The University of Richmond stunned the college lacrosse world with a 13-10 victory over No. 8 seed North Carolina this past weekend, and the Spiders were rewarded with a quarterfinal game Saturday in Hempstead, New York, against No. 1 Cornell.

Maybe that will silence the Ohio State fans who were disappointed because the No. 4 Buckeyes had to play two-time defending champion Notre Dame in the first round and lost, 15-6. With the exception of No. 2 Maryland, the Big Ten has become the Little Ten again.

Regardless, it was a huge day for the Spiders, who won their first NCAA Tournament game. Richmond (15-3) has steadily climbed the rankings under coach Dan Chemotti, who has had 10 consecutive winning seasons. Can the Spiders pull another upset? Let’s break down each of the upcoming NCAA Tournament quarterfinal matchups, which take place Saturday and Sunday.Saturday’s games

No. 1 Cornell vs. Richmond: Against Cornell (15-1), Richmond will face the most explosive offense in the country, averaging 16.38 goals per game. The Spiders, though, will counter as one of two teams that finished in the top 10 in both offense and defense.

Richmond isn’t afraid of the Big Red.

The teams met March 2 in a game Cornell won, 12-11. In that contest, Cornell had to come from behind by outscoring Richmond, 4-1, in the fourth quarter. Big Red attackman CJ Kirst finished with three goals and an assist. Fellow attackman Michael Long had two goals in the final period.

Richmond can stay close, especially with attackman Aiden O’Neil and goalie Zach Vigue, but Cornell has a proud tradition on its side. The Big Red won national titles in 1971, 1976 and 1977 and has made five Final Four appearances since 2000. Plus, Kirst is the best shooter in the game with both strong right and left hands.

This moment might be too big for the Spiders, who have won nine straight, but they do have a reputation as giant killers. Richmond beat Virginia, 13-10, and Georgetown, 13-12, earlier this season.

Prediction: Cornell 15, Richmond 13

No. 3 Princeton vs. No. 6 Syracuse: The biggest lesson learned from Syracuse’s overtime 13-12 win against Harvard is to remain disciplined and not get baited into the Orange’s rough housing tactics.

That’s what happened to the Crimson, who squandered a six-goal halftime lead. The Orange were never out of the game, and Harvard coach Gerry Byrne seemed to lose control of his team in the final two quarters as Syracuse trailed, 11-6, entering the fourth.

The Orange scored five goals in 99 seconds to tie the game at 11 as Syracuse went 4-for-4 on man-up situations in the fourth period.

Princeton won’t be that out of control. The Tigers (13-3) pummeled Towson, 22-12, in the quarterfinals in a well-balanced offensive attack paced by Tucker Wade and Nate Kabiri, who each scored five goals.

If the Orange play that sloppily against Princeton, Syracuse could get embarrassed.

Prediction: Princeton 13, Syracuse 9

Sunday’s games

No. 2 Maryland vs. Georgetown: Maryland (12-3) is the No. 2 seed and the Terps, as expected, punished Air Force, 13-5, in a first-round win. It will be different against unseeded and neighboring Georgetown (12-4) in Annapolis on Sunday.

The Hoyas can play with any team and have outstanding attackmen in Carroll Aidan, Fulton Bayman and Jack Ranson. Maryland can score in bunches with an interchangeable attack of Branden Erksa and Eric Spanos, and they also have Daniel Kelly at attack (28 goals, nine assists).

But Maryland’s defense is too strong. The Terps have Will Schaller on close defense and two strong long-pole middies in Jack McDonald and AJ Larkin who run well, but can also ignite an offense on the opposite end of the field.

Aidan had a big game with six goals and two assists in the Hoyas’ 16-12 quarterfinal win against Duke, but Maryland coach John Tillman is good at making adjustments. The Blue Devils weren’t. They allowed Aidan to run free, matched against a short-pole middie for most of the game, and didn’t slide toward him after he wrecked Duke’s defense.

Tillman won’t allow that to happen. Georgetown can pull an upset if Maryland falls behind early and the Terps have to rely on their slow-down, pass-it-around offense.

Prediction: Maryland 10, Georgetown 8

No. 5 Penn State vs. Notre Dame: No team wants to play Notre Dame (9-4). Not only are the Fighting Irish two-time defending champs, but they might be peaking at the right time.

Go ask Ohio State.

Notre Dame brutalized the Buckeyes in the quarterfinals. As usual, the play was outstanding from Notre Dame attackmen Chris Kavanagh and Jake Taylor and midfielder Jordan Faison as the Fighting Irish became only the second team to score 15 goals against Ohio State this season.

The scary part for the rest of college lacrosse is that Notre Dame goalie Thomas Ricciardelli had a .714 save percentage and recorded 15 saves. Not only can the Fighting Irish outscore teams, but they simply outhustle most opponents when it comes to their ferocious ride.

Penn State (11-4) had a solid 13-11 win against Colgate in the opening round, but the Nittany Lions never seemed to find a consistent way to beat the Raiders’ zone defense.

Penn State could be competitive for a while with midfielder Matt Traynor and midfielder Hunter Aquino, but this game could get ugly.

Prediction: Notre Dame 15, Penn State 9

Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston @baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun.