Lax Factor Lacrosse Podcast

In this episode I want to go back and look at my 2021 Way Too Early ACC Lacrosse Conference Prediction and see how “smart” or how “dumb” I really am.  SPOILER ALERT, this one didn’t go all that well for me. 

First prediction I missed on, the ACC would be the toughest lacrosse conference in the country.  I was way wrong, the Big Ten was the best lacrosse conference in 2022 followed by the IVY League.  The ACC may not have even been 3rd.

Second prediction I missed on, I predicted that at least 4 ACC lacrosse teams would make the ncaa lacrosse tournament.  Only Virginia made it.  This one was way off. 

Third prediction, the order that teams would finish in the ACC, I got that mostly right picking Virginia, Notre Dame and Duke to fill out #1 through #3 with Syracuse at #4 (I got that wrong) and UNC at #5 (they finished 4th ahead of Cuse).

VIEW THE BLOG POST

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

My picks for the college lacrosse midfielders that have the best shot of snagging up one of the three 1st Team All-American spots in 2023 include Penn's Sam Handley, Georgetown's Graham Bundy Jr. and Villanova's Matt Campbell.

I think Sam Handley is the top returning midfielder overall and I have him as one of my top 3 returning players, period. Handley is a beast.  Graham Bundy Jr. isn't far behind Handley though. He's the best dodging midfielder in the country and with some of the additions the Hoyas have added through the transfer portal could see an uptick in production.  Matt Campbell, not the most popular pick, and would be the first to get bumped by someone like Maryland's Kyle Long, but I think his numbers may demand a 1st team nod because I expect his production to jump in 2023.

VIEW THE BLOG POST

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

My picks for the college lacrosse players that have the best shot at eating one of the three 1st Team All-American spots in 2023 on attack include Yale's Matt Brandau, Virginia's Connor Shellenberger and Ohio State's Jack Myers.  Matt Brandau is a guy that I personally think is the best returning player in all of college lacrosse.  He's a threat with and without the ball and is overall the most complete player in the nation. 

Connor Shellenberger isn't far behind in terms of being a "complete player".  He is UVA's utility knife and excels as a quarterback of their offense.  He may be asked to put up more goals in 2023 without Matt Moore and his upside is off the charts. 

The guy I'll eat crap for including is Jack Myers, but anyone that knows lacrosse knows that Myers is a big boy attackman that can get his teammates involved by bullying defenders into solid positions on the field that ends up being good for everyone on offense.

VIEW THE BLOG POST

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

Virginia lacrosse has been a dominant force since Lars Tiffany took over as head coach. 2023 won't be any different because guys like Connor Shellenberger, Payton Cormier, Cole Kastner, Cade Saustad and Matthew Nunes are all back and eager to prove their early NCAA Tournament exit at the hands of Maryland was a one-off fluke.

Shellenberger, Cormier and Griffin Shutz will look to anchor the attack and could be more formidable than last years group that included Matt Moore. Jeff Conner and Xander Dickson will be called to anchor the first midfield unit, and guys like Evan Zinn, Truitt Sunderland and Pete Garno will be asked to fill out those first two lines. On defense, Kastner and Saustad are joined by Quentin Matsui, Grayson Sallade and Richmond Transfer Griffin Kology. Nunes is back in cage to try and improve in his sophomore season (and he wasn't too bad as a freshman either).

VIEW THE BLOG POST

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

When we look at college lacrosse attackmen that are heading to new destinations via the transfer portal in 2023 there is no doubt that Georgetown dominated picking up Tucker Dordevic (Syracuse), Jacob Kelly & Nicky Solomon (North Carolina) and Brian Minicus (Colgate).

Right behind the Hoyas was North Carolina who picked up Sean Goldsmith (Mercer), Logan McGovern (Bryant) and Harry Wellford (Bucknell).

Despite losing Dordevic, Syracuse managed to pick up two veterans  that can play any role on offense in Alex Simmons (Denver) and Cole Kirst (Lehigh).

I think the biggest transfer pickup was had by Jacksonville stealing Dylan Watson from Georgetown.

I'll rip through these guys and many others in the 217th episode of the LaxFactor Lacrosse Podcast.

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

North Carolina commit Brevin Wilson has a “not quite right” way of carrying his stick, which you see a lot in oddball killers that finish far beyond what most players can. Reminds me of a Kavanaugh, small, but you almost never notice his size playing into the game. He’s fully willing and capable of leaning on a defender at a near 45 degree angle to gain leverage and soak up their efforts to be physical.

Willing to sell out to score goals which is a very Kavenaugh-esque trait and that makes him crazy fun to watch because he’s willing to sacrifice his body to get the single.

There is a ton to like about this kid and UNC picked up a solid guy that could outperform his #48 ranking when all is said and done.

*READ THE FULL BLOG POST*

The Premier Lacrosse League has an incredible crop of rookies that have had amazing seasons thus far in 2022. In this 215th episode of the LaxFactor Podcast I'm going to talk about these PLL first years including Brendan Nichtern (Chrome), Logan Wisnauskas (Chrome), Chris Gray (Atlas), Asher Nolting (Cannons), Matt Moore (Archers) and Jack Hannah (Waterdogs).

Each has had a great rookie campaign, but to me, Nichtern and Wisnauskas have stood above the rest.  Both are top 5 in points with Nicthern tied for 2nd in the lead with Teat and Pannell (not bad company). Gray has been great playing alongside Jeff Teat and the duo could be the best two-man tandem in the PLL, at least in terms of youth and production. Nolting has looked solid playing with Lyle Thompson and will likely learn a ton from the GOAT as it relates to carrying the rock and generating for both himself and others. Moore and Hannah have both played very well running out of the box.

Be sure to check out the full blog post here... 

https://www.laxfactor.com/2022/09/pll-rookies-update-nichtern-wisnauskas-lead-nolting-gray-hannah-laxfactor-podcast-215/

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

***SEE THE BLOG POST***

https://www.laxfactor.com/2022/07/maryland-terps-2023-scouting-report/

The Maryland Terps lacrosse squad has been “rinsing and repeating for some time” and for the last few years going into the off-season it was pretty clear who would be leading this team offensively. After Chanenchuk it was Matt Rambo. After Rambo it was Connor Kelly. After Kelly it was Jared Bernhardt. After Bernhardt it was Logan Wisnauskas. Every year, despite whatever losses they were going to have to face, they had a guy that was an obvious choice for “next man up” on the offensive side of the field.

This season, it’s not exactly clear who’s going to be wearing ye old #1. For the first time in a long while, the Terps are losing their top 4 leading scorers, all put up 53 points or more, and Wisnauskas had a whopping 103 points.

I haven’t mentioned the defensive side of the ball because once again, the Terps return a WEALTH of talent on the defensive side of the ball. So no worries there.

But let’s play a new game I’m going to call, Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue. Via that lens, I’ll rip through and will take a deep dive into “what’s next” for the Maryland lacrosse program.

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

Maryland completed the season a perfect 18-0 and gave coach John Tillman his second NCAA Tournament Title by defeating Cornell on Memorial day, 9-7. It was the Terps lowest scoring game of the season as they only put up 9 goals on the day. But their defense held Cornell to just 7 goals, their lowest scoring game of 2022 and that proved to be enough on Monday.

Logan McNaney was named the MVP thanks to his 17 save effort. He made 19 saves in the semi-finals against Princeton and followed that up with an excellent game in the finals at a time when his team needed him most.

Anthony DeMaio (4g, 1a) and Logan Wisnauskas (2g, 2a) paced the Terps offense while CJ Kirst was Cornell's leading scorer with 2 goals and a dish.

Maryland played a pretty impressive tournament. They beat up on Vermont in the first round 21-5.  They followed that up by trouncing Virginia 18-9 in the quarterfinal round, and took down Princeton 13-8 in the national semifinals. At one point on Monday it looked like the Terps were about to run away with the game, but Cornell outscored Maryland 5-2 in the second half, allowing them to tighten things up enough to keep the game interesting, but in the end, a loss is a loss.

RIT topped Union College by two goals in the D3 finals giving RIT their 2nd national title in as many years.

Tampa won the teams first national title by beating Mercy on Sunday.

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...

Our NCAA Lacrosse Finals matchup is set. Cornell will face Maryland on Memorial Day in what will hopefully prove to be a fun game to watch on Monday.

Cornell advanced by beating up on Rutgers 17-10. John Piatelli, Michael Long and CJ Kirst combined for 12 goals and 3 assists on the day, Piatelli was good for 5 goals, Long scored 4 and Kirst put up 3. Each of them had a single assist.

Maryland advanced thanks to a monster day in cage by Logan McNaney. McNaney stopped 19 of the 26 shots he faced on the day and helped hold off Princeton. Keegan Khan was good for 3 goals and 2 assists and Tewaaraton front-runner Logan Wisnauskas put up 4 goals in the victory.

Support the channel, buy some swag...

Watch the show w/ video on YouTube...