| Gender: | Women's |
| Year: | 1998 |
| Dates: | May 1998 |
| Teams: | 12 |
| Finalsfield: | UMBC Stadium |
| Finalscity: | Catonsville, MD |
| Titlecount: | 6th |
| Runnerup: | Virginia |
| Gamecount: | 4th |
| Mop: | Cathy Nelson |
| Mopteam: | Maryland |
| Attendfinals: | 6,080 |
The 1998 NCAA Division I Women's Lacrosse Championship was the 17th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of Division I NCAA women's college lacrosse. The championship game was played at UMBC Stadium in Catonsville, Maryland during May 1998.[1] All NCAA Division I women's lacrosse programs were eligible for this championship. This year, the tournament field expanded from 8 to 12 teams, the second consecutive expansion after increasing from 6 to 8 teams the previous year.
Maryland defeated Virginia, 11–5, to win their sixth and fourth consecutive, national championship. This would subsequently become the fourth of Maryland's record seven straight national titles (1995–2001).
The leading scorer for the tournament, with 15 goals, was Cathy Nelson from Maryland. Nelson was also the recipient of the Most Outstanding Player award, given out for the first time since 1984.
| Seed | School | Conference | Berth | Record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virginia | ACC | Automatic | 15-2 | |
| 2 | North Carolina | ACC | At-large | 14-2 | |
| 3 | Maryland | ACC | At-large | 15-3 | |
| 4 | Dartmouth | Ivy League | Automatic | 12-2 | |
| Duke | ACC | At-large | 10-6 | ||
| Georgetown | Independent | At-large | 9-6 | ||
| James Madison | CAA | At-large | 10-7 | ||
| Loyola (MD) | CAA | Automatic | 12-3 | ||
| Princeton | Ivy League | At-large | 11-4 | ||
| Temple | Independent | At-large | 13-4 | ||
| West Chester | Independent | At-large | 13-4 | ||
| William & Mary | CAA | At-large | 8-7 |