Four recognized on NEILA All-New England Team
BEVERLY, Mass. - The Endicott men's lacrosse saw four of their standout players recognized by the New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (NEILA) as graduate student Sam Ozycz (Cheshire, Conn.), junior Breck Merritt (Weston, Mass.), sophomore Harrison Cotter (Lordship, Conn.), and freshman Cameron Bell (Falmouth, Maine) were all named All-New England.
2013 Division III NEILA All-New England Team
BEVERLY, Mass. - The Endicott men's lacrosse saw four of their standout players recognized by the New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (NEILA) as graduate student Sam Ozycz (Cheshire, Conn.), junior Breck Merritt (Weston, Mass.), sophomore Harrison Cotter (Lordship, Conn.), and freshman Cameron Bell (Falmouth, Maine) were all named All-New England.
Ozycz, an All-CCC First Team face-off man, ranks second in the country in face-off winning percentage (.761) as he has won 354-of-465 attempts with 263 groundballs. Ozycz's groundball rate (13.8) is best among NCAA Division III players this spring as he finished off his career with his best season to-date. Ozycz also scored eight goals with one assist. During the CCC playoffs, in which Endicott withone one win of a NCAA Tournament berth, Ozycz lost just three face-offs (39-of-42).
For the second straight season, Merritt proved himself to be one of the premiere shut down defenders in the country. Merritt caused just one-third the number of turnovers he forced in 2012 (39) with 13 takeaways, as he played in just 14 of Endicott's 19 games, but was the most consistent defender on the field. Merritt also totaled 41 groundballs for a Gulls team that ranked sixth in the country in that category at 44.8 per game. Merritt was named to the All-CCC First Team for the second year in-a-row.
Cotter, named an All-CCC First Team Midfielder, had a career year in just his second season in the Blue and Green with 36 total points. The sophomore midfielder scored 23 goals and assisted on 16 more. Cotter had 36 groundballs and eight caused turnovers over the course of the season.
Endicott's freshman goalie, Bell, adds Second Team All-New England accolades to his resume after being named CCC Rookie of the Year. Bell won 12 of Endicott's 13 games this season and had a 12-5 overall record as he sported a 9.2 goals against average, a .549 save percentage, and 186 total saves. He registered over 1000 minutes between the pipes this spring.
Ozycz, Merritt, and Cotter were all mentioned prior to the start of the 2013 season as representatives on the All-NEILA Preseason Team.