Members of the BU Terriers lacrosse team, Patriot League’s 2023 regular season champions, celebrate after a goal against Lehigh April 22. Photo by Eliza Nuestro

Lacrosse

Men’s Lacrosse Looks for Patriot League Championship Repeat

Terriers are 7-1 in conference play as they prepare to host Loyola Maryland in semifinal game May 5

For the second consecutive season and the second time in program history, the No. 13 Boston University men’s lacrosse team has finished 2023 as the Patriot League regular season champions. With a 7-1 record and the conference lead in scoring—113 goals, with 14.13 goals per game—the Terriers are preparing to defend their 2022 Patriot League title, starting with the Patriot League semifinal Friday, May 5, against Loyola Maryland at Nickerson Field. 

It may feel like déjà vu for the Terriers, who also finished 7-1 last season, when they led the conference in nearly every goal-scoring metric. That season ended with the Terriers capturing their first Patriot League title in program history—a feat they’re hoping to accomplish again.

“We’re excited that it’s the championship season and we put ourselves in a good place,” head coach Ryan Polley says. “I think we took a big step last year to win the regular season and then follow it up with the tournament win and advanced to the NCAA tournament. This year, our goal is to qualify for the NCAA tournament and see if we can get farther than we did last year. We’re looking forward to playing our best lacrosse of the year.”

There’s good reason why the Terriers have sustained their success this year. The team retained 7 graduate students and 14 current seniors from last year’s championship-winning squad, including 2023 repeat First-Team All-Patriot League seniors Vince D’Alto (COM’23), Roy Meyer (Questrom’23), and Patrick Morrison (CAS’23). They’re joined by 2022 Patriot League tournament MVP and captain Louis Perfetto (Questrom’23), who made the All-Patriot League team for the first time this year.

Earlier this week, Meyer was also named this year’s winner of the E. Ray Speare Award, presented annually to a senior chosen as the top male scholar-athlete, combining both academic achievement and athletic ability.

He is the second consecutive men’s lacrosse athlete to win the award—goaltender Matt Garber (MET’24) won last year—and the third program player to win it over the past four years. 

The Second-Team All-Patriot League includes graduate student, captain, and second-time selection Timmy Ley (CGS’20, COM’22, SHA’23), as well as first-time honorees, senior captain Thomas Niedringhaus (Questrom’23) and junior Tommy Bourque (CAS’24). The Terriers’ seven All-Patriot League team honorees are tied for the conference lead.

“Last year’s team goal was to win the Patriot League championship,” Niedringhaus says. “We brought back a lot of grad students, so the motivation this year was to take it a step further and keep building on the dream that we all believed in when we were all recruited here—trying to win the national championship.”

The Terriers were tabbed as preseason favorites in January, an honor that painted a target on the back of the defending champions and fueled them to their first-place season. 

“Obviously, preseason recognition is a nice thing to have, but it’s not a must-have,” Niedringhaus says. “I think the opinion that really mattered to us was the opinion in our locker room.”

BU’s sole loss in 2022 came at the hands of then-No.14/16 Army West Point, 15-14, in the final game of the regular season at Nickerson Field. This season, BU once again had Army as the last game of the schedule, this time played at Michie Stadium in West Point, N.Y. 

It was the Terriers who reigned victorious over the Black Knights this year, besting the top-10 ranked team 12-11. Niedringhaus scored the game-winning goal with less than three minutes left in the game.

“The late goal against Army was a pretty cool one,” Niedringhaus says. “I got in the short-stick matchup that we liked and associate head coach [Mike] Silipo was nice enough to let me get the opportunity to try and put the ball into the back of the net. But it wouldn’t have been possible without the other five guys on the field.” 

The Terriers’ only loss this season occurred March 31 against No. 4 seeded Navy. 

The Terriers will host No. 5 seed Loyola Maryland today, Friday, May 5, in the Patriot League semifinal, set to begin at 4 pm at Nickerson Field. The Terriers won their regular season matchup against the Greyhounds April 15, 16-9. 

“They’ve been the class of the league for so long,” Polley says of Loyola Maryland. “They’ve had some big wins this year, so we have our work cut out for us there. They’re a formidable opponent.” But, he says, the Terriers once again hosting the Patriot League tournament on their home turf gives them an advantage.

“Our fan base and the support that we received last year from our alumni, families, and fans of BU lacrosse was incredible,” Polley says. “The guys fed off the energy and I really believe there is a home field advantage. So, we’re hoping that we get lots of alums and families back. Hopefully, some of the student body will come and check us out and cheer us on, as well.”

The No. 1 seeded BU men’s lacrosse team will play No. 5 seeded Loyola Maryland in the Patriot League semifinal Friday, May 5, at 4 pm on Nickerson Field. The other semifinal game, between No. 2 seeded Army West Point and No. 3 seeded Lehigh will take place at 7 pm Friday on Nickerson Field. The winners of both games will meet in the championship game on Sunday, May 7, at noon on Nickerson Field. All games are free for students with a Sports Pass. Admission to both semifinal games for those without a Sports Pass is $8. Admission to Sunday’s championship game for those without a Sports Pass is $8. Packages for all three games are $12. Free tickets are available for BU faculty and staff who register in advance here. All games will be streamed via CBS Sports Network.