2024 All-NCAC Men's Lacrosse Team Released

CLEVELAND, OH - The Denison senior duo of Luke Fisher (Alexandria, VA/St. Stephens & St. Agnes) and Brooks Crowley (Hunting Valley, OH/University School), along with Kenyon junior Thomas Nelson (Minneapolis, MN/The Blake School) were named the Players of the Year to highlight the 2024 All-North Coast Athletic Conference men's lacrosse team after balloting by the league coaches.
 
Fisher collected his second-straight and third overall NCAC Offensive Player of the Year award after earning the accolade in both 2023 and 2021, along with being named the Newcomer of the Year during his rookie campaign. The senior captured the Big Red's eighth overall Offensive Player of the Year award and fourth-straight honor with Cam Bowdy claiming the award in the 2022 season. Fisher also earned his fourth All-NCAC certificate this spring after previously claiming first-team certificates in 2023 and 2021 and second-team laurels in 2022. In eight conference games, the attacker tied for the league lead in goals with 32 and recorded an NCAC-high 20 assists and 52 points. Fisher also scooped up 22 ground balls and caused six turnovers in conference action. Across 19 games, he leads the NCAC with 103 points, 63 goals and 40 assists, to go along with 51 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers. He scored at least one goal in every league game, including five games in which he netted at least four goals, highlighted by a season high eight-goal performance against Kenyon on March 23. Fisher is 17th in points per game (5.42) and 30th in goals per game (3.32) in Division III.
 
Crowley, making his third-consecutive appearance on the All-NCAC first team, is the fifth overall Denison player to earn the NCAC Defensive Player of the Year award, and the first since Chris Broderick claimed the honor in 2019. The senior helped lead a Big Red defensive unit that allowed 7.88 goals-per-game in league play and 9.21 through 19 overall games. Crowley served as Denison's top close defender and cover man, as he guarded every NCAC team's top attack man and propelled the Big Red to a perfect 8-0 record in conference play. The senior gathered 14 ground balls and caused six turnovers in NCAC action. In 19 overall games, he caused 21 turnovers and accumulated 34 ground balls, while also contributing in the offensive zone with one assist.
 
Nelson, who elevates to the All-NCAC first team after consecutive second-team honors in each of the past two seasons, earned the NCAC Specialist of the Year Award after dominating his opponents at the faceoff x this season. He is the first-ever Owl player to earn the honor. The junior won 115-of-169 attempts for a .680 average through eight conference games. He posted double-digit wins at the faceoff x in seven of the eight league matchups, including four games in which he collected 15 victories at the x, highlighted by a 20-faceoff victory effort against Ohio Wesleyan on April 13. Nelson also collected 10 or more ground balls in six NCAC games, highlighted by 15 against Wittenberg on April 17. In 19 games this season, he posted a Kenyon single-season record of 271 faceoff victories in 398 attempts for a .681 average, while scooping up a program single-season record of 189 ground balls. Nelson is eighth in faceoff winning percentage (.681) and 15th in ground balls per game (9.95) in NCAA Division III.
 
Wooster senior defender Casey Steffen (Danville, CA/Monte Vista) joins Fisher and Crowley as a repeat selection to the first team from a season ago after also collecting a first-team nod in 2021, while Ohio Wesleyan junior defender Wes Silver (Newton, MA/Newton North) continued his upward trajectory after elevating to the first team from a second-team selection in 2023 and a third-team nod in 2022. Denison junior attack Tommy Quinson (Rye Brook, NY/Brunswick School) and Ohio Wesleyan junior goalkeeper Nathan George (Gainesville, VA/Battlefield) made the jump to the top team from the  third team a season ago.

Six men's lacrosse players make their All-NCAC debuts on the top team this year, including two Denison seniors: midfielder Nick Vance (Annapolis, MD/Archbishop Spalding) and short-stick defensive midfielder Jack Sload (Evanston, IL/Evanston Township), Ohio Wesleyan junior long-stick midfielder Anthony Fresolone (Marblehead, MA/Kimball Union Academy (NH)) and Battling Bishop freshmen, attack Wade Beckstrom (Devon, PA/Conestoga) and midfielder Henry Ross (Snoqualmie, WA/Mount Si), along with Wooster junior midfielder Will Fink (Western Springs, IL/Lyons Township).
 
In addition to first-team honors, Beckstrom was named the 2024 NCAC Newcomer of the Year as the league's top player in his first year of collegiate competition. He is the 14th Bishop to earn the NCAC's Newcomer of the Year Award, and first since junior teammate Joey Wiseman (Powell, OH/Olentangy Liberty) collected the award in 2022. In eight league games, the rookie led OWU with 21 goals, 16 assists and 37 points, which ranked him in the top six of the NCAC in all three categories. The attack man recorded at least one point in all eight NCAC matchups, including four or more points in six different NCAC matchups this season, highlighted by two eight-point performances against Wabash (5G, 3A) on April 9th and Wooster (4G, 4A) on April 17th. Through 16 games, Beckstrom tallied a team-high 44 goals, 19 assists and 63 points.

Ohio Wesleyan claimed the 2024 Coaching Staff of the Year honors, the 15th coaching award in program history. The Bishops are led by head coach Mike Plantholt and assistants Nico Brands and Matt Rice. The OWU squad was guided to a near-perfect 7-1 NCAC record and an overall mark of 11-5. In eight conference games, the Bishops scored 128 goals (16.00/game), tied for the league lead with 79 assists and totaled the second most points in the NCAC with 207. Against NCAC foes, OWU caused 98 turnovers (12.25/game), won 93 faceoffs (.542), scooped up 328 ground balls (41.00/game), and an NCAC-best .583 save percentage and 6.25 goals-against average. Overall, the squad tallied 218 goals, 117 assists, 335 points, 608 ground balls, 179 caused turnovers, and a .559 faceoff winning percentage and save percentage, while posting a league-low 7.88 goals-against average. The Battling Bishops currently rank 14th in all of Division III in scoring defense (7.88).

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