2025 College Lacrosse Season Preview: Maryland

After losing in the NCAA Championship game to Notre Dame in 2024, can Maryland return to the title game and win it in 2025?

Why the terps could win it all in 2025

It’s Maryland.

Whenever there’s a team led by John Tillman, the Terps are always a threat to go all the way.

Even though they didn't nearly play their best lacrosse in the regular season in 2024, the Terps turned it on in May to make it to the finals against Notre Dame.

In 2025, I expect the Terps won’t be okay with just making it to the finals - they want to bring it home.

a look at the returners

I don’t want to say a lot of the season hinges on if junior attacker Braden Erksa can perform at a Tewaaraton finalist level this season, because we saw Maryland make the finals last year when that wasn’t the case.

But if Erksa can elevate his game even more as a junior, he’s the go-to guy in this offense.

One of my favorite players to watch when healthy, Erksa is so smooth and can attack from X with both hands. 

Still, Maryland has a lot of pieces to figure out offensively between talented graduate transfers and freshman, so I’ll give my best shot at what an offense could look like come May 2025.

Attack - Spencer Ford, Braden Erksa, Daniel Kelly/Matthew Keegan

There are a lot of options to mix and match this attack unit, which is what I think will happen early on in the season. While Eric Spanos was a standout at attack late in the season in 2024, I think freshman Spencer Ford makes perfect sense on the right side, which would allow Spanos to slide back to midfield. Ford is a highly-ranked freshman who has the potential to rack up goals off-ball. And when you think about all the Terps teams in the past, there's always been an off-ball finisher from Jay Carlson, to Dylan Maltz, to Louis Dubick, to Daniel Maltz. Ford could be next in the line for that role, and he can dodge as well. Erksa at X goes without question, and I think Daniel Kelly should get the nod on the left side after a stellar run in the NCAA tournament last season, but don’t count out Matthew Keegan as well. The lefty shooter transfer from Binghamton has some serious range and would be a nice 4th attacker off the bench as well as a lefty shooter on the EMO.

First Midfield - Eric Spanos, Elijah Stobaugh, Noah Armitage

After losing Jack Koras, Ryan Siracusa, Owen Murphy and Jack Brennan to graduation, the Terps have a lot of retooling to do in regards to their midfield. While Spanos could thrive at attack, he’s also the best midfielder on this team. He can use his strength to create shots off the dribble, but also has a fun slickness to his game that is evident in his inside finishing ability. He also showed he could be the guy at X late last season if needed. 

Stobaugh is someone I’m super excited about. The sophomore appeared in 13 games last season as a freshman with minimal production, but has considerable upside. The lefty has good size and is dangerous shooting on the run with his left hand. He has an opportunity to become a top option in an uncertain midfield room.

Armitage I think would be a perfect third option for this line. The Stony Brook graduate transfer has good size and a box lacrosse background; he's a physical dodger and good finisher as you would expect.

Second Midfield - Zach Whittier, Thomas Gravino, Bryce Ford

Zach Whittier has played two years on the second midfield line and I expect him to lead the charge here again in 2025, although if he could return to 2023 when he had 20 points (11G, 9A), that would be a huge plus for the Terps.

If he doesn’t see time at attack, I would expect transfer Bryce Ford, who racked up 162 points at Fairfield, to see some run at midfield for the Terrapins.

Thomas Gravino is someone I thought super highly of as a recruit and could see him making an impact on the second midfield line. He’s athletically gifted and glides with the ball in his stick on offense or in the middle of the field. He can shoot it with either hand, and like Stobaugh, seems like a prime candidate to break out in this midfield room.

Third Midfield - John Draley, Jack Dowd, Johnny Gardiner, Luca Ward

I wouldn’t be surprised to see highly-rated freshmen Johnny Gardiner and John Draley to see early minutes while Jack Dowd is a stretch-shooter by way of Salisbury who can bring it with either hand. Expect to see Dowd on the EMO as well. Luca Ward is an intriguing player; he transferred from Holy Cross after a strong freshman year posting 16 points (11G, 5A). 

Again, this is my best guess at how an offense could look, and likely won’t accurately reflect how the Terps lineup. 

Defense might be an easier prediction.

Logan McNaney returns for yet another year in net, but Brian Ruppel is not only a terrific backup, but more than capable of stepping into a starting role as we saw in 2023 if needed.

Colin Burlace and Will Schaller return to lead the backline, and then have a multitude of options to fill the 3rd and 4th spot including graduate student Jackson Canfield, junior Riley Reese, sophomore Trey Brown, and freshmen Peter Laake and Kyle Eggebraten. Regardless of who steps up, this unit seems like it’s in pretty good hands.

At LSM, Jack McDonald and AJ Larkin have the top two spots locked down, but don’t be surprised to see Trevor Owens, a 6-foot-6, 230 pound freshman, see some early run here too.

Eric Kolar and George Stamos return as the top two SSDM’s while senior Geordy Holmes and fifth-year Alex Wicks could see run here too. I’m excited to see what Bowdoin transfer and two-time USILA D3 SSDM of the Year Zack Goorno can contribute as well.

Biggest Question Marks

who will lead the faceoff unit?

Luke Wierman was an absolute game-changer for the Terps, and one of the best faceoff men in Terps history. Who replaces him? I expect it to be a committee-type approach. Senior Shea Keethler went 12-20 in his only start last season against Brown, so he’ll look to be the main guy at the dot, but sophomore Sean Creter and Mitch Lloyd will look to provide support as well.

who steps up at the midfield?

There’s a lot of unknowns at the midfield, and there will be even more so if Spanos ends up starting at attack rather than midfield. Like I said earlier, sophomores Stobaugh and Gravino are my two bets to really break out here while transfers  Armitage, Ford and Dowd could provide a veteran presence early on. But don’t count out early contributions from freshmen Gardiner and Draley, as well as others not listed here. The point remains that someone, even multiple players, need to step up and provide some offensive pop to supplement the contributions of the attack unit and Spanos.

Final Thoughts

Like I said earlier, any Terrapins team led by John Tillman has a chance to go all the way. The offense was the issue for Maryland last year, and while they found their stride in the NCAA tournament, I’d like to see more consistency and more production from their secondary guys. Braden Erksa, Eric Spanos and Daniel Kelly should rack up points, but who can be other go-to options in key scenarios?

Defensively, I think the Terps will be one of the more organized units in the nation. They lose their USILA Player of the Year in Ajax Zappitello, but I’m confident in the leadership of Colin Burlace and Will Schaller and they depth they have behind, as well as McNaney between the pipes.

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