Season Preview: Men's Lacrosse ready to defend OAC Regular Season crown in program's fourth year
By Blake Moore
ADA — The Ohio Northern men's lacrosse team will look to defend its first Ohio Athletic Conference Regular Season title in program history and compete on a national stage during the 2019 campaign under fourth-year head coach Nat St. Laurent.
During the program's third season in 2018, the Polar Bears compiled a 14-3 overall record and a 7-1 mark against the conference loop to tie for first place in the final league standings. Northern then made its first appearance in the OAC Tournament, falling in the semifinal round to Baldwin Wallace to conclude the historic season.
Additionally, Ohio Northern rattled off a program-best nine consecutive victories last season and led all NCAA Division III programs in scoring defense, allowing just 5.59 goals per contest.
This season, St. Laurent and his staff welcome back 40 letterwinners, eight All-OAC honorees, and two IMLCA All-West Region selections from the 2018 squad. In addition, the program will add 15 freshmen, who will look to make a sizable impact in their inaugural seasons.
"This season, we have a strong core group that has played together the past three seasons, giving us some continuity on the team," St. Laurent stated. "We also have some young guys that are really starting to develop, and our competitions at practice are really beginning to take off. We have a ton of returning talent, plenty of experience, and several newcomers that will make this team interesting."
The Polar Bears were projected to repeat as conference champions this season in the annual OAC Coaches Preseason Poll released on Wednesday. Ohio Northern tied with John Carroll for the top spot, earning 75 points and six first-place votes.
The following is a breakdown of the 2019 Ohio Northern men's lacrosse program, according to position:
Attack
The high-intensity Ohio Northern offense returns several key players from the 2018 squad that generated 13.71 goals per contest, including All-OAC selection and leading goal-scorer Cameron Marous (Brecksville).
"There is no question that our attack runs through Cameron," St. Laurent noted. "Since he stepped foot on campus, he has been extremely important to our success."
Marous currently ranks first in program history with 60 assists and 135 points in 33 appearances during his first two seasons. He also stands tied for first with 14 career hat tricks and sits second all-time with 75 career goals.
For his efforts, the junior from Brecksville is a two-time Second-Team All-OAC honoree, a three-time OAC Offensive Player of the Week, and a USILA Team of the Week selection.
Additionally, three-time lettermen Noah St. Croix (Irondequoit, N.Y.) and Max Weese (Hilliard/Hilliard Darby) will each return to provide experience and leadership at the attack position.
"Not many people talk about Noah, but he is a 100-point getter, a major feat in college lacrosse. He is quiet, steady, consistent, and smart, which makes him a great asset. Once we get Weese back and healthy, he will be another great asset for our offense."
Junior Pat Berthelsen-Leon and sophomores Joe O'Connell (Fishers, Ind.) and Alex Schuler (Buffalo, N.Y./Williamsville South) have each lettered and will look to assist the frontline.
Midfield
St. Laurent and his staff will oversee a deep midfield this season that includes 11 letterwinners and All-OAC honoree Anthony Pavone (Bainbridge/Kenston).
"We are loaded at the midfield position this season," the head coach elaborated. "We have never had this much depth on the team, making us excited about this group and their year ahead."
Pavone returns for his final season after being named All-OAC Second-Team in 2018, his third consecutive conference honor. He ranks third all-time with 61 career goals, 47 career assists, and 108 career points.
Seniors Nicholas Groves (Fishers, Ind./Bishop Chatard), Connor Preston (Carmel, Ind.), Patrick Alfano (Toledo/Anthony Wayne) and Peter Hardt (Bethpage, N.Y./Plainedge) will also return.
Juniors Patrick Moran (Austin, Tex./Bowie), Ian Pennino (Vernon, N.J./Pope John XXIII), John Mullin (Syracuse, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy), Samuel Neff (Gainesville, Va./Trinity Christian), and Kevin Giles (Williamsburg, Va./Warhill) and sophomore Mason Schmeling (Columbus/Hilliard Darby) each provide depth after lettering last season.
Long-Stick Midfield
Ohio Northern will bring back six long-stick middies lettering in the 2018 season, including Second-Team All-OAC honoree Logan Krogman (Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) and Honorable Mention recipient Javon Smith (Baltimore, Md./Dulaney).
Krogman appeared in 16 games last season, scored three goals, and ended second on the team in ground balls with 41. He is also ONU's single-season ground ball record holder with 68 in 2017 and ranks as the all-time leader in ground balls with 109.
Meanwhile, Smith saw action in all 17 contests and led the team with a sophomore class record 42 ground balls. He currently ranks fifth in program history with 75 ground balls and 30 caused turnovers in his career.
Seniors Andrew Laudico (Williamsville, N.Y./South) and Matt Sheftall (Austin, Tex./Bowie) and sophomores Branden Stoeffler (Fishers, Ind.) and Max Christopher (Cincinnati/Mariemont) all have received letters at the LSM position.
"The conference has three LSM all-conference awards each year, and we were fortunate to fill two last season," St. Laurent mentioned. "We will rely on those two heavily and look to our young guys for some depth."
Defense
ONU returns two IMLCA All-West Region Honorable Menion award winners and three All-Ohio Athletic Conference honorees from the top-ranked defense in NCAA Division III last season.
Senior defender Drew Fox (Solon) was tabbed to the IMLCA All-West Region Honorable Mention squad and garnered his third consecutive all-conference honor in 2018. He led the program and finished fourth in the OAC with 28 caused turnovers, giving him a school record 99 caused turnovers in his career.
Senior defenseman Jackson Pfister (Upper Arlington) will also rejoin the squad after receiving All-OAC Second-Team kudos last year. He would end the season with 24 caused turnovers and 28 ground balls.
Classmate Mitch Groves (Fishers, Ind./Bishop Chatard) was named All-OAC First-Team and IMLCA All-West Region Honorable Mention as a SSDM last season. He appeared in all 17 contests, tallying eight goals and 33 ground balls.
"I believe Drew is the best defenseman in the conference, and certainly believe Jackson is the next best man. They have both played in many lacrosse games and been forced to cover other teams' best players," St. Laurent explained. "We also have one of the best short-stick defensive middies in the country with Mitch."
Seniors Mack Calhoun (Bexley), Evan Corteville (Newark, N.Y.), Matthew Laudico (Williamsville, N.Y./South), Samuel Pearson (North Royalton/Lutheran West), and Tanner Walrath (York, Pa./Theodore Roosevelt), junior Ian Zaferakis (Liverpool, N.Y.), and sophomores Thomas Krock (Granville) and Hunter Hudgins (Westerville/Central) all return as letterwinners to the defensive unit.
"Our defense is senior-laden. These guys have been talked about for four years, and other teams know who they are and how they perform."
Goalkeeper
Senior goalkeeper Alex Pizarro (Boonsboro, Md.) will return as the top option for St. Laurent and his staff this season in net after garnering All-OAC Second-Team accolades one year ago.
The senior netminder owns the program records for wins (22), saves (232), and minutes played (1,915) through his first three seasons.
Last season, he led the OAC and finished ninth in the nation with a 6.63 goals against average.
Classmates Andrew Markell (Missouri City, Tex./Ridge Point) and Wes Markwood (Upper Arlington) are also three-time lettermen at ONU.
"Alex has always been our guy over the past four years, and Markell and Markwood have always been there challenging him," St. Laurent stated regarding the goalkeepers. "We have some depth and experience in that position, allowing us competition for the starting position."
Faceoff
Ohio Northern will be led in faceoffs by senior William Peoples (Breckenridge, Colo./Summit), junior Chris DiMarco (Worthington/Thomas Worthington), and sophomore Preston Victory (Brentwood, Tenn.).
Peoples is the all-time faceoff wins leader with 263 career victories and ranks fifth all-time in ground balls with 61.
Meanwhile, DiMarco owns 156 career faceoff wins while Victory posted 89 wins last season to top the team.
"The faceoff position is like our three-headed monster with Peoples, DiMarco, and Victory," St. Laurent mentioned. "These guys compete every day in practice, so we are expecting a big year from this group."
Schedule
The Polar Bears are slated to open the season this Saturday, February 16 when Elmhurst (Ill.) visits Dial-Roberson Stadium for a 12 p.m. non-conference affair.
Ohio Northern will then play five straight road contests, beginning with a trip to Washington & Jefferson (Pa.) on February 23. The stretch continues with contests against at Guilford (N.C.), Pfeiffer (N.C.), and Brevard (N.C.) during the program's annual Spring Break trip and an away date at Alfred (N.Y.).
ONU will conclude the 2019 nonconference slate with a home date against Wittenberg on March 19.
The Orange and Black will raise the curtain on its Ohio Athletic Conference schedule on Saturday, March 23 when they host Wilmington at 1 p.m.
Northern is also slated to host Heidelberg, Muskingum, Capital, and Otterbein while making trips to Mount Union, Baldwin Wallace, Marietta, and John Carroll during the conference season.
The four-team OAC Tournament will be held on Wednesday, May 1 and Saturday, May 4.
"The nonconference schedule will be a challenge this season, playing two former NCAA Division II programs in Pfeiffer and Brevard and Elmhurst, who was a NCAA Tournament bubble team last year," St. Laurent said. "The conference is wide open, but John Carroll will be the team to beat after winning the past three years. We will have to remember what it took to be successful last year and play great to replicate last year's performance."