Three Men's Lacrosse Programs Earn National Rankings
Contributions by Madelynne Dalton
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Harford Fighting Owls continue to sit atop the men's lacrosse rankings in the latest NJCAA poll. They clinched the number one spot in preseason and have not moved. The Fighting Owls played a Region 20 contest against Howard Community College and defeated them 18-5, showing their depth and power with eight different players tallying a goal. The Fighting Owls currently have an undefeated record of 4-0 with an impressive 105 goals scored and only 16 goals against them. Kohl Wesner leads the Fighting Owls with 19 goals and six assists. Goalkeepers Alex Epple and Collin Fohner have split time between the pipes. Epple has allowed seven goals for 3.43 goals against average and Fohner has surrendered nine goals for a 4.60 average. Epple is second in the country for both save percentage and goals against average. Harford defeated No. 5 ranked Genesee on March 16 and begin Region 20 competition on March 30 at Anne Arundel. They will play the remaining ranked teams in April beginning with CCBC Essex on April 5th, Onondaga on April 13 and closing with No. 2 Nassau on April 20.
Harford is joined by the Knights from CCBC Essex in the rankings. The Knights were ranked number four in this year's preseason poll. Their diligent efforts and hard work allowed them to move up to third place within one week. With a 5-1 overall record, they have only dropped one game. The Knights opening week loss to Army Prep came after a hard-fought game in which both teams had close leads. The final score was 17–14. They responded with a 13-10 win over Genesee in their next game, earning their boost in the rankings. Ben Nyberg leads CCBC Essex and the country in goals and points with 32 and 43 respectively. These next weeks are big for the Knights as they travel to No. 2 Nassau on March 30 and play a neutral site game against No. 1 Harford on April 5.
Meanwhile, the Howard Community College Dragons may have played the most difficult schedule to date. They were ranked number five in this year's preseason poll and now are in the receiving votes category. With a 2-4 record on the season, Howard opened the season with Navy Prep and Army Prep, two strong teams. The Dragons then fell to No. 1 Harford giving them a 0-3 record to start the 2024 campaign. They bounced back with wins over Anne Arundel and Delaware Tech before traveling to #4 Onondaga for a game they would lose 17-8. Despite already having played two ranked opponents on the year, Howard still has a second matchup with No. 1 Harford, No. 2 Nassau, No. 3 CCBC Essex, and No. 5 Genesee remaining. JT Harich has facilitated 20 goals this year and Joe Patti has accumulated 15 goals to lead Howard's offense. There is still a lot of season left for the Dragons to climb back into the rankings.