ITHACA, N.Y. – Being crowned undefeated national champions is something that most teams only dream of, but for the 1976 Cornell men's lacrosse team, it was reality. The already-decorated team can now add another honor to its list of accolades, being named the 2020 US Lacrosse men's Team of Distinction on Tuesday.

The award, which is given bi-annually to a men's and women's team, was started in 2016, making the Big Red only the third men's squad (1950 Johns Hopkins, 1965 Navy) to receive the honor. Primary criteria for the award include making a significant impact or contribution to the game of lacrosse, posting an extraordinary win streak, and winning a national or world championship.

Under the guidance of legendary head coach Richie Moran, the Big Red made history when it achieved perfection in 1976, becoming the first men's lacrosse team to remain unbeaten en route to becoming the NCAA champion. Cornell went 16-0 on the season and 6-0 in Ivy League play, starting a string of 42-straight victories for the Big Red from March 20, 1976 to May 20, 1978. The mark set an NCAA record for most consecutive wins, which still stands today.

"It was a remarkable group of men," said Moran. "We never talked about the undefeated season. We never talked about the winning streak. All we wanted to do was, each day, get on the field, practice, and enjoy each other's company."

The Big Red's roster was star-studded, with a program-high 10 players being named USILA All-Americans at the conclusion of the season. Among them were all-time greats Mike French '76 and the late Eamon McEneaney '77, who along with All-American Jon Levine '76, was the core of the Cornell attack. The trio was feared by many and made up the top-three point scorers in Big Red lacrosse history at the time.

French served as captain of the 1976 squad alongside William Marino '76 and the late Ted Marchell '76. A first team All-American, Marino was a menace on Cornell's midfield, setting the Ivy League record for goals scored by a midfielder during his time in a Big Red uniform. Marchell was a defensive stalwart, earning honorable mention All-America honors.

The depth on the 1976 Cornell roster was second-to-none, as Dan Mackesey '77, Bob Katz '78, Tom Marino '78, Bob Henrickson '78, and Steve Dybus '76 also earned All-America accolades. A first team All-American, Mackesey held the Big Red together like glue at goalie, playing an integral role in Cornell's championship run.

"This was a team that had great desire," said Moran. "They worked very hard every day. Practices were sometimes more testing than games themselves, and they made it game-like every day. They came to work, they came to be better, and they were exceptional leaders."

After winning its third-straight Ivy League Championship, Cornell entered the 1976 NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 overall seed. On the back of Mackesey's 14-0 shutout of No. 7 Washington & Lee (the first shutout in NCAA tournament history), the Big Red advanced to the National Semifinal for the third-straight year where it downed Johns Hopkins, 13-5, to move on to the National Championship.

The championship was a battle of the unbeatens, with Cornell taking on top-seeded and undefeated Maryland. For the first time in NCAA tournament history, two undefeated teams squared off in the championship game, and the matchup was highly anticipated.

After the Big Red came storming back from a 7-2 halftime deficit, the game had to be decided in overtime. The Terps struck first in the overtime period, but Cornell responded with four unanswered goals to win its second NCAA championship in program history with a 16-13 victory.

"Going into the final game against Maryland, we hadn't played in too many close games that year," said French. "We had one of those days where we came out slow, but just battled back and took control of the game. Thankfully, it wasn't sudden death overtime in those days because Maryland scored first."

French tied the then-NCAA tournament single game scoring record with seven goals and four assists in the championship victory. He went on to be named the Lt. Raymond Enners Award winner as the nation's most outstanding player, in addition to earning the Jack Turnball Award as the top attackman in the country. He finished the season with the Cornell scoring records for goals (65) and points (105), marks which both still stand today.

Mackesey matched the then-tournament record for saves in a single game with 28 stops, and his efforts were far from unnoticed. He won his first of what would end up being back-to-back Ensign C. Kelly, Jr. Awards, given to the top goalkeeper in the country.

While there would appear to be several key players in the Big Red's perfect season, when it comes down to it, every single man on that roster played a role in Cornell's national championship run, and it might just be the team's unity that took it to such great heights.

"Their concentration and being sincere for one another is something that is very difficult for me to put into words, but it comes back to the word 'love,'" said Moran. "Every step they took, they didn't take for their own gratification. They took it for their teammates, the Cornell fans, the Cornell students, the Cornell community, and the Cornell alumni."

"It was an unselfish team, and we wanted to get out in front in games because we wanted everyone on the roster to play," said French. "After we came off the field, we loved just hanging out together. We really had a very good locker room. It was a very cohesive team and we had a lot of fun. We still stay in contact with each other."

The 1976 Cornell men's lacrosse team was just the start of more great things to come for the Big Red, who would go on to win another undefeated national championship in 1977 and post a runner-up finish in 1978.

Today, six members of the 1976 squad – French, Henrickson, Christopher Kane '78, Mackesey, W. Marino, and McEneaney – as well as head coach Moran and assistant coach Mike Waldvogel find themselves in the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame. With the exception of Waldvogel, they have all been inducted into the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame as well, in addition to Levine, John Griffin '79, Katz, and T. Marino.