tourney has been a MESS. These teams deserve so much more." 

This is a continuation of the same issue from the quarterfinals. The men's games were spaced out over two days with time between games to allow viewers to watch all four without missing part of another. The women's games were all scheduled on the same day, with each game beginning one hour after the start of the previous. That meant a fan that wanted to watch each game in its entirety could not. 

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This issue is not unique to lacrosse, either. Look back to the disparity between men's and women's "weight rooms" for their respective basketball NCAA Tournaments. Or the women’s golf regional that was cancelled even though the course was playable but not “playable at a championship level.” Whatever that means.

You could even look at the women's basketball ACC Tournament vs the men's. The first three rounds of the women's ACC Tournament were shown on ACC Network Xtra, which is less available and in some cases more difficult to find than the ACC Network. According to an ESPN Spokesperson, this was not the decision of ESPN or the ACC Network, but rather due to RSNs owning the rights to those rounds of the tournament. The ACC women's semifinals were broadcast on the ACC Network and Championship Game on ESPN2. 

The entire men's ACC Tournament, however, was on either the ACC Network or ESPN/ESPN2, and not ACC Network Xtra. There was no conflict between the two either, as they took place on different weeks. The ACC Network had programming such as a 2012 Duke vs North Carolina men's basketball game in the same time slot as some of the women's games that were streamed on ACC Network Xtra. 

Perhaps this is partially an issue with the negotiation of the broadcasting contracts in the first place. Perhaps there is some responsibility with the NCAA and with the networks. Either way, something needs to change in order for there to be equitable treatment regardless of gender.