NEWTOWN, Pa. – The Lebanon Valley College men's lacrosse team garnered recognition from the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) on Thursday, May 7, as the conference office announced in a release that five of the program's student-athletes were selected to the 2026 All-MAC Freedom Men's Lacrosse Team.
Sophomore attackman Ryan Grace was named to the First Team, while senior midfielder Hayden Carling and first-year midfielder Brayden Brown were both listed on the Second Team. Additionally, senior defenseman Jacob LaRue and first-year midfielder Connor Rowe were selected as Honorable Mentions. Rowe was honored as a faceoff specialist.
Grace was named to the All-MAC Freedom First Team for the first time in his career, following an excellent first season with the Dutchmen. The sophomore led Lebanon Valley with 73 points, 4.06 points per game, 47 goals, 2.61 goals per game, 26 assists, and 1.44 assists per game, while ranking second on the team with three game-winning goals and third with three man-up goals. The attackman also had 11 caused turnovers and registered 36 ground balls. In the MAC Freedom, Grace ranked third in goals per game, fourth in points per game, and tied for sixth in assists per game. The sophomore delivered several impactful performances during the campaign, such as when he recorded a career-high eight points with three goals, including the game-winner, and a career-high five assists in the 15-10 victory over Goucher College on Feb. 28. The attackman also scored a career-high five goals and dished out two assists for seven points during the 21-5 win at Albright College on Feb. 25 and the 16-5 win over King's College on April 18. Grace was honored during the season for his production, as he was named the MAC Freedom Offensive Player of the Week on March 3.
Carling collected All-Conference honors for the first time in his career after a big senior year for the Flying Dutchmen. The midfielder ranked second on the team with 21 assists, second with five man-up goals, third with 44 points, third with two game-winning goals, and tied for fourth with 23 goals. Carling also registered 19 ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers. The senior came through with multiple big games throughout the year, including when he recorded a career-high six points by tying career-highs with three goals and three assists in both the 23-12 victory over Wilkes University on March 7, and the 18-6 win over Neumann University on April 4. The midfielder also netted the game-winner against Wilkes. Additionally, Carling logged five points by tying a career-high three goals and dishing out two assists, while causing a turnover in the dominant victory at Albright. Carling led the team to one of its biggest victories on the season with the two goals, including the game0winning goal, and one assist in the 9-7 victory at Arcadia on April 22.
Brown earned his first career All-Conference accolades for delivering a strong debut campaign for LVC. The first-year recorded 29 points by scoring 20 goals with a game-winner and nine assists. Brown also logged 26 ground balls and six caused turnovers. The midfielder's top games of the season included when he tallied a season-high five points with a season-high three goals and two assists, while causing a turnover and picking up a ground ball in the 23-2 victory over Delaware Valley University on April 8. Brown also tied a season-high three goals and dished out an assist for four points, in addition to picking up three ground balls in the postseason-clinching 12-7 win at Misericordia University on April 25.
LaRue was chosen to the All-MAC Freedom Team for the first time in his career, due to his strong performances for on the defensive end in his senior season. The defenseman ranked second on the team with 14 caused turnovers, while also picking up 26 ground balls. LaRue's production on the defensive end was instrumental in LVC allowing just 8.65 goals per game during the regular season, which ranked second in the conference. The senior was a pivotal performer during multiple wins this year, including when he tallied a career-high three caused turnovers and picked up three ground balls in the 18-6 victory over FDU-Florham on April 15. LaRue also matched a career-high four ground balls in the win over Delaware Valley.
Rowe received All-MAC Freedom recognition for the first time in his collegiate career, following a stellar debut season. The first-year led the Dutchmen with 203 faceoff wins, 101 ground balls, and 5.61 ground balls per game. He also tallied a .590 faceoff winning percentage, seven points, six goals, one assist, and five caused turnovers. In the MAC Freedom, Rowe ranked third in faceoff winning percentage and fifth in ground balls per game. The first-year's top efforts of the season included when he broke the single-game program record with a season-high 23 faceoff wins, while tying a season-high 11 ground balls and scoring a goal in the victory over Wilkes. The midfielder also won 21 faceoffs and set a season-high 11 ground balls in the win over Goucher. He won 16 out of 18 faceoffs in the Senior Day victory over King's and 17 out of 21 faceoff attempts in the team's playoff-clinching win at Misericordia. Rowe was presented with a pair of awards during the campaign, being named the MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Week twice.
The 2026 All-MAC Freedom Men's Lacrosse Team and major award winners are listed below.
2026 All-MAC Freedom Men's Lacrosse Team
Attackman of the Year: Matt Pergola, Stevens
Midfielder of the Year: Adam DeCristofaro, Stevens
Defenseman of the Year: Luke Lesizza, Stevens
Specialist of the Year: Will Giarrusso, Arcadia
Goalie of the Year: Michael Jannotte, Stevens
Co-Rookie of the Year: Jack Simone, Misericordia
Co-Rookie of the Year: Michael Jannotte, Stevens
Coach of the Year: Gene Peluso, Stevens
FIRST TEAM
| Position |
Name |
Year |
School |
| Attack |
Ryan Grace |
Sophomore |
Lebanon Valley |
| Attack |
Jake Hurd |
Senior |
DeSales |
| Attack |
Matthew Pergola |
Senior |
Stevens |
| Attack |
Jack Simone |
First-Year |
Misericordia |
| Attack |
Jack Tenaglia |
Sophomore |
Stevens |
| Midfield |
Adam DeCristofaro |
Sophomore |
Stevens |
| Midfield |
Dylan Garber |
Senior |
Arcadia |
| Midfield |
Jackson Penn |
Junior |
Stevens |
| Midfield |
Mark Winkler |
Senior |
DeSales |
| Defender |
John Flynn |
Sophomore |
Stevens |
| Defender |
Luke Lesizza |
Senior |
Stevens |
| Defender |
Taylor Wikert |
Senior |
DeSales |
| Long Pole Midfield |
Tynan Murray |
First-Year |
Stevens |
| Short Stick Specialist |
Will Giarrusso |
Senior |
Stevens |
| Short Stick Specialist |
Gavin Lenart |
Senior |
Arcadia |
| Faceoff Specialist |
Bastian Chorazykiewicz |
Sophomore |
Stevens |
| Goalie |
Michael Jannotte |
First-Year |
Stevens |
SECOND TEAM
| Position |
Name |
Year |
School |
| Attack |
Tristan Johnson |
Senior |
Arcadia |
| Attack |
TJ Kearns |
Sophomore |
DeSales |
| Attack |
Will Labartino |
Graduate Student |
Stevens |
| Midfield |
Brayden Brown |
First-Year |
Lebanon Valley |
| Midfield |
Hayden Carling |
Senior |
Lebanon Valley |
| Midfield |
Chris Ciccarello |
Graduate Student |
Stevens |
| Midfield |
Ty Murawski |
Junior |
Misericordia |
| Defender |
Xander Borowski |
First-Year |
DeSales |
| Defender |
Danny D'Amato |
Senior |
Misericordia |
| Defender |
Jack Keenan |
Senior |
Arcadia |
| Long Pole Midfield |
Braydon Buckingham |
Sophomore |
King's |
| Short Stick Specialist |
Joe Cieleski |
Senior |
DeSales |
| Faceoff Specialist |
Colin Brockman |
Sophomore |
Arcadia |
| Goalie |
AJ Ardizone |
Junior |
DeSales |
HONORABLE MENTION
| Position |
Name |
Year |
School |
| Midfield |
Blake Finnegan |
First-Year |
DeSales |
| Defender |
Jacob LaRue |
Senior |
Lebanon Valley |
| Long Pole Midfield |
Alden Cathey |
Sophomore |
Arcadia |
| Faceoff Specialist |
Connor Rowe |
First-Year |
Lebanon Valley |
| Goalie |
Leyton Sullivan |
Sophomore |
Misericordia |
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