The season is almost here, and we’re gearing up for a competitive one. We’re coming off of a 2022 season where we saw one of the best teams of all time in the Terps sweep the season in what seemed to be an easy fashion. But we’re not so sure we are going to see a repeat performance of that with all the changes in personnel that we saw this off-season. We’re expecting a shift in the power rankings, with some familiar and some not-so familiar in our top 10. Let’s get into it…
1. Virginia Cavailiers
The Cavaliers weren’t able to pull off a 3-peat this past season. So, they decided they’re going to reload and lock in for the 2023 season. Being led by Connor Shellenberger on the offensive end of the field will always put you in a good position for success. Their defense will have Fulton and Saustad, two giants to protect Matt Nunes in net. Coach Lars Tiffany had a great year in the transfer portal as well, managing to land Vermont standout Thomas McConvey. They also were able to bring over former captain of the Stanford Football team, linebacker Ricky Miezan. With this powerhouse roster, we won’t be surprised if we see comparisons to last year’s Terps squad that went undefeated.
2. Georgetown Hoyas
The Hoyas had a disappointing end to their 2023 campaign as they were projected to make it further in the NCAA tournament. However, Head Coach Kevin Warne was able to bring in another top offensive player in college lacrosse with Tucker Dordevic – arguably the top transfer in lacrosse. Dordevic is going to make the Georgetown offense even more unstoppable as he and UNLTD athlete Graham Bundy leading the way. On the defensive end they have probably the best defender in the country with UNLTD athlete Will Bowen anchoring the defense for a second year. USA Lacrosse Magazine gave all-America honors to 5 players from Georgetown, so watch out for the Hoyas because they want some redemption.
3. Maryland Terrapins
We wouldn’t be surprised to see Maryland climb higher than 3, but with all of the question marks surrounding their offense, we can’t see projecting them above Georgetown and Virginia. It’ll be the first year without their offensive coordinator Bobby Benson who was a major factor to that unbelievable offense, and on top of losing the Tewaaraton winner Logan Wisnauskas, we’re hesitant to even claim this as a top 5 offensive roster. A positive heading into this season is that their defense will remain intact with Brett Makar and Logan McNaney returning. Once we see how the new offense looks after everyone graduated we should have a better idea of how they will fair in this 2023 season, but we will never count out John Tillman.
4. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Irish are another team looking to have a much better 2023 season after going 8-4. They did a solid job grabbing top recruits and making moves in the transfer portal. Kevin Corrigan brought in two of the best players from Yale in Chris Fake and Brian Tevlin who are going to make instant impacts for Notre Dame on each side of the ball. They’ve also got one of the best goalies in the country in Liam Entenmann. The real icing on the cake here are the Kavanagh brothers, who are human highlight reels out on the lacrosse field. Expect big things from this hungry program in 2023.
5. Princeton Tigers
The Tigers had an incredible 2022 season going 11-5 with a young group of guys. They lose leading scorer Chris Brown, but maintained every other top scorer they previously had. Coulter Mackesy should be taking a big step forward in terms of his scoring. Alex Slusher, and Sam English are entering their senior season. The Ivy League is going to be a gauntlet again, but this team should be solid. They have a very tough schedule leaving no margin for error, but if you want to make it to Memorial Day weekend you better be used to some tough competition.
6. Cornell Big Red
Cornell is looking to pick up right where they left off. They have a solid roster entering the season with their veterans leading the way. We’ve got CJ Kirst on the attack, Hugh Kelleher leading the midfield, Gavin Adler on defense and Chayse Ierlan in goal. They’ve got every spot on the field covered and that will for sure lead to a lot of mismatches this season. Coach Buczek has brought in a solid freshman class as well to support the experience returning and looking for a run.
7. Duke Blue Devils
Duke had a very disappointing year in terms of expectations from quite literally everyone. They had all the tools but just couldn’t get the job done. They lost some pieces that were big to their puzzle but they have their main stars back this year. Everyone is saying Brennan O’Neill will be the leader of the offense with Andrew McAdorey, Dyson Williams, and more. They have a solid recruiting class with players that could potentially make an instant impact. We’re definitely a little hesitant to rank them this high after last season, but the talent they still have can’t be ignored, and they should come out ready for a revenge tour.
8. Yale Bulldogs
Yale is going to have a lot of questions surrounding them to start the season. They lost of their best players and main pieces to their team with Brian Tevlin and Chris Fake transferring to Georgetown, but on the flip side they brought back Matt Brandau – their leading scorer from 2022. The rest of their team is pretty young with 4 of their 7 top scorers being sophomores this year. We’ll have to wait and see how the defense plays out and if they can still be the force we saw last season.
9. Penn Quakers
Expect Penn to have another strong year. They’ve got the preseason player of the year Sam Handley coming back for his senior year, and he’s got a very strong supporting cast around him. If guarding one 6’5 230 pound middie wasn’t hard enough, try guarding two because that’s what Penn has with Handley and Gabe Furey. Those two combined for 104 points in 2022, and you should expect this number to inflate in 2023. The Quakers are another team on a long list of having unfinished business to deal with in after falling short in 2022, but with a tough schedule ahead of them, there is a path to come out as top dog.
10. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Coach Brian Brecht is having the best years of his career at Rutgers. There has been constant success, and they seemingly don’t miss a step every year. They are a fast-paced, energetic team that is going to try and beat you in transition. Brecht had another great offseason in the transfer portal to help with some of the losses they face heading into this season. The notable departure for their team is Mitch Bartolo, but they still have leading scorer Ross Scott as well as a majority of their top scorers. They’re a sleeper pick and could go on a sneaky run.
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