Scots Land Six on All-NCAC Team

2014 All-NCAC Team

Following its first 10-win season in six years, The College of Wooster men's lacrosse team saw six of its student-athletes voted to the All-North Coast Athletic Conference Team, highlighted by defender Dean Marchitelli and goalkeeper Matt Magoon, who were both made second-team selections, as announced by the league office Wednesday.

In addition, the Fighting Scots also had four others named all-NCAC, as attacker Tom Herold, midfielder Nate Weltman, defender Sean Hohan, and specialist Max Rubin each received honorable mention.

Marchitelli, an honorable mention choice a year ago, was the only player on the team to start all 15 games this spring. He gave opposing attackers fits with his on-ball defense, as the senior ranked second in the league with 27 caused turnovers while adding 34 groundballs. Marchitelli was part of a defensive unit that held 13 of its 15 opponents to single-digit goal totals, including in a 7-6 victory over Albion College (Mar. 22), which gave Wooster its best start to a season in program history (7-0). He had one of his best games of the year that day with four caused turnovers and four groundballs.

Magoon, a first-team selection last season, was statistically better in his senior campaign, as his 6.34 goals allowed average currently ranks 10th in NCAA Div. III, while his save percentage (.606) is 26th. The four-year starter recorded double-digit saves in seven games, with a season-high 18 coming against Ohio Wesleyan University (April 11). Magoon also totaled 11 saves against then-No. 5 ranked Denison University (March 26) while allowing just nine goals, making Wooster one of only two programs to limit the Big Red to a single-digit scoring output this season.

Herold makes his debut on the All-NCAC Team, although he is no stranger to producing on the offensive end, as the junior has totaled 31, 38, and now 42 points in his first three years with the Scots. His 42 points this spring were the ninth-most in the league, which came via career-highs in goals (28) and assists (14). Herold tallied hat tricks in five games, including a career-high five goals and an assist all during the first half of a win over Trine University (March 19), which led to NCAC Player-of-the-Week honors.

Weltman had a breakout sophomore season, as he became an offensive force along the midfield line en route to his first all-conference certificate. After scoring just twice as a freshman, Weltman finished second on the team in 2014 with 19 goals which included seven multi-goal games. His signature performance was in a narrow win over Kenyon College (April 16), where he contributed towards all three of Wooster's fourth-quarter goals to turn a 4-4 tie into a 7-4 victory. He finished with a career-high four points in all (3 goals, 1 assist).

Hohan is now a three-time all-conference pick after being named first-team last year and honorable mention as a freshman. Despite missing a few games, Hohan still finished third in the conference in caused turnovers (24) and was among the top-15 in groundballs with 42. The junior deserves a lot of credit for anchoring one of NCAA Div. III's stingiest defenses, as Wooster currently sits 15th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 6.33 goals per game.

Rubin has now been named honorable mention in back-to-back years as one of the league's premiere face-off men. He helped Wooster gain possession on .564 percent of his face-offs (136-of-241), wrestling away many of the groundballs himself, as he finished with the sixth-most groundballs in the conference (59).