Midfielder Tom Schreiber led Princeton in scoring for a third consecutive season, tallying a team-best 32 assists and 60 points. A junior from East Meadow, N.Y., Schreiber earned his third first-team All-Ivy League selection and recorded at least three points in every contest this season, ranking second and third in the Ivy League in assists (2.13) and points (4.00) per game, respectively.

The first Native American to be named a Tewaaraton Award finalist, Albany sophomore midfielder Lyle Thompson leads the nation in points (108) and assists (62) per game. A member of the Onondaga Nation, he was named America East Player of the Year, first-team All-America East and the America East Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Thompson’s 108 points this season rank third in NCAA men’s Division I history, trailing all-time leader Steve Marohl (1992) by six points.

Brief bios of the women’s finalists:

A senior attacker from Sterling, Va., Maryland’s Alex Aust has recorded a team-high 60 goals and 48 assists this season. Her 108 points and 5.68 points per game both rank second nationally. Aust earned her second All-ACC selection and was named to the ACC All-Tournament Team en route to leading the undefeated Terrapins to the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Versatile midfielder Kara Cannizzarro led North Carolina in goals (45), points (60) and caused turnovers (25), while ranking second on the team in groundballs (28) during the regular season. A senior midfielder from Cazenovia, N.Y., Cannizzaro earned her second All-ACC selection and was named to the ACC All- Tournament Team.

Syracuse junior Alyssa Murray ranks among the nation’s Top 10 in goals (56), points (90) and points per game (4.74). Murray, an attacker from West Babylon, N.Y., earned Big East Attack Player of the Year honors, was a unanimous selection to the All-Big East First Team and was a Big East All-Tournament team selection. She currently sits in the Orange’s top five in career goals, assists and points.

Mikey Meagher, the ALC Goalie of the Year, leads a Florida defense that ranks second in the nation, allowing just 6.58 goals per game. Her 6.61 goals against average is second-best nationally, and she ranks fifth in save percentage. A senior from Liverpool, N.Y., Meagher has registered 104 saves on the season and has posted a record of 47-8 in her four years as a Gator.

The reigning Tewaaraton Award winner, Maryland’s Katie Schwarzmann earned her second straight ACC Offensive Player of the Year and ACC Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors this year. A four- time All-ACC performer, the senior from Sykesville, Md., enters the postseason with 74 points (51 goals, 23 assists), ranking second on the Terrapins. Schwarzmann, a member of the 2013 U.S. Women’s National Team, also has tallied a team-leading 33 groundballs and 16 caused turnovers.

Media credentials are available for the Tewaaraton Award Ceremony in the News and Press section of www.tewaaraton.com. Credential requests are due by Tuesday, May 28.

For more information on the Tewaaraton Award or to attend the ceremony, visit www.tewaaraton.com. Like and follow The Tewaaraton Foundation at www.facebook.com/tewaaraton and www.twitter.com/tewaaraton, respectively.

About The Tewaaraton Foundation

First presented in 2001, the Tewaaraton Award is recognized as the preeminent lacrosse award, annually honoring the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. Endorsed by the Mohawk Nation Council of Elders and US Lacrosse, the Tewaaraton Award symbolizes lacrosse’s centuries-old roots in Native American heritage. The Tewaaraton Foundation ensures the integrity and advances the mission of this award. Each year, the Tewaaraton Award celebrates one of the six tribal nations of the Iroquois Confederacy – the Mohawk, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora – and presents

scholarships to two students of Iroquois descent. To learn more about The Tewaaraton Foundation, visit www.tewaaraton.com.

TEWAARATON AWARD NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

WASHINGTON, April 26, 2013 – The Tewaaraton Foundation has announced the 2013 Tewaaraton Award men’s and women’s nominees, presented by Panama Jack. Twenty-five women and 25 men were selected as nominees, from which the 13th annual Tewaaraton Award 10 finalists (5 women, 5 men) will be selected and honored May 30, 2013, at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

The men’s award nominees include players from 20 schools, including 2012 winner Peter Baum (Colgate) and representatives from 16 of the current Top 20 teams in the April 22 USILA Men’s Division I Poll. Five schools had two players nominated, including Albany (Lyle Thompson, Ty Thompson), Cornell (Steve Mock, 2011 finalist Rob Pannell), Loyola (Scott Ratliff, 2012 finalist Mike Sawyer), Maryland (Niko Amato, Jesse Bernhardt) and Syracuse (JoJo Marasco, Brian Megill).

Each year, the Tewaaraton Award celebrates one of the six tribal nations of the Iroquois Confederacy – the Mohawk, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora. This is The Year of the Mohawk and the men’s nominees include a member of the Akwesasne Mohawk Nation in Ty Thompson and a member of the Onondaga Nation in his cousin Lyle Thompson.

Men’s nominees are as follows:
Niko Amato, Maryland – Jr., GK
Peter Baum, Colgate – Sr., A
Jesse Bernhardt, Maryland – Sr., LSM
David DiMaria, Lehigh – Sr., A
Tucker Durkin, Johns Hopkins – Sr., D
John Glesener, Army – Soph., A/M
Marcus Holman, North Carolina – Sr., A
Austin Kaut, Penn State – Jr., GK
John Kemp, Notre Dame – Sr., GK
Eric Law, Denver – Sr., A
Brandon Mangan, Yale – Jr., A
JoJo Marasco, Syracuse – Sr., M
Kieran McArdle, St. John’s – Jr., A
Brian Megill, Syracuse – Sr., D
Steve Mock, Cornell – Sr., A
Rob Pannell, Cornell – Sr., A
Mason Poli, Bryant – Sr., LSM
Scott Ratliff, Loyola – Sr., LSM
Mike Sawyer, Loyola – Sr., A
Tom Schreiber, Princeton – Jr., M
Logan Schuss, Ohio State – Sr., A
Lyle Thompson, Albany – Soph., A
Ty Thompson, Albany – Jr., A
Dillon Ward, Bellarmine – Sr., GK
Jordan Wolf, Duke – Jr., A

The women’s award nominees include players from 16 schools, including 2012 winner Katie Schwarzmann (Maryland) and representatives from 13 of the current Top 20 teams in the April 22 IWLCA Division I Poll. Florida (Kitty Cullen, 2012 finalist Brittany Dashiell, Shannon Gilroy, Mikey Meagher) and Maryland (Alex Aust, Iliana Sanza, Schwarzmann) and Syracuse (Becca Block, Alyssa Murray, 2012 finalist Michelle Tumolo) lead all schools with four, three and three nominees respectively.

Women’s nominees are as follows:
Casey Ancarrow, James Madison – Sr., A
Alex Aust, Maryland – Sr., A
Becca Block, Syracuse – Sr., D
Kara Cannizzaro, North Carolina – Sr., M
Demmianne Cook, Stony Brook – Sr., M
Kitty Cullen, Florida – Sr., A
Taylor D’Amore, Johns Hopkins – Jr., A
Brittany Dashiell, Florida – Sr., M
Jasmine DePompeo, Navy – Sr., A
Danielle Etrasco, Boston University – Sr., A
Erin Fitzgerald, Northwestern – Sr., A
Shannon Gilroy, Florida – Soph., M
Kerrin Maurer, Duke – Soph., A
Maggie McCormick, Penn State – Soph., A
Mikey Meagher, Florida – Sr., GK
Alyssa Murray, Syracuse – Jr., A
Marlee Paton, Loyola – Jr., M
Mikaela Rix, Boston College – Soph., M
Iliana Sanza, Maryland – Sr., D
Katie Schwarzmann, Maryland – Sr., M
Barbara Sullivan, Notre Dame – Soph., D
Caroline Tarzian, Georgetown – Soph., A
Taylor Thornton, Northwestern – Sr., M
Michelle Tumolo, Syracuse – Sr., A
Taylor Virden, Duke – Jr., D

Five men’s and five women’s finalists will be announced May 9 and invited to the Tewaaraton Award Ceremony. The original men’s and women’s watch lists were announced Feb. 22, with additions made March 14 and April 11, and were ultimately comprised of 97 men’s players and 62 women’s players. Two of the men’s nominees were added in this round – Eric Law (Denver) and Dillon Ward (Bellarmine). The selection committees are comprised of 12 men’s and 10 women’s current and former coaches.

“We congratulate these 50 elite student-athletes on their remarkable accomplishments thus far this season,” said Jeff Harvey, chairman of the Tewaaraton Foundation. “With the help of our selection committees, we look forward to announcing this year’s finalists next month.”

For more information on the Tewaaraton Award, please visit www.tewaaraton.com. Like and follow The
Tewaaraton Foundation at www.facebook.com/Tewaaraton and www.twitter.com/tewaaraton.

About The Tewaaraton Foundation
First presented in 2001, the Tewaaraton Award is recognized as the pre-eminent lacrosse award, annually honoring the top male and female college lacrosse players in the United States. Endorsed by the Mohawk Nation Council of Elders and U.S. Lacrosse, the Tewaaraton Award symbolizes lacrosse’s centuries-old roots in Native American heritage. The Tewaaraton Foundation ensures the integrity and advances the mission of this award. Each year, the Tewaaraton Award celebrates one of the six tribal nations of the Iroquois Confederacy – the Mohawk, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora – and presents two scholarships to students of Native American descent. To learn more about The Tewaaraton Foundation, please visit www.tewaaraton.com.

WASHINGTON, DC — Johns Hopkins senior defenseman Tucker Durkin is one of 25 men’s lacrosse players named a Tewaaraton nominee today. From the 25, the Tewaaraton selection committee will select five finalists; the finalists will attend the foundation’s award ceremony on May 30 with the 13th annual recipient announced that night.

Johns Hopkins also produced one of the 25 women’s nominees as junior attacker Taylor D’Amore was also named.

Durkin is one of just two close defensemen among the 25 men’s nominees. He is the leader of a Johns Hopkins defense that currently ranks ninth in the nation in scoring defense (8.08 goals/game). He counts 24 ground balls and 15 caused turnovers to his credit and has routinely drawn the assignment of marking the opposition’s top attackman.

A starter in all 58 games he has played in during his career, Durkin has 119 ground balls and a school-record 64 career turnovers.

Durkin earned Second Team All-America honors as a sophomore and first team honors as a junior last season, when he also won the Schmeisser Award as the nation’s top defenseman.

Johns Hopkins is currently 8-4 and will host seventh-ranked Loyola on Saturday, April 27 at 2 pm.

Paton, Ratliff, Sawyer Named Tewaaraton Candidates

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Three Loyola University Maryland lacrosse players – junior Marlee Paton of the women’s team and seniors Scott Ratliff and Mike Sawyer from the men’s side – were named candidates for their respective Tewaaraton Awards, an honor that recognized the best men’s and women’s players in collegiate lacrosse.

The Tewaaraton Foundation announced Friday night 25 men’s and 25 women’s nominees for the awards.

All three are repeat nominees after also being up for the award last season. Sawyer was one later one of five finalists on the men’s side.

Loyola is one of six schools to have players nominated for both the men’s and women’s awards, joining Johns Hopkins, Maryland, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Penn State and Syracuse. Loyola is also one of five men’s teams to have two players on the list, along with Albany, Cornell, Maryland and Syracuse.

Paton, an Inside Lacrosse Women Preseason All-American and unanimous preseason All-BIG EAST pick, leads the Greyhounds with 46 points this year on a team-best 28 goals and 18 assists. She also has 31 ground balls, 22 draw controls and 21 caused turnovers.

A 2012 IWLCA first-team All-American and the BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year, the Seaholme, Australia native recently cracked into Loyola’s top-10 program records for career points, currently sitting ninth with 184. She is also just the ninth Greyhound in program history to notch both 100 goals and 50 assists and only the second player to reach those numbers in their junior season.

Ratliff and Sawyer have helped the Greyhounds men’s team to a 10-3 record heading into Saturday’s regular-season finale at Johns Hopkins.

Sawyer has continued to be one of the top attack players in the nation this season after earning USILA All-America Second Team honors and finishing as a finalist for the 2012 Tewaaraton. This season, he has scored 27 goals and has 33 points through 11 games for the Greyhounds.

In each of his last two contests – against the Denver and Hobart–  the senior from Waxhaw, N.C., has scored four goals and assisted on two, season-highs in both categories. He is tied for the lead in the ECAC Lacrosse League with 2.83 goals per game in conference games.

After earning USILA All-America Third Team honors a year ago as a long-stick midfielder, Ratliff has continued to be one of the best at his position. He leads the Greyhounds in both ground balls (64) and caused turnovers (29), and with 88 career caused turnovers, he is two away from tying the school career record set by P.T. Ricci.

Ratliff has continued to be a scoring threat in both transition and settled offense for the Greyhounds. This season, he has set a school record for single-season goals by a long-pole player, scoring 13 to increase his record from a year ago by one. Earlier this year against Fairfield, he became what is thought to be the first player in modern lacrosse history to score four goals in a game with a long-stick. He also has assisted on four goals this season, and in his four-year career, he has scored 29 goals and assisted on 14.

The 13^th-annual Tewaaraton Award winners will be announced on Thursday, May 30, at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senior goalkeeper Andrew Wascavage and junior attackman Thomas DeNapoli of the Towson University men’s lacrosse team were named to the Tewaaraton Trophy Watch List on Fiday. The Tewaaraton Trophy is presented annually to the top men’s and women’s lacrosse players in the nation.

“It’s exciting to see Thomas and Andrew be on the watch list for the Tewarraton Award,” said head coach Shawn Nadelen. “Both young men have had great production through their years at Towson, and we are looking for them to have an exceptional season this year.

“Thomas continues to improve his game each day and is finding out what it is like to draw the opposition’s best defenseman every game. Andrew has the ability to take over a game from the cage.”

Wascavage moved into a starting role last season and finished 2012 with a goals-against average (GAA) of 9.57, a save percentage of .564, 29 ground balls and six caused turnovers. So far this season, he has started all three games and has a GAA of 11.67 and a .493 save percentage. DeNapoli had his most productive year of his career last season, scoring 15 goals and posting 13 assists for a team-leading 28 points. Against No. 2 Loyola on February 20, 2013, he notched a career-best four goals.

The selection committees are made up of top collegiate coaches and are appointed annually by The Tewaaraton Foundation. Committees will make additions to these lists as the season progresses and athletes earn a spot along side these elite players. Both lists will be narrowed to 25 men’s and women’s nominees in late April.

In mid-May, five men’s and five women’s finalists will be announced. These finalists will be invited to Washington, D.C. for the 13th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony, May 30 at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian.

Four Greyhounds Named To Tewaaraton Award Watch List

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Loyola University Maryland men’s and women’s lacrosse teams had four Greyhounds named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List, as announced by the Tewaaraton Foundation Friday. Seniors Scott Ratliff and Mike Sawyer, in addition to junior Joe Fletcher were included on the men’s watch list, while junior Marlee Paton was selected to the women’s watch list.

The Tewaaraton Award annually honors the top male and top female college lacrosse player in the United States. The selection committees are made up of top collegiate coaches and are appointed annually by The Tewaaraton Foundation. Committees will make additions to these lists as the season progresses and athletes earn a spot along side these elite players. Both lists will be narrowed to 25 men’s and women’s nominees in late April. In mid-May, five men’s and five women’s finalists will be announced. These finalists will be invited to Washington, D.C. for the 13th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony, May 30 at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian.

Sawyer, a Preseason USILA All-America Second Team selection after earning the same honor following last year, was a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award season when he scored 52 goals and assisted on 10 more and was named the team’s Offensive Most Valuable Player. During the regular-season, he led the ECAC in goals and goals per game while earning All-ECAC First Team honors. He became the second player to score 50 or more goals in a season and was joined by a third on last year’s team. Sawyer was a first-round draft pick, eighth overall, by his hometown Charlotte Hounds in the 2013 Major League Lacrosse draft.

Paton was a top-25 Tewaaraton Award Nominee last year on the women’s side. An IWLCA first-team All-American and the BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year in 2012, Paton finished her sophomore campaign with 90 points, the second-best single-season total in program history, scoring 54 goals to go with 36 assists. An ILWomen Preseason All-American this year and a Preseason All-BIG EAST selection, Paton led the BIG EAST with 48 points in league play last year and was recently named to the Australian National Team that will compete for the 2013 World Cup this summer.

Fletcher returns as an anchor for the Greyhounds’ defense. Before the 2013 season, he was named to the Preseason All-America First Team. In his first year as a starter, Fletcher was named to the NCAA and ECAC Championships All-Tournament Teams and earned a reputation as one of the top defenders in the nation. In 19 games as a sophomore, Fletcher caused 26 turnovers, second most on the team, and had 41 ground balls.

Ratliff continued to be one of the top long-stick midfielders in the nation and set a Loyola scoring record for the position last year. This year, he was tabbed a Preseason All-America Second Team member and was on the USILA Third Team last season when he finished with 12 goals and seven assists, exceeding current Loyola Assistant Coach Matt Dwan’s previous record for a long-stick midfielder set in 1995. In addition to his scoring, he tallied 88 ground balls and 37 caused turnovers while earning ECAC Defensive Player of the Year, ECAC Championships Most Valuable Player, NCAA All-Tournament Team and team co-defensive player of the year honors. Ratliff was the first pick of the second round, ninth overall, by the Boston Cannons in the 2013 Major League Lacrosse draft.

The Loyola men’s and women’s lacrosse teams will be in action this weekend as they host a doubleheader at Ridley Athletic Complex on Saturday. The 10th-ranked women will take on No. 9 Penn State at 11 a.m., followed by a rematch of the 2012 NCAA Championship game between No. 2 Loyola and No. 1 Maryland at 1:30 p.m. The men’s game will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Tewaaraton Foundation has named former Johns Hopkins University lacrosse star and U.S. Lacrosse National Hall of Famer Joe Cowan as the recipient of the third annual Tewaaraton Legends Award, presented by LaxRags.

“Joe Cowan is a natural selection for the third Tewaaraton Legends Award,” said Jeff Harvey, Chairman of The Tewaaraton Foundation. “He was an outstanding player during a championship era at Johns Hopkins and, just as importantly, he has always been loyal to his alma mater and the game of lacrosse.”

Cowan’s illustrious lacrosse career began at Friends School in Baltimore, where he was a standout midfielder. In 1963, he helped the team win the Maryland Scholastic Association Championship.

Cowan did not stray far from home for his collegiate career at Johns Hopkins. He played on three consecutive USILA championship lacrosse teams (1967-69) and was also a standout on the football team. As a lacrosse player, Cowan earned first team All-America honors in each of Johns Hopkins three national championship seasons, and in 1968 and 1969 received the prestigious Turnbull Award as the nation’s outstanding attackman. In 1969, he was also the first recipient of the Enners Award, given to the nation’s most outstanding player. He was selected to play in the annual North/South game in 1969. As a football player, Cowan was drafted by the NFL’s Baltimore Colts.

Cowan stayed at Johns Hopkins for 14 years as an assistant coach, working with 2013 Spirit of Tewaaraton Recipient Bob Scott. Cowan played for the Mt. Washington Lacrosse Club in 1970-71 and also served on the Board of Directors of the Lacrosse Foundation, one of the predecessor organizations to US Lacrosse.

The Tewaaraton Legends Award annually honors one recipient who played college lacrosse prior to 2001, the first year in which the Tewaaraton Award was presented. Recipients are chosen on the basis that their collegiate performance would have earned them a Tewaaraton Award, had the award existed when they played. The previous two Legends Award winners were Syracuse’s Jim Brown (2011) and Cornell’s Eamon McEneaney (2012).

WASHINGTON, May 31, 2012 – The Tewaaraton Foundation has announced Peter Baum of Colgate University and Katie Schwarzmann of the University of Maryland as the winners of the 12th annual Tewaaraton Award, presented Thursday at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. The Tewaaraton Award annually honors the top male and top female college lacrosse players in the United States.

Colgate didn’t enter the season on the national radar, but Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year Peter Baum ensured the Raiders quickly emerged as contenders. Baum took off after an early-season move to attack and terrorized defenses with his hybrid style. The nation’s scoring leader broke eight school and conference records and led Colgate’s second-ranked offense to a school-record 14 wins and its first-ever NCAA tournament victory.

The Portland, Ore., native is the first men’s Tewaaraton finalist and winner from west of the Mississippi, and the first in Colgate history. The junior ended the season with 97 points (67 g, 30 a), tying Duke’s Matt Danowski (2008) for the most ever by a men’s Tewaaraton finalist.

The winner of the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Lt. Raymond J. Enners Award for Outstanding Player of the Year, Baum was also named to the USILA All-America first team and earned All-Patriot League, All-Patriot League Tournament (tournament-record 18 points) and Academic All-Patriot League honors. His 5.39 points per game and 3.72 goals per game both led the country.

Baum currently ranks second in Colgate and Patriot League history with 130 career goals and fifth in program history with 176 career points. His 67 goals and 97 points this season rank sixth and 13th all-time in NCAA history. He is the first Patriot League representative and the seventh attackman to receive the men’s Tewaaraton Award.

A returning finalist in her junior season, Katie Schwarzmann continued to make her mark in Maryland’s record book. The ACC Offensive Player of the Year was a threat between the lines and ruled the fast break. Schwarzmann finished 2012 first in the ACC and second nationally in goals (72), while ranking second on the Terrapins in points (94), ground balls (31), draw controls (52) and caused turnovers (17).

A three-time Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) All-American and three-time All-ACC performer, Schwarzmann was a member of the 2011-12 U.S. women’s national team. The Sykesville, Md., native joins Jen Adams (2001) and Caitlyn McFadden (2010) as the Terps’ Tewaaraton winners.

Schwarzmann scored in every game this season and boasted eight games with five or more points. Her 72 goals ranked fifth in Maryland single-season history. The ACC Championship Most Valuable Player tallied a tournament-record 11 goals in three games while leading the Terrapins to a fourth straight ACC crown. She was also named to the NCAA Championship All-Tournament team.

Schwarzmann is the fifth women’s Tewaaraton winner in ACC history, the third women’s winner from the state of Maryland and the eighth midfielder to receive the Tewaaraton award on the women’s side.

“Every year, there are 10 worthy candidates and it is a credit to Peter and Katie that they have been recognized as the most outstanding players this year,” said Jeffrey Harvey, chairman of The Tewaaraton Foundation. “We are thrilled to have them join this elite list of those who have received the Tewaaraton Award.”

The five men’s finalists were Baum, Duke University midfielder CJ Costabile, University of Massachusetts attackman Will Manny, Loyola University attackman Mike Sawyer and University of Virginia attackman Steele Stanwick.

The five women’s finalists were Schwarzmann, University of Florida midfielder Brittany Dashiell, University of North Carolina attacker Becky Lynch, Northwestern University midfielder Taylor Thornton and Syracuse University attacker Michelle Tumolo.

Finalists were selected from a pool of 25 men’s and 25 women’s nominees. The selection committees are comprised of 12 men’s and 10 women’s current and former college coaches.

For more information on the Tewaaraton Award, visit www.tewaaraton.com. Like and follow The Tewaaraton Foundation at www.facebook.com/tewaaraton and www.twitter.com/tewaaraton.

About The Tewaaraton Foundation

First presented in 2001 at the University Club of Washington DC, the Tewaaraton Award is recognized as the pre-eminent lacrosse award, annually honoring the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. Endorsed by the Mohawk Nation Council of Elders and US Lacrosse, the Tewaaraton Award symbolizes lacrosse’s centuries-old roots in Native American heritage. The Tewaaraton Foundation ensures the integrity and advances the mission of this award. Each year, the Tewaaraton Award celebrates one of the six tribal nations of the Iroquois Confederacy – the Mohawk, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora – and presents two scholarships to students of Iroquois descent. To learn more about The Tewaaraton Foundation, visit www.tewaaraton.com.

It’s a particular shame Monday’s NCAA lacrosse Championship Game was in Foxborough instead of right here at M&T Bank Stadium. It would have been a special celebration of a beloved game in Charm City.

Instead, Memorial Day became a special celebration of a deserving champion at Gillette Stadium.

I was at Ridley Athletic Complex Saturday, March 10 to see the Loyola University Maryland Greyhounds face the Duke Blue Devils. The Hounds had gotten off to a nice 4-0 start at that point in the season, reaching double digit goals in every game and holding their opponent to single digits in every game as well.

The issue at that point was the competition. Home wins over Delaware and Towson and road victories at Bellarmine and Michigan did little to convince anyone the Greyhounds were on the cusp of a breakthrough campaign.

It changed that day.

Star attackman and eventual Tewaaraton Award finalist Mike Sawyer put on an absolute clinic for Charley Toomey’s team, scoring six goals and leading the Hounds to a 13-8 win over the Devils. The Hounds were actually ranked ahead of the Devils in one of the recognized college lacrosse polls, but the victory still had the feel of an upset, as Duke was viewed as a legitimate national title contender.

From the opening whistle, it was apparent the Hounds were the more focused, determined squad. The 13-8 final didn’t even necessarily reflect the nature of the game, as Loyola held a 12-5 advantage after three quarters and appeared to let up late. The win came just after Toomey installed Jack Runkel as his starting goalie ahead of Michael Bonitatibus, a move that he would not have to reconsider at all the rest of the season.

On that day at Ridley Athletic Complex, the Loyola Greyhounds became more than just a team with a capable combination of scorers (Sawyer and graduate student Eric Lusby). They became more than just a fun team to watch. They became a legitimate threat to make a run to the Final Four.

Two and a half months later, they found themselves there. It wasn’t a fluke. It wasn’t a run of good fortune. It wasn’t about bad luck for other teams. It wasn’t about an easy schedule.

This Loyola team proved that for the 2012 NCAA lacrosse season, they were unquestionably the best team in the country.

In Monday’s NCAA Championship Game, the Hounds dominated the University of Maryland in a way that perfectly encapsulated their entire season. They showed an incredible ability to score goals at times, but also showed that their midfield unit was as capable as their attack. Their wings battled for balls when face-offs appeared to be lost. Their defense was SUFFOCATING, preventing even a single goal from Maryland for a stretch of more than two and a half quarters, stifling a unit that had tallied 16 just two days prior against those same Duke Blue Devils. On top of all of that, Runkel was spectacular for a second straight game.

They left no doubt not only about who was the best team on Memorial Day Monday, but who was the best team in the country. They were a deserving #1 seed and they worked to become a deserving national champion.

A deserving national champion that didn’t play a single game on television until the postseason.

They lost just one game along the way, an overtime heartbreaker to a fine Johns Hopkins squad. They won THREE games over ECAC rival Denver University, two of those wins coming in the Mile High City. They recorded a win over every team that reached Memorial Day weekend.

Lusby and Sawyer now have name recognition, but the work of Runkel, Scott Ratliff, Chris Layne, Josh Hawkins, Pat Byrnes, Davis Butts, Justin Ward, Joe Fletcher, Nikko Pontrello, Patrick Fanshaw, Kevin Ryan, Phil Dobson, Sean O’Sullivan, Dylan Grimm, Pat Laconi, Kevin Moriarty and J.P. Dalton were deserving of having their names typed in a column like this as well.

Loyola becomes the smallest school to ever win a national championship in lacrosse. The title is the first and only Division 1 title in any sport for the school. The team was unranked before the season started. Toomey was able to accomplish the feat after being on the losing end as a goalie in the school’s only ever run to the National Championship Game back in 1990. Lusby broke the record for most goals in a single NCAA Tournament in the process.

The word amazing keeps coming to mind.

The title drought continues for the Terrapins, as they have not held the trophy since 1974. John Tillman has been to the title game twice in his two seasons in College Park, but the inability to win the big one will now already become a topic of conversation for the Terps’ alumni and fan base. They were a remarkably young team this season and will likely be right back in the title picture a year from now. It won’t help the sting of a Championship Game loss, but they showed many signs of being a team on the verge of greatness.

Loyola however was the definition of greatness. They were exceptional. And perhaps they even earned a measure of revenge for the city of Baltimore on the field where the Ravens saw their season end months earlier in the AFC Championship Game.

Eh…they were the best lacrosse team in the country. We’ll be more than happy to have that in Charm City.

-G

Game Data

Loyola University Maryland will play for the NCAA Championship for the third time in the school’s 73 seasons of lacrosse history when it takes on the University of Maryland at 1 p.m. on Monday, May 28.

Despite just 30.67 miles (as the crow flies according to DaftLogic.com) separating the campuses, the game will be played 338 miles from Loyola’s campus at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

On The Tube, Web And Radio

The game will be broadcast live on ESPN with Eamon McAnaney and Quint Kessenich calling the action. Paul Carcaterra will be the sideline analyst.

The action can also be seen worldwide on ESPN3, the broadband arm of the ESPN, and on the WatchESPN app on mobile devices.

Westwood One Sports/Dial Global will provide the NCAA Radio Network broadcast of the Championships with Dave Ryan on the play-by-play and Steve Panarelli on analysis. It can be heard on Sirius/XM 91 worldwide. A complete list of stations can be found at dialglobalsports.com.

Series History

Loyola and Maryland will meet for the 21st time in series history – the Terrapins hold an 18-2 lead in the previous 20 games – and the second time in NCAA Championships play. (complete list of games on page six of notes)

The teams have not squared off since Maryland won a 19-8 decision on May 23, 1998, in the NCAA Semifinals at Rutgers University. Monday’s game will be just the third meeting of the teams since 1989 and the third since Loyola joined NCAA Division I in 1982.

Loyola won the initial meeting between the schools, 17-6, on April 6, 1940, but the Terrapins then won 17 in a row before the Greyhounds scored a 10-8 victory on March 19, 1989.

NCAA Championships History

Loyola is making its 20th all-time appearance in the NCAA Championships, 18th at the Division I level. The Greyhounds are 11-19 all-time in Championships play, 11-17 at the Division I level.

Monday’s game will be Loyola third appearance in an NCAA Championship Game and second at the Division I level.

Loyola, with current Head Coach Charley Toomey as the team co-captain and goalkeeper, last played in the title game on May 28, 1990, when Syracuse defeated the Greyhounds, 21-9.

The Greyhounds also took part in the NCAA Division II-III Championship Game on May 17, 1981, when it lost to Adelphi, 17-14.

As an institution, Loyola has won one national title, the 1976 NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer crown.

Five, Twice In A Row

Eric Lusby scored five goals in the NCAA Semifinal against Notre Dame, duplicating a performance he had in the Quarterfinal round against Denver. Lusby is the first Loyola player to score five in consecutive games since Mike Sawyer did it against Bellarmine (March 5) and Duke (March 11) during the 2011 season.

Lusby’s Tournament

Eric Lusby is thus far the leading scorer in this year’s NCAA Tournament, tallying 13 goals and five assists for 18 points. He is three goals shy of tying the tournament record of 16 set in 2006 by Matt Ward and matched in 2007 by Duke’s Zach Greer.

His 13 are tied for seventh all-time. Loyola’s Chris Colbeck scored 14 in the 1990 tournament and is tied for fourth with Paul Rabil (Johns Hopkins, 2008) and Gary Gait (Syracuse, 1988). Gait is also third with 15 in 1990.

He has hat tricks in all three games Loyola has played after scoring three in the First Round against Canisius and five in both sequential games.

Runkel Stops 15

Loyola goalkeeper Jack Runkel set a career-high in the NCAA Semifinals with 15 saves against Notre Dame, setting a career-high. He narrowly eclipsed his previous best of 14 set on April 28 against Johns Hopkins.

The game was Runkel’s seventh this season with 10 or more saves in goal. The others came against Duke (12), at UMBC (13), at Fairfield (12), Johns Hopkins (14), at Denver in the ECAC Semifinals (10) and versus Denver in the Quarterfinals (11).

Runkel has played to a 5.97 goals against average and .622 saves percentage in three NCAA Tournament games.

Defense Limits Chances

Loyola’s defense held Notre Dame to just 28 shots, four below the Fighting Irish’s season average of 32.3 heading into the game, and the Greyhounds’ unit helped goalkeeper Jack Runkel make 15 saves by limiting inside chances.

As a unit, Loyola forced Notre Dame into 14 turnovers, although the team was credited with just seven caused turnovers.

Joe Fletcher caused three of the turnovers and picked up a career-high seven ground balls, while Reid Acton, Scott Ratliff, Josh Hawkins and Runkel each had a caused turnover.

50-50

Eric Lusby and Mike Sawyer became the first duo in Loyola history with 50 goals each in the same season. Sawyer now stands with 51 goals, a Loyola single-season record, while Lusby has 50, tied with Tim Goettelmann for second in season history at the school.

They are two of three players in the NCAA this season to score 50 or more goals, joining Colgate’s Peter Baum (67). Last season, just one player (Robert Morris’ Trevor Moore, 50) had 50 or more.

The last time a pair of Division I teammates had 50 or more goals was 2010 when Duke’s Max Quinzani finished the year with 68, and Zach Howell tallied 51.

And, 60-60

Lusby and Sawyer are also the only Loyola players to reach 60 points in the same season.

With his six-point effort on Saturday afternoon, Lusby set the school Division I record for points in a season with 67, eclipsing the 66 (29g, 37a) Brian Duffy had during the 1995 season.

Gary Hanley has the top three points marks in school history with 89 in 1981, 86 in 1980 and 83 in 1979 when Loyola played Division II lacrosse.

Seven Earn All-America Honors

Attacker Mike Sawyer was named to the USILA All-America Second Team, and long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff earned Third Team honors earlier this week from the coaches’ association.

Five other Greyhounds – attacker Eric Lusby, midfielders Davis Butts and Josh Hawkins and defenders Reid Acton and Joe Fletcher – received honorable mention.

The seven honorees are the most for Loyola since seven received plaudits following the 1999 season. Sawyer and Ratliff are also the first Loyola players to receive All-America nods other than honorable mention since Gavin Prout was a first teamer in 2001.

Sawyer Sets Goals Record

Mike Sawyer scored the first goal of Loyola’s NCAA Quarterfinal game against Denver and broke the school single-season record for goals in the process.

Sawyer now has 51 goals this season, breaking the previous best of 50 set by Tim Goettelmann in 2000. Goettelmann went on to become Major League Lacrosse’s all-time leading goal scorer.

Earlier this season, against Hobart, he became the first Loyola player to reach 40 goals in a season since Tim Goettelmann and Gavin Prout scored 50 and 41, respectively, in 2000. They are the only three Loyola players to top 40 this century.

In the ECAC Semifinal against Denver, Sawyer pushed his season point total to 50, a number that is now at 60, making him the first Greyhound to reach 50 in a season since Prout had 58 (37g, 21a) in 2001. It is the fourth time this century that a Loyola player has scored 50 or more points in a season. Goettelmann (65) and Prout (53) both reached the mark in 2000, and Prout did it again the following season. Sawyer’s teammate, Eric Lusby, has since joined him with more than 50 points (more later).

Three-For-Three

Loyola completed a three-game sweep of Denver with its 10-9 NCAA Quarterfinal victory last Saturday, marking the first time in school history the Greyhounds had ever played a team three times in a season.

It is the third time a team has beaten another three times in a season (thanks to Patrick Stevens of The Washington Times for the research). Loyola joins the 1992 Maryland (vs. Duke), 2007 Duke (vs. North Carolina) and 2009 Duke (vs. North Carolina) teams to have accomplished the feat.

Sawyer, Lusby Form Rare Tandem

Graduate student Eric Lusby and junior Mike Sawyer have formed the top attack tandem in the nation this season, combining for 101 goals in 18 games this season, an average of 5.61 per game.

Sawyer has scored 51 goals, and his 2.83 goals per game average is sixth-best in Division I. Lusby, meanwhile is right behind with 50 goals and a 2.78 goals per game mark, a number that is eighth in the country. Loyola is the only school to have two players in top 10 nationally.

The Greyhounds have not had two players score 40 or more goals in the same season since 2000 when Tim Goettelmann set the school single-season record with 50, and Gavin Prout tallied 41. As a side note, the Goettelmann-Prout duo has gone on to highly successful professional careers. Goettelman recently retired from Major League Lacrosse as the league’s all-time leading scorer with 268 goals in 11 seasons. Prout has been an MLL Champion and has scored 314 National Lacrosse League goals to go with 625 assists as a multiple-time all-star.

The duo is now the top goal-scoring tandem in Loyola single-season history, eclipsing the performance in 2000 by Goettelmann and Prout.

A Lot Of Everything

The adage that a player does a little bit of everything does not necessarily apply to long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff. The Loyola junior does a lot, as he leads the team in ground balls (83) and caused turnovers (35), is fifth in goals (12) and is seventh in assists (7). His 34 caused turnovers are second-most in Loyola history – behind P.T. Ricci’s 51 in 2009 – since the stats became official that year.

A Tewaaraton Award nominee earlier in the year, Ratliff was named the Most Outstanding Player of the ECAC Championships after scoring three goals, one a game-winner, and recording two assists and 16 ground balls.

He had two goals, including the winner just eight seconds into overtime, and an assist versus Denver while picking up a career-high nine ground balls.

Ratliff, who was also an All-ECAC First Team honoree and ECAC Defensive Player of the Year, then scored twice in the first quarter against Canisius to go along with six ground balls and three faceoff wins in the game.

Ratliff’s Scoring

Scott Ratliff had his third multi-goal game of the season in the NCAA First Round against Canisius, and he then added a goal in the Quarterfinal against Denver, raising his season totals to 12 goals and seven assists.

With his game-opening goal against the Golden Griffins, he set the Loyola single-season record for long-pole scoring, surpassing the record of 16 points set by current assistant coach Matt Dwan his senior season in 1995 when he tallied 11 goals and five assists and earned All-America honors.

Ratliff is second nationally this season in goals and points by a long pole, and his seven assists are tops in the country. Bryant’s Mason Poli leads all long poles this year with 19 goals and 24 points.

Ward Dishes Out Assists

Justin Ward was credited an assist on an Eric Lusby goal against Notre Dame raising his season total to 31, and his 1.72 assists per game are 21st nationally. Those numbers are tops among the players on the four teams in the NCAA Semifinals.

Ward is the first Loyola player this century to reach 30 assists, and his total is the most since Brian Duffy had 34 in 1996.

Top Spot

Loyola entered the NCAA Championships as the No. 1 seed for the third time in school history. The Greyhounds were also the top seed in 1998 when they defeated Georgetown, 12-11, in the Quarterfinals to move on to the Final Four for the second time in school history. There, the Greyhounds lost, 19-8, to Maryland. They were then the No. 1 seed in 1999 when they fell in the Quarterfinals to Syracuse, 17-12.

School Record In Wins

Loyola’s victory over Notre Dame in the NCAA Semifinals was its 17th of the season, setting a school record for victories in a year. The Greyhounds eclipsed the previous best of 13 that the 1998 squad achieved with a 13-2 record.

This is Loyola’s 15th season all-time with 10 or more wins with 12 coming since the Greyhounds joined Division I in 1982.

The Hardware Department

In the span of seven days, three teams in Loyola’s Department of Athletics advanced to their respective NCAA Championships by winning titles in three different conferences.

The men’s golf team started the trend with its fifth-straight Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference crown on April 29, and the men’s lacrosse team followed by taking the ECAC title on May 4. The women’s lacrosse team completed the trifecta on May 5 when it defeated then-No. 2 Syracuse to win its second-straight BIG EAST Championship. Also, in March, Loyola’s men’s basketball team won its first MAAC title in 18 years and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994.

Sawyer Named One Of Five Tewaaraton Finalists

Mike Sawyer was named one of five Tewaaraton Award finalists on Thursday, joining Colgate A Peter Baum, Duke LSM C.J. Costabile, Massachusetts A Will Manny and Virginia A Steele Stanwick.

Sawyer is the first Loyola men’s player to be named a finalist, and he is also the first player from to hail the State of North Carolina to be so honored. He was one of three Greyhounds on the Tewaaraton Watch List where he was joined by Eric Lusby and Scott Ratliff, and Ratliff was a fellow semifinalist. The Award, which is given annually to the top player in college lacrosse, will be presented on May 31 at the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

Midfield Scoring

Loyola’s first midfield line of Davis Butts (20g, 33p), Sean O’Sullivan (16, 27) and Chris Layne (11, 22) has combined for 47 goals and 35 assists this season, while the second midfield unit of Pat Byrnes (9, 7), J.P. Dalton (9, 4) and Phil Dobson (7, 2) has added 25 and 13. Additionally, Nikko Pontrello has started to mix in with the second midfield, allowing Loyola’s attackers the opportunity to invert, and he has four goals and six assists.

Twelve In A Row Ties Mark

Loyola’s 12-straight to start the season tied the school record for consecutive victories, matching the number put up by the 1998 (3/14-3/17) and 1999 (3/6-3/8).

It also matched the best start to a season, equaling the 1999 team that finished the regular-season unblemished at 12-0.

Toomey Tabbed ECAC Coach Of The Year

Loyola Head Coach Charley Toomey was named the ECAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his seven-year career. This season, Toomey has guided the Greyhounds to a 17-1 mark during the regular-season and the ECAC regular-season crown with a 6-0 mark in conference play. The NCAA Championship Game will be Toomey’s 100th as a head coach.

The Greyhounds became the second team in USILA Coaches Poll history to start a season unranked and ascend to the No. 1 spot in the rankings. The only other team was Duke in 2007 – a year after the Blue Devils had their season suspended in March – which accomplished the feat after being unranked in the first poll, moving to second in the next version and first in the third. Duke was knocked from its perch as No. 1 that season when it lost to the Greyhounds at the First Four in San Diego.

The win over Canisius in the First Round was the 60th victory of his coaching career, becoming the fourth coach in Loyola history to win 60 or more – Dave Cottle (181-70, 1983-2001), Charles Wenzel (62-104, 1954-1970), Jay Connor (61-46, 1975-1982).  Toomey’s .626 winning percentage trails only Cottle’s .721 at Loyola.

All-ECAC Honors

Five Loyola players earned All-ECAC Lacrosse League honors form the conference’s coaches. Long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff, who was also named ECAC Defensive Player of the Year, earned a spot as a defender on the First Team, where he was joined by Mike Sawyer on attack and Davis Butts in the midfield.

Sawyer led the ECAC during the regular-season, and is now second nationally, in goals (51). Butts has scored 20 goals and assisted on 13 from the Greyhounds first midfield line while also regularly playing a role on the wings during face-offs with 39 ground balls.

Attack Eric Lusby and defender Joe Fletcher were tabbed to the All-ECAC Second Team. Lusby is second on the team and is third nationally with 50 goals, and he also has 17 assists this season. Fletcher came on as one of the top lock-down defenders around, earning Midseason All-American honors from Inside Lacrosse last month. He has 39 ground balls and 25 caused turnovers entering the NCAA title game.

Big Runs

Loyola used runs of three-plus goals at important junctures of its 18 games, helping the Greyhounds to wins each time. In all, Loyola has scored three or more in a row on 36 occasions this season.

Loyola scored the first four goals of the ECAC Semifinal game against Denver and then tallied three-straight after the Pioneers pulled within 4-2. The Greyhounds then reeled off five in a row during the third quarter to take a 13-6 lead.

The Greyhounds used two 3-0 runs against Notre Dame in the NCAA Semifinal to advance to the title game.

On The Flip Side

Conversely, the Greyhounds have allowed a run of three or more goals just 12 times this year, with the most recent coming when Canisius scored three in the second quarter. Only Denver (seven in ECAC Semifinal), Johns Hopkins (five), Fairfield (five), Air Force (four) have scored more than three in a row this year.

Second-Half Success

The Greyhounds have now outscored opponents 65-22 in the third quarters of games and 119-63 overall this year in the second half (including overtime).

The second-half scoring continues a trend from the last two seasons. Last year, Loyola outscored opponents, 69-52, after halftime (including two overtime goals), and 77-56 two years ago.