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Complete Patriot League Release
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – For the second straight season, Lehigh men’s lacrosse senior Mike Sisselberger has been named Patriot League Faceoff Specialist of the Year, while Sisselberger and four other Mountain Hawks garnered All-Patriot League recognition, as announced on Monday. Graduate student Teddy Leggett and sophomore Scott Cole were also named to the first team while graduate student James Spence and senior Tommy Schelling received second-team honors.
This marks the fourth straight season (in which postseason awards were given) that the Mountain Hawks have had at least five All-League honorees.
Sisselberger stands fourth nationally in faceoff percentage, winning 62.5 percent (193-of-309) with 114 groundballs. He’s also third in the nation in groundballs per game (8.77). Sisselberger has won Patriot League Faceoff Specialist of the Week three times in 2022 to increase his already league record to nine in his career. One of 25 Tewaaraton Award nominees, Sisselberger won 18-of-22 against Navy in the Patriot League opener, 17-of-25 at Army West Point and 20-of-27 vs. Bucknell. He opened the season with a dominant 14-of-16 effort at NJIT and also won 20-of-26 against Holy Cross. He’s also up to 298 career groundballs, on the verge of becoming just the third player in program history to reach 300. His 193 faceoff wins are fourth in Lehigh men’s lacrosse history.
Leggett was named first team All-League for the first time in his career, after garnering second-team laurels in 2018, 2019 and 2021 (no awards were given after the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign). This season, Leggett owns 48 groundballs and a team-leading 22 caused turnovers, seeing significant time at both close defense and long-stick midfield. He was named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week following six groundballs in a win over Bucknell – his fourth straight game with 6+ GBs (which he hadn’t done previously). Leggett had six groundballs and five caused turnovers against Holy Cross, six groundballs and four caused turnovers against Georgetown (who is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation), and seven groundballs and two caused turnovers at rival Lafayette. As a team, the Mountain Hawks stood seventh nationally in scoring defense (giving up 9.69 goals per game).
Cole has enjoyed a breakout season, and one of the best seasons for a midfielder in program history. He stands second on the team in goals (27) and third in points (35). He’s tallied a career-high five points on two occasions – recording three goals and two assists against Bucknell and last Friday at Loyola. Cole has multiple points in 12-of-13 games this season, including eight multi-goal games. He’s scored at least one goal in every contest. In the second game of the season, he exploded for a career-high four goals at Hobart. As a first year, Cole posted 11 goals and two assists in 12 games.
Schelling earned his second straight All-League honor, after receiving first-team recognition as a junior. This season, Schelling leads the Mountain Hawks in assists (35) and points (55) – both career highs. He’s had at least one point in all 13 games, with multiple points in 12 of them. Schelling ended the regular season with six consecutive games with 5+ points, tallying 13 goals and 18 assists in that stretch. Schelling’s 2.69 assists per game are second in the Patriot League and eighth nationally, while his 4.23 points per contest are fifth in the league and 30th in the nation.
Spence was named All-League for the first time in his career. He was named an honorable mention All-American last season. Spence stands eighth in the country (and second in the league) with a 9.80 goals against average; he’s the anchor of a Lehigh defense that’s seventh nationally in scoring defense (9.69). Spence is also 27th in the nation with a 53.0 save percentage. Like Schelling, he’s played his best down the stretch, posting at last 12 saves in each of his last five games. Spence made 14 saves, allowing just nine goals against Boston University before following with 15 saves, including many spectacular stops, at Loyola Friday. Over his last five games, Spence has 67 saves, allowing just 50 goals.
The fourth-seeded Mountain Hawks return home on Tuesday night to host No. 5 seed Navy at 7 pm in the Patriot League Quarterfinals. The winner will advance to Friday’s semifinal round, hosted by top seed Boston University.
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2022 Men’s Lacrosse Major Awards
Offensive Player of the Year – Brendan Niern, Army West Point, Sr., A
Defensive Player of the Year Roy Meyer, Boston University, Jr., LSM
Faceoff Specialist of the Year – Mike Sisselberger, Lehigh, Sr., FO
Goalkeeper of the Year Matt Garber, Boston University, Sr., GK
Rookie of the Year Connor Davis, Bucknell, Fr., A
The William Lawson Coach of the Year Ryan Polley, Boston University
2022 Men’s Lacrosse All-Patriot League Teams
* Student-athletes are listed by position, then alphabetically by school
first team
Brendan Niern, Army West Point, Sr., A
Vince D’Alto, Boston University, Sr., A
Brian Minicus, Colgate, Sr., A
Kevin Lindley, Loyola Maryland, Gr., A
Bobby Abshire, Army West Point, Sr., M
Jake Cates, Boston University, Sr., M
Scott Cole, Lehigh, So., M
Patrick Skalniak, Navy, Jr., M
Patrick Morrison, Boston University, Jr., D
Chris Conlin, Holy Cross, Sr., D
Teddy Leggett, Lehigh, Gr., D
Jackson Bonitz, Navy, So., D
Mike Sisselberger, Lehigh, Sr., FO
Roy Meyer, Boston University, Jr., LSM
Payton Rezanka, Loyola Maryland, Sr., SSDM
Matt Garber, Boston University, Sr., GK
second team
Timmy Ley, Boston University, Sr., A
Peter Lehman, Lafayette, So., A
Tommy Schelling, Lehigh, Sr., A
Aidan Olmstead, Loyola Maryland, Gr., A
Jack Morin, Army West Point, Jr., M
Harry Wellford, Bucknell, Sr., M
Seth Higgins, Loyola Maryland, So., M
Evan James, Loyola Maryland, Jr., M
AJ Pilate, Army West Point, Fr., D
Donny Gayhart, Colgate, Jr., D
Matt Hughes, Loyola Maryland, Gr., D
Cam Wyers, Loyola Maryland, Sr., D
Conor Calderone, Boston University, Jr., FO
Ryan McNulty, Loyola Maryland, Gr., LSM
James Pryor, Army West Point, Sr., SSDM
James Spence, Lehigh, Gr., GK
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