Season Review: 2019 Michigan Men's Lacrosse
6/11/2019 12:00:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
• Team Captains: Tommy Heidt, Nick DeCaprio, Brent Noseworthy, Decker Curran, MJ Melillo
• Record: 4-9 overall, 1-4 Big Ten Conference (T-5th Place)
The University of Michigan men's lacrosse team ended its 2019 season with a bang, knocking off rival No. 10-ranked Ohio State to eliminate the Buckeyes from postseason competition. Senior Nick DeCaprio and sophomore Alex Buckanavage were named second team All-Big Ten, while senior Brent Noseworthy became the program's all-time leading goal scorer with 102.
Team Highlights
• A program-shaping victory came in the final Big Ten game of the season against No. 10-ranked Ohio State, a 13-10 victory in Ann Arbor to close out the season with a 1-4 record in conference play. The win against Ohio State was the first in program history and eliminated the Buckeyes from both Big Ten and NCAA Tournament contention. Michigan began the season with a 3-5 record in non-conference play and ended the season with a 4-9 overall record.
•  The team's 86 assists in 2019 are the second most in program history, and its 148 goals also were second in program annals. U-M finished first in the Big ten in caused turnovers per game (9.50) and man-down defense (.689). The U-M offense finished 35th in the nation in points per game (18.00) and 36th in the nation in assists per game (6.62).
• Michigan's 3-3 record on the road was the second-best road performance in program history (5-3, 2017), with all three road wins coming against non-conference opponents.
• Five NCAA Tournament teams dotted the schedule in No. 1 Penn State, No. 2 Maryland, No. 4 Yale, No. 11 Notre Dame, and No. 18 Johns Hopkins. Both Penn State and Yale reached NCAA Championship weekend. Â
Individual Highlights
• Sophomore Alex Buckanavage and senior Nick DeCaprio earned second team All-Big Ten accolades which marked the first time two U-M players were named to an All-Big Ten team in the same season.
• Buckanavage finished the season tied the U-M single-season record for points (48). He led the team in both goals (25) and assists (23), and became the third player in program history to complete a 20-20 season.
• Buckanavage's 23 assists were the most in a single season in U-M program history. He also led the team in shots (74) and points in conference play (14). Buckanavage finished second on the team with seven multi-goal games after he scored three or more goals five times. He finished eighth in the Big Ten in points per game (3.69) and fifth in assists per game (1.77). He will enter his junior year riding a 17-game point streak.
• DeCaprio was selected 21st overall by the Boston Cannons in the 2019 MLL Draft, the highest selection for a U-M player in program history. The senior captain earned all-conference honors after he finished ninth in the nation in caused turnovers per game (2.08), a total that led the Big Ten. His 27 caused turnovers set a new program record.
• Sophomore attackman Kevin Mack finished second on the team in points (37) and assists (18). The 18 assists placed Mack ninth in the Big Ten in assists per game (1.38). Mack played and started in all 13 games this season for U-M. He will enter his junior year on a 26-game point streak.
• Freshman attackman Bryce Clay ended the season ranked third on the team in goals (22) and fifth in points (28). Clay finished No. 18 in the NCAA for points as a freshman and No. 3 in the Big Ten. He ended the season tied for first on the team with five hat-tricks and finished fifth on the team with eight multiple-point games. Clay was named Big Ten Freshman of the week twice on the season.
• The midfield was led by senior Decker Curran, junior Avery Myers and Noseworthy. Curran finished fourth on the team in points (32) and goals (21), and led the midfield in ground balls (23) and finished second on the team in shots (67). He ended his career at U-M on a 10-game goal streak and finished fourth in the record book in points (106), goals (70) and assists (34). Myers finished second on the team in goals (24) and third in points (34). Myers' offensive exploits improved greatly from the 2018 season, scoring 19 more goals and adding seven more assists.
• Noseworthy was selected 30th overall by the Boston Cannons in the 2019 MLL draft and 23rd overall by Atlas LC in the inaugural Premier Lacrosse League Draft after he scored 102 career goals and is the first player in program history to reach the 100-goal mark. Despite starting only eight games this season due to injury, Noseworthy scored 18 goals -- including two man-up goals.
• Graduate student goalkeeper Tommy Heidt started eight games for U-M in 2019 and made 98 saves, which placed him seventh in the Big Ten in saves per game (9.80). His 23-save performance against Yale was the second-most in program history. Heidt finished with a goals-against average of 13.24. Senior goalie Gunner Garn started the final five games for U-M, totaling 54 saves (7.71 per game) and a 13.81 GAA. In his final game as a Wolverine, Garn made nine saves in a victory over Ohio State (April 26).
• Heidt also took home one of U-M's most prestigious community service awards in the "Let's Go Do" civic engagement award. Aimed at recognizing a student-athlete that supports the growth of the community, Heidt was mainly responsible for organizing U-M's Military Appreciation Day, as well as visits to the local VA Hospital in Ann Arbor.
• Senior Michael Borda finished fourth on the team with 10 caused turnovers, while junior defenseman Finn Goonan finished the season with 30 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers, and freshman defenseman Andrew Darby added 29 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers.
• U-M suffered a rash of injuries at the faceoff dot as the Wolversines lost sophomore Conor Cronin, junior Matt Dellacroce and freshman Nick Rowlett after Noseworthy suffered a lower-body injury that he played with throughout the season. Of the 364 faceoffs U-M took on the season, only 131 were taken by the group. Goonan took the most draws on the campaign with 162.
• Buckanavage and Mack finished the season tied for fifth in career points (79), the most for a rising junior in program history. Mack has scored 40 goals over two seasons, and his 39 assists are the second most in program history. Buckanavage is tied for fifth all-time in goals (44) and is tied for third in career assists (35).
• Myers ended the season ninth all-time in points (53) and eighth in career assists (19). Fellow midfielder Rocco Sutherland, who sat out last season due to injury, stands tied for third all-time in assists (35) and is tied for 11th in career points (47).
Honors and Awards
Tommy
Heidt
Brent
Noseworthy
Alex
Buckanavage
Nick
DeCaprio
Bryce
Clay
Kevin
Mack
Avery
Myers
Decker
Curran
Conference Awards
All-Big Ten: Nick DeCaprio, Alex Buckanavage (second team)
Big Ten Sportsmanship Award: Tommy Heidt
Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week: Nick DeCaprio (April 16)
Big Ten Freshman of the Week: Bryce Clay (March 5, March 23)
Academic All-Big Ten
Hunter Batesko, So., General Studies
Alex Buckanavage, So., General Studies
JD Carroll, So., Sports Management
Nick DeCaprio, Sr., Sports Management
Christian Ford, Jr., Public Policy
Justin Gibbons, Sr., Political Science
Finn Goonan, Jr., Communications
TJ Heagerty, Jr., General Studies
Tommy Heidt, Gr., Social Work
Peter Hollen, Gr., Social Work
Ben Keller, So., Undeclared
Kevin Mack, So., General Studies
Avery Myers, Jr., Sports Management
Brent Noseworthy, Sr., Business Administration
Ben Paris, Sr., Political Science
JM Priddy, Jr., Economics
Austin Robinson, Jr., General Studies
Steven Schneider, So., Undeclared
Brandon Shima, Sr., Political Science
Matt Trowbridge, Jr., Economics
Max Yarranton, So., Political Science
