Season Preview: Men’s Lacrosse looking to accomplish big things in 2023
By Wes Mayberry
| 2023 Men's Lacrosse Schedule |
ADA — The Ohio Northern men's lacrosse team has posted a winning record in every season since its formation in 2016 and is looking to extend that streak in 2023 under eighth-year head coach Nat St. Laurent.
"I am excited for this group to get going. While we have a lot of players returning on paper, this group is eager to prove themselves this season and has been working hard this preseason," St. Laurent said. "We graduated key players and leaders at each position from last year's team and are looking forward to this year's team building off of last year's success. They are a very capable group that has been fun to work with. This team is very capable of doing big things this year."
The Polar Bears are coming off a 2022 season that saw them finish 12-5 overall, tallying the third-most single-season victories in program history. Northern went 7-2 in the Ohio Athletic Conference to claim the No. 3 seed for the OAC Tournament and proceeded to advance to the semifinals for the second straight season before bowing out to eventual champion John Carroll.
ONU returns six players who started at least 13 games a season ago amongst a group of 36 lettermen on the 2023 roster. That group is highlighted by a trio of 2022 All-OAC selections in seniors Riley O'Neal (Dumfries, Va./Forest Park) and Cole Zaferakis (Liverpool, N.Y.) and junior Sebastian Michaud (Springboro) as well as seniors Nate Mitchell (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) and Alex Reimer (Lancaster, N.Y.) and junior John Lynn (Cincinnati/Sycamore).
Add in junior Aidan Dempsey (Silver Spring, Md./St. John's College), who played for Team Ireland in the World Lacrosse Men's U-21 World Championship last August, and the Polar Bears have five of their top six point-scorers back from a year ago.
In all, ONU's 50-man roster is comprised of nine seniors, 18 juniors, 10 sophomores and 13 freshmen.
Here is a preview of the 2023 Ohio Northern men's lacrosse team, by position.
Attack
Michaud, Dempsey and Reimer lead the Polar Bear attack for 2023 after combining for 96 points last season.
Michaud tied for the team lead with 28 goals and ranked second in assists with 15, giving him a team-best 43 points to go with 29 ground balls en route to being named to the All-OAC Second Team last season. His goal total is fifth-best on the program's all-time single-season list. He recorded five hat tricks in 2022 and has 30 career goals in 20 games with 13 starts.
"Sebastian is a terrific shooter, and when he gets his hands free, he is extremely accurate," St. Laurent said. "We will be counting on him to get the offense going this year."
Dempsey played in all 17 games in 2022, recording 28 points on 21 goals and seven assists along with 22 ground balls. He has 38 points on 26 goals and 12 assists in 26 career games at ONU.
"Aidan had a great summer representing Team Ireland in the World Games," St. Laurent said. "His confidence is very high, and he is developing into a leader on our offense. He loves playing the game, and we are looking forward to him having a big junior year."
Reimer finished last season with 25 points via 17 goals and eight assists and added 16 ground balls in his first year at ONU after transferring from Canisius. He played in 16 games, making 15 starts.
Sophomore Caleb Bennett (New Market, Md./Linganore) also returns after finishing with 18 points on 15 goals and three assists in 16 games as a freshman.
Other returning lettermen at the attack position include sophomore Ian Roy (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Northern) and juniors Zachary Krempasky (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) and Andrew Butera (Perrysburg). That trio combined for nine goals and six assists in 2022.
Freshmen Riley Lich (Palmyra, N.Y./Palmrya-Macedon), Colin Willits (West Chester/Lakota West) and John Hale (West Chester/Lakota West) round out the position group.
Midfield
The Polar Bears boast a deep midfield for 2023 with a group led by O'Neal and Lynn.
O'Neal was an All-OAC Second Team selection last season after starting all 17 games and finishing with 27 points on eight goals and a team-high 19 assists, which ranked eighth in the OAC. The three-year letterman has 36 points via 10 goals and 26 assists in 32 games, including 18 starts, at ONU.
"Riley is a tremendous athlete with great vision," St. Laurent said. "We will be looking for him to be a leader of our offense at the midfield."
Lynn also started all 17 games in 2022 and ranked third on the team in points (29) and goals (22) and had seven assists.
"John has the ability to take a game over," St. Laurent said. "He is a very good shooter and causes tough matchups for teams defensively with his size and ability to score. He had a great fall and terrific preseason."
Senior Tyler Ferguson (Springboro), a team captain and three-year letterman, also returns to the position group after tallying 17 points on 10 goals and seven assists in 2022. In three seasons at ONU, he has 27 points on 14 goals and 13 assists in 26 games, including six starts.
Senior Ryan McClure (Mentor) and junior Andrew Caliri (Lexington, Mass.) each played 13 games and scored four goals last season. McClure, a three-year letterman, has seven career goals in 24 games played. Caliri has 10 goals and one assist in 25 career games.
Junior Bennett Michel (Perrysburg) returns after playing in all 17 games a year ago and has two goals and one assist in 27 career games.
Other returning lettermen who saw action in double-digit games in 2022 include juniors Willy Hanson (Black Earth, Wis./Wisconsin Heights) and Ben Wilson (Dublin/Watterson) and sophomore Will Edkins (Liberty Township/Lakota East).
Juniors Roman Casciani (Zionsville, Ind.), Michael Duffy (Indianapolis, Ind./Bishop Chatard) and Nate Strauf (Pittsford, N.Y./Mendon) and sophomore Matt Wilder (Arlington, Ill./Saint Viator) round out the returning lettermen in the group.
Sophomore John Copes IV (Washington, D.C./Rock Creek Christian) and freshmen Luke Ferro (Bethesda, Md./Chevy Chase), Nathan Flynn (Springboro), Mark Mintzlaff (St. Louis, Mo./Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School), Brydan Pitman (West Chester/Lakota West) and Lance Stevenson (Dublin/Coffman) provide additional depth.
Faceoff
Northern returns a trio of talented players for the faceoff circle in 2023 in juniors Chad Calderwood (West Linn, Ore./Episcopal) and T.J. Smith (Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead) and sophomore Luke Dittus (Liberty Township/St. Xavier).
"Luke and Chad are a great one-two punch at the faceoff. They both have great passions for taking draws and have a way of working together to figure out opponents as the game goes on," St. Laurent said. "T.J. adds a different dimension to the faceoff game that we will look to take advantage of this year, as he has great size and strength. This unit will be relied upon heavily to get our offense the ball."
Dittus and Calderwood led the way for ONU last season with 104 and 90 faceoff victories, respectively, which ranked eighth and ninth in the OAC.
Dittus was 104-for-189 in the circle for a success rate of 55% in 16 games and recorded a program single-game record 17 faceoff victories in an 18-6 win over Muskingum last season. He also finished with a team-high 52 ground balls, which ranks second in program history for a single season.
Calderwood was 90-for-161 in the circle for a success rate of 55.9% in 14 games in 2022. In 27 career games at ONU, he is 163-for-291 for a .560 faceoff percentage. He ranks third all-time in career faceoff percentage and fourth in faceoff victories. Calderwood also has nine career points on two goals and seven assists.
Smith played in 13 games in 2022 and was 22-for-29 in faceoffs for a 75.9% success rate.
Defense
Mitchell leads the returners for the Polar Bear defense after starting all 17 games in 2022 and finishing second on the team with 17 caused turnovers while adding 30 ground balls. The three-year letterman has 50 ground balls and 25 caused turnovers in 37 career games, including 24 starts.
"Nate has one of the best motors on our team and will be relied upon to give this team a spark all season long through his play," St. Laurent said. "He is a competitor that flies around the field. He only has one speed — very fast."
Another three-year letterman, senior Ethan Hojnacki (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) returns as a team captain for 2023 after playing in 16 games a season ago and tallying 24 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers. In 33 career games, he has 39 ground balls and 16 caused turnovers.
"Ethan will be expected to cover opposing teams' top midfielders, play on the wing of faceoffs and on our man-down defensive unit in addition to his leadership role," St. Laurent said. "He likes to be challenged and loves to compete. He will be expected to do just that this year for our program."
Sophomore Joe Keeley (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep) is another key returner for the defense. He played in all 17 games in 2022, posting 18 ground balls and nine caused turnovers.
Other returning lettermen who played in 10-plus games last season include senior Andrew Reimer (Lancaster, N.Y.), junior Grant Butler (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) and sophomore Jack Wasik (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne).
The remaining lettermen returning to the defense include senior Brett Boehm (Brunswick), juniors Gus Mandel (Cincinnati/Seven Hills), Gabriel Paige (Adams, N.Y./South Jefferson) and Max Rosen (Buffalo, N.Y./Central) and sophomore Canon Pfaff (Grafton, Wisc.).
Freshmen Alex Bergeron (Grafton, Mass.), Ian Phillips (Binghamton, N.Y./Seton Catholic Central), Jack Moorma (Worthington/Thomas Worthington) and Rudy DeFilippis (White Plains, N.Y.) round out the position group.
Goalkeeper
Zaferakis, a three-year letterman, leads Northern's group of goalkeepers this season after starting all 17 games and playing over 822 minutes in goal in 2022. Named to Inside Lacrosse's All-Freshman Team in 2020, Zaferakis recorded 111 saves and posted a .485 save percentage and 8.61 GAA en route to earning All-OAC Honorable Mention honors last season. His GAA was third-best in the OAC, and his 12 wins in goal tied the top mark in program history for a single season. His 111 saves rank second in program history for a single season.
The three-time OAC Defensive Player of the Week owns the school record for saves in a game with 19, which he set in his freshman season. Zaferakis has started all 37 games in his career and owns a 24-13 record with 299 saves and 8.79 GAA. He ranks second all-time at ONU in saves, wins and goalie minutes.
Sophomore Robert Brunner (Cincinnati/Indian Hill) and freshman Andrew Elfers (Mason/William Mason) will back up Zaferakis in 2023.
"Cole has had a very good career in goal for our program since the day he arrived on campus," St. Laurent said. "He has stepped up as a leader this year and had one of his best preseasons so far in his career. We are looking for Cole to have a big season for us as he gets challenged each day at practice by Brunner and Elfers."
Schedule
The Polar Bears finished 8-0 at home last season and open their 2023 campaign with home games against Alma (Mich.) on Feb. 18 and Adrian (Mich.) on Feb. 22. They then play seven of their next eight games on the road in a stretch that includes non-conference matchups at DePauw (Ind.), Wittenberg, Bridgewater (Va.), Hampden-Sydney (Va.) and Roanoke (Va.) before returning home to face Trine (Ind.) on March 22.
Northern opens OAC play on March 25 at Mount Union.
The rest of ONU's conference schedule includes home games against John Carroll, Muskingum, Baldwin Wallace and Otterbein and road dates with Heidelberg, Wilmington, Marietta and Capital.
The OAC Tournament is scheduled for April 29 to May 6.