The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association released its 2024 Division III Blatant Lacrosse Team of the Week accolades on Tuesday, March 12. Players earned recognition from the organization as they each posted exceptional performances in their programs games this past week.
The list of honorees are as follows:
1.Dan Donahue, Goalie, Sr., Weston, Mass. (Union). 36 saves, 66.7 save percentage, 9.00 goals against average, 8 ground balls. Donahue came up huge for #11 Union in wins over #18 Williams and Muhlenberg, making 36 saves. He almost singlehandedly led Union to a win over the Ephs on Wednesday, making 17 saves in the second half while his offense managed only two goals in a 12-11 victory, including a save that preceded the game-winning goal and a stop on the doorstep in the final seconds to seal the win. He added 15 saves in a 17-7 win over the Mules on Saturday.
2.Tyler McCarthy, Defense, Sr., Easton, Pa. (Drew). 10 ground balls, 6 caused turnovers. McCarthy posted 10 ground balls and six caused turnovers in a 2-0 week for the Rangers. In his top performance, he registered four caused turnovers and seven ground balls in a 17-10 victory at Manhattanville. He also notched two CTs and three GBs in a 13-12 win at Merchant Marine.
3.Wes Silver, Defense, Jr., Newton, Mass. (Ohio Wesleyan). 11 ground balls, 9 caused turnovers. Caused two turnovers and picked up two ground balls to help protect lead after Ohio Wesleyan had taken a 10-9 lead in the fourth quarter of a win at John Carroll, and finished the game with five caused turnovers and four ground balls. Earlier in the week, had seven GBs and 4 CTs in a win vs. St. Vincent.
4.Matthew Paolatto, Faceoff Specialist, Sr., Sherborn, Mass. (Union). 3 goals, 82.6 faceoff percentage (38-46), 23 ground balls, 1 caused turnover. Paolatto had a fantastic week for #11 Union, winning 38-of-46 faceoffs (82.6 percent) while grabbing 23 ground balls and scoring three goals in two victories. The senior was nearly perfect in Wednesday’s 12-11 win at #18 Williams, winning 21-of-23 draws and scoring on both shots while picking up 12 ground balls. He then won 17-of-23 faceoffs with 11 ground balls and a goal in a 17-7 win over Muhlenberg on Saturday.
5.Braydon Ellis, Midfield, So., Piedmond, Calif. (Colorado College). 9 goals, 1 assist, 1 ground ball. Ellis led the Tigers to a pair of wins with nine goals and an assist as the team’s most dynamic player in the midfield. He scored six times on seven shots while adding an assist in a 19-13 win over Baldwin Wallace and scored on all three shots in a win over DeSales.
6.Luke Nestor, Midfield, Sr., Salisbury, Md. (Salisbury). 6 goals. Luke Nestor powered the top-ranked Sea Gulls in a 17-11 victory over #10 York (Pa.), scoring a career-high six goals on just eight shots and putting seven of his eight looks on target.
7.Anthony Porter, Midfield, Gr., Scotch Plains, N.J. (Kean). 5 goals, 8 assists, 4 ground balls, 1 faceoff win. Porter posted 13 points on eight assists and five goals in a 2-0 week for the Cougars. After scoring once with three assists in a win over Emmanuel, he totaled nine points on five assists and four goals in a victory over Emerson.
8.Alex Brown, Attack, Sr., Norwalk, Conn. (Washington & Lee). 5 goals, 3 ground balls, 2 caused turnovers. Brown had a huge day in leading #12 Washington & Lee to a 15-8 win over #7 Gettysburg on Saturday. He tallied five points, all on goals, and recorded four of his scores in the first half to help the team build up an 8-1 lead at the time of his fourth goal. Brown also added three ground balls and two caused turnovers in the team’s first win in Gettysburg since 2001.
9.Trevor Dzama, Attack, Sr., Livingston, N.J. (Moravian). 9 goals, 8 assists, 3 ground balls. Dzama helped Moravian to a 2-0 week with nine goals and eight assists during the week. He had five goals and four assists in a 15-12 win over Albright, and added three goals and four assists in a 10-9 win at Immaculata.
10.Luke Murphy, Attack, Gr., Scituate, Mass. (RPI). 10 goals, 3 assists, 2 ground balls. Murphy's 13 points helped RPI to two wins on the week to stay undefeated at 7-0. Against #6 Middlebury he led all players with seven points (6G, 1A) and shot an impressive 55 percent. Three days later he backed up that performance with a six-point effort, scoring on 4-of-5 on-target shots.