The Kavanaghs have become a household name in the history of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse. Matt Kavanagh was the oldest of the three brothers who wore the Blue and Gold, playing a pivotal role on the first Notre Dame team to make a National Championship, despite ultimately falling just short against Duke. In three years at Notre Dame, Matt was a three-time United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) All-America honoree, a three-time all-conference selection and a two-time Tewaaraton Award nominee, handed out to the best player in college lacrosse. He played in all 49 games, including 48 starts and 175 points on 101 goals and 74 assists.
Younger brother Pat led Notre Dame to its first national championship before going back-to-back in his fifth season. That year, he became the first player in program history to win the Tewaaraton Award and set the record for points (301) and assists (184) in a career. The youngest of six siblings, Chris Kavanagh, now continues the storied legacy left behind by his brothers in his senior season. After Pat graduated at the end of 2024, Chris would play his first season without his brother alongside him in attack. With that came a whole new set of responsibilities and the same lofty expectations.
Notre Dame is looking to become one of the few programs in college lacrosse history to pull off a three-peat. Despite the departures of Pat and legendary netminder Liam Entenmann, among several other key contributors from the back-to-back title teams, the Irish have stayed in contention with the nation’s best. While far from the dominant presence they were last season, head coach Kevin Corrigan’s group is as dangerous as any in May. They proved that fact in their opening round rout of No. 4 seed Ohio State, getting revenge for their regular season loss to the Buckeyes back in early March. Going on the road as the lower seed, the Irish controlled the game from wire-to-wire en route to a 15-6 win, keeping their hopes of another title alive.
“You kind of have to get back to campus and hit the reset button,” Chris said. “Each year is a new team with new goals … you have your own journey, your own path.”
Last year’s group was untouchable after an early loss to Georgetown. On the road to their second championship, few if any questioned that they were the best team in the nation. This season has been a different story. The Irish have lost four games in 2025, including two against conference opponents Syracuse, one of which knocked them out of the ACC Tournament. Left out of the top eight seeds in the NCAA Tournament, this year’s Notre Dame team profiles more as a sleeping giant.
“This year, I don’t know if we are the best team, but we’re still in the count,” Chris said. ”Anything can happen in May.”
One could question a group’s hunger after winning two in a row: is there the same drive to win after having won so much? The answer for Chris is a resounding yes.
“There are 12 freshmen and one grad student who don’t know what the feeling of winning is like, so that’s why we put on our helmet and jersey every day, to make sure those guys have the feeling we had,” Chris said. “I think the fire is still there.”
Chris has been the offensive catalyst all season. Through 12 games, the Tewaaraton finalist has led the team in every offensive category, tallying 56 points on 33 goals and 23 assists. The reigning NCAA Player of the Tournament, he also possesses the clutch gene, managing a point output of four or better in four top-10 matchups this season. Before the season, however, many raised questions about how he would fare without his brother alongside him.
“Not having Pat was a pretty big change for me,” Chris said. “In order to be successful, you've got to overcome challenges. I think I’ve done a good job of playing without Pat, and a lot of people doubted me on that.”
Previously playing on wing while his brother Pat manned the point, Chris was thrust into a new role as the primary initiator of offense.
“I was carrying the ball a lot throughout my life,” Chris said. “Not having Pat was a tough transition, because I took a step away from that spot for a couple of years, working off-ball, and then I was put back in the limelight. It was a good transition for me. I had to get my feet back under myself and learn a couple of things that I haven’t been doing for a while in terms of clock management and holding on to the ball in certain situations.”
The transition forced him to expand his game. He had already more than proven himself to be a deadly scorer, entering this year’s postseason with the second-most career goals (145) in the Notre Dame record books. However, with the ball in his hands much more, the senior has added layers to his game as a creator and game manager for the Irish attack.
Beyond his increased responsibilities on the field, Chris has also taken on several responsibilities off of it. Stepping into a key role as one of two team captains, this young Notre Dame team now looks to Chris for his leadership as much as his in-game production.
“It’s one of the greatest honors of my life,” Chris said. “As a young kid, you don’t see the bigger picture until you are an older kid and have gone through a couple of years being coached by Coach Corrigan … I think this year has been a really big stepping stone for me personally. I kind of knew coming in, we had a lot of seniors leaving, so we had to step up as a senior class.”
Chris had multiple years to learn from his older brother, who served in his current role during the two seasons before him. With those years under his belt, Chris felt prepared to step up in his brother’s place.
“It’s been a big jump, but I think I’ve settled into the role,” he said.
Being the youngest of six siblings, all five of them elite athletes and two of them Notre Dame lacrosse legends, comes with weighty expectations. Chris’s 2025 season will be the final chapter in a long story of Kavanagh collegiate athletics. But along with these expectations have come immense support which has pushed Chris to be great.
“When you grow up as the youngest of six, you can’t get away with anything but having success,” Chris described. “Throughout my entire life, that’s been my goal: to make them proud. In any situation I’ve been put in, they’ve always had my back and pushed me hard. Honestly, I wouldn’t be here without my family.”
It’s safe to say he has done just that. No matter the outcome of this postseason, Chris will go down as a Notre Dame lacrosse legend. However, leading his team to a three-peat would put him on another level.
“It’s being a part of something greater than yourself, it’s being a part of history,” he said.
