College Men’s Lacrosse Roundup: Former FCIAC standouts excel at the next level

New Canaan’s Michael Kraus, a sophomore with the Virginia Cavaliers, celebrates his go-ahead goal with 1:47 remaining in Virginia’s 10-9 win over Vermont at Dunning Field this spring. — Dave Stewart photo

Former New Canaan High School lacrosse stars Michael Kraus, Harry Stanton and Cole Turpin each had quite the memorable seasons to highlight some of the many accomplishments of former FCIAC lacrosse players for their respective men’s college teams this past spring.

Kraus had a superb season as a sophomore attack for Virginia and was selected to the Inside Lacrosse All-American Third Team.

Stanton and Turpin were senior teammates on the Wesleyan University team which won the 2018 NCAA Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship and Stanton was an attack who finished his career with a flourish by being selected the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.

The accomplishments and highlights of those three and many others are listed below. Each player is listed under his former high school, with each of those high schools from the FCIAC listed in alphabetical order.

Note: The names of the players included here were provided by the coaches from FCIAC teams. If there are any players you would like to see included in this story, please email their names and schools to [email protected].

Click the player names for bios from their college websites.

Brien McMahon

Josh Miller appeared in three games as a senior goalkeeper for Towson University Tigers. He finished career with a 6-3 record as a starter during his junior and senior seasons. He collected 25 saves, including 12 against the Georgetown Hoyas on Feb. 24 this spring. Miller finished with a save percentage of .510.  

Justin MacIntyre was a senior midfielder who played in all 17 games for Roger Williams this spring. He was named to the All-CCC Second Team, selected to play in the NEILA East-West Senior All-Star Game, and earned a spot on the NEILA All-Academic Team. MacIntyre finished career with 38 goals and 27 assists.

Chris Gatt has played in six games as a short stick defensive midfielder for the Big East Champion Georgetown Hoyas, and was named to Big East All-Academic Team.

James Campbell played in three games as a sophomore midfielder for the University of Pennsylvania. He made appearances in the Quakers’ game against Maryland and in Ivy League wins over Princeton and Dartmouth.

Also in the UPenn ranks was freshman midfielder Mitch Bartolo, who played in seven games and started three. He scored his first collegiate goal and had a ground ball in the Quakers’ win against Navy on March 6. Bartolo’s season was cut short by an injury.

Darien

Kevin Lindley and teammates celebrate a goal during a Loyola Greyhounds’ win this spring. — Loyola Athletics/loyolagreyhounds.com photo

Kevin Lindley fired in 37 goals and added four assists as a freshman attack for Loyola University Maryland. He tied for third in goals scored among NCAA Division I freshmen, was second on the team in goals and named to the Patriot League All-Tournament Team. Lindley tied for fifth overall in goals and seventh in goals per game average (2.18) in the Patriot League, he shot 52.1 percent to lead the league and finish fourth in NCAA Division I in that statistical category.

Colin Minicus racked up 45 goals and 49 assists while starting in 15 of 16 games as a sophomore attack for Amherst. He has started in 27 of 34 games during the first two years of his career and collected 76 goals and 91 assists.

Kyle Gifford, a senior defenseman and two-year captain with the Washington & Lee Generals, earned a USILA All-America honorable mention, as well as All-ODAC First Team honors and a spot on the Intercollegiate Men’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IMLCA) All-South Region Second Team for his performance this spring. He was also named a 2018 Scholar All-American by the USILA. Gifford started 19 games for the Generals and anchored a defense which led the ODAC with an 8.2 goals against average. He also had 22 ground balls and caused 13 turnovers.

Hudson Hamill also played for Washington & Lee as a sophomore midfielder this spring. He started all 20 games and had 16 goals and 32 assists, while also scooping up 33 ground balls.

Peter Doering started in 12 of 15 games as a junior defenseman for Denison and he collected career-highs in ground balls (21) and caused turnovers (11).

Liam Rischmann and Ryan Cornell both played for the University of Vermont. Rischmann was a sophomore midfielder who played in 15 games, had nine goals, an assist, and had three two-goal games. Cornell was a backup freshman goalie who played in four games and had nine saves, a 13.9 goals-against average and a .450 save percentage.

Fairfield Ludlowe

Jake Tymon was a sophomore long-stick midfielder for Fairfield University. He picked up 20 ground balls and caused five turnovers while playing in nine games for his hometown Stags.

Justin Horine played in nine games as a junior midfielder for Endicott College and picked up eight ground balls.

Greenwich

Jack Harrington was a 6-foot-4, 225-pound backup senior defenseman for Duke, which advanced to the championship game of the NCAA Division I Tournament and lost to Yale, 13-11. Harrington saw action in six games, he scooped up three ground balls this year and nine for his career. During his junior year last year he saw action in six games and he made the ACC Academic Honor Roll.

Decker Curran had a very good year as a junior midfielder for Michigan. He led the Big Ten and was ranked 22ndnationally in shooting percentage (.449 percent on 22-of-49 shooting). Curran was tied for the team lead in multiple-points games with 10 and ranked second on the team in goals (22) and shots (77). Curran fired in a season-high four goals, including the game winner in overtime, to lead the Wolverines to a 10-9 victory over Penn State on April 28.

North Carolina’s Will Perry, a former Greenwich Cardinal, lines up for a shot during a Tar Heels’ win this spring. — Jeffrey A. Camarati/goheels.com photo

Will Perry started in all 14 games as sophomore midfielder for the University of North Carolina (7-7) and had 31 points on 22 goals and nine assists. He has 36 goals and 13 assists in 30 games played in his career. Last year Perry played in 16 games, had 14 goals and four assists, and was the recipient of the team’s Jay Gallagher Memorial Award as the outstanding freshman player.

Kyle Foote and Bailey Savio were teammates on Loyola University Maryland, which advanced to the 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Tournament quarterfinals and was eliminated by eventual champion Yale, 8-5. Savio played in all 17 games as a freshman faceoff man. He went 96-of-211 (.400) on faceoffs, he picked up 44 ground balls and scored twice. Foote was a senior midfielder who played in two games for the Greyhounds

John Tooher started in 10 of the 13 games he played in as a junior attack for Rhodes College and had 13 goals and eight assists.

Danny Colligan was a sophomore defender who saw action in one game for St. John’s.

Alex Moeser scored eight goals and had 11 assists for 19 points as a senior midfielder for Hofstra.

Luke Finneran appeared in one game as a junior attack for Bryant.

New Canaan

Harry Stanton in action for the Wesleyan Cardinals. — Steve McLaughlin/Wesleyan Athletics Photo

Harry Stanton, who is Wesleyan University’s all-time leader in goals, scored his final two goals and added an assist to lead Wesleyan to an 8-6 victory over Salisbury University in the final game of the 2018 NCAA Division III Men’s Lacrosse Championship. Stanton started in 72 of 73 games during his career and racked up 224 goals and 63 assists. Last year as a junior he had 86 goals and 29 assists and he followed that up this year with 60 goals and 10 assists, which earned him selection to the 2018 United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Division III All-American Team. Stanton was soon after also named a 2018 USILA Division III Scholar All-American.

Cole Turpin started all 22 games as a senior midfielder for NCAA Division III champion Wesleyan and contributed 27 goals and 17 assists. Turpin finished his career with 46 goals and 32 assists while starting in 44 of 67 games.

Michael Kraus burst onto the collegiate lacrosse scene last year to earn selection as Virginia’s 2017 Offensive MVP and this year he followed that up by leading UVA with 44 goals, 39 assists and 83 points. That earned him selection to the All-ACC team as well as the Inside Lacrosse All-American Third Team.

Kraus became only the third Cavalier to score 80 points in a season and his 83 points rank second all-time at UVA for single-season scoring. Doug Knight holds the record of 86. Kraus also was just one assist shy of becoming the first Cavalier to ever have 40-plus goals and 40-plus assists the same season. Last year he was the ACC Freshman of the Year and only freshman who made All-ACC.

Jackson Appelt is one of Kraus’ teammates for Virginia. Appelt is a freshman attack who appeared in five of 18 games and scored a goal on his first shot during his debut against Manhattan.

Kevin McDonough was a 6-foot, 200-pound fifth-year senior defenseman for Duke, which advanced to the NCAA Division I Tournament championship game, where the Blue Devils lost by a 13-11 margin to Yale. McDonough picked up 36 ground balls and caused 14 turnovers in his only year playing for Duke.

Drew Morris was a 6-foot, 170-pound freshman backup goalie for Maryland who did not see any game action this year. The Terrapins advanced to the 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Tournament semifinals, where they were eliminated by a 13-8 margin to ACC rival and eventual tourney runner-up Duke.

Logan Hart earned All-Liberty League Honorable Mention as a junior defender for Skidmore College. He finished second on the team with 20 caused turnovers and also picked up 29 ground balls.

Teddy Bossidy played in 13 games and had a goal, an assist and seven ground balls as a senior midfielder for Franklin & Marshall. Bossidy totaled 11 goals, nine assists and 24 ground balls in 44 career games played.

Jack Gilio was a senior long-stick midfielder for Wooster College. He had seven goals, four assists and 271 ground balls while starting in 48 of 66 games during his career. He started in two of 15 games as a senior and had a goal and 64 ground balls.

Duke Repko and Teddy Dumbauld were both short-stick midfielders for Bucknell. Repko was a senior who played in all 15 games and netted his first career goal on Senior Day against Lehigh. He had 13 ground balls for the year. Dumbauld appeared in five games as a reserve short-stick junior midfielder for Bucknell.

Ryan O’Connell was a freshman midfielder for the University of North Carolina who saw action in eight games and scored a pair of goals.

Kyle Smith was a sophomore and Max Begoon a redshirt sophomore for Denver. Smith played in 10 games in the midfield. Begoon, who suffered a season-ending injury in the 2017 preseason, made four appearances this year as a midfielder.

Peter Swindell was a sophomore midfielder for Loyola University Maryland who had eight goals and an assist.

David Strupp started in nine of 13 games as a sophomore defender Harvard. He picked up eight ground balls and caused two turnovers.

James Freyre and Graham Braden were both freshmen midfielders for Denison. Freyre was a long-stick middie who appeared in five games, picked up five ground balls and caused two turnovers. Braden played in one game.

Seth Neeleman and Tommy O’Dea were both defensemen for Utah. Neeleman was one of three tri-captains on the 42-player roster even though he was still a sophomore. O’Dea was a freshman.

James Crovatto played in 13 games as a freshman defender for Amherst and had two ground balls.

Carson Armstrong was a senior and Andrew Bauersfeld a freshman and they were both listed on defense on the University of Vermont roster.

Jack Hoelzer appeared in two games as freshman midfielder for Middlebury.

John Rhudy was a senior defender for Army (West Point).

Simon Mathias in action for the UPenn Quakers. — Penn Athletics/oennathletics.com photo

Ridgefield

Simon Mathias of Ridgefield, who was a junior midfielder for the University of Pennsylvania Quakers in the spring, will enter his senior season with a 43-game point scoring streak and a 20-game goal-scoring streak. He was the Co-Ivy League Rookie of the Year and an All-Ivy honorable mention as a freshman, and made second team All-Ivy the past two seasons.

During his junior campaign, Mathias led UPenn in goals (28), assists (20), and points (48), after playing in all 15 games and starting 14 for the Quakers. He ranks 11th in program history for career scoring points (135), and ninth in career goals (84).

Paul Volante started in all 17 games as a junior for Loyola University Maryland. He played on close defense for a unit that finished 13th in the nation in goals allowed per game (8.71). Volante, who had 18 ground balls and caused eight turnovers, was named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll.

Chase Levesque was a sophomore defender/long-stick midfielder for Boston University who made the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll for the second consecutive year. He also had success on the field, as he was the starting long pole in all nine games in which he appeared and he was named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 5 after he recorded what was then a career-high three caused turnovers and matched his career best with six ground balls in a 12-11 overtime win over Providence on Feb. 3. Levesque had four goals, 38 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers for the season.

Will Bonaparte was a senior backup faceoff man for Maryland who saw action in 36 games during his career. He made Academic All-Big Ten in 2016.

Staples

Lucas Jackson was a junior who played in 11 games as a long-stick middie for Loyola University Maryland. He played frequently on the man-down unit.

Ethan Burger was a freshman midfielder for Vermont.

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