Jan. 31, 2014
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – A quartet of Fighting Irish men’s lacrosse players have received preseason All-America honors from Inside Lacrosse. Stephen O’Hara (Sr./D) was a first-team pick, while Jim Marlatt (Sr./M) appeared on the second team and Matt Kavanagh (So./A) was a third-team selection. Matt Landis (So./LSM) garnered honorable mention accolades.
O’Hara (West Chester, Pa./St. Joe’s Prep) has started all 32 games over the last two seasons in Notre Dame’s stout defensive unit. Last season, the Fighting Irish defense ranked 10th nationally (first in the BIG EAST) with an 8.31 goals-against average and the team also had the country’s 10th-best man-down defense (.737). O’Hara, a Notre Dame team captain, earned second team all-BIG EAST honors in 2013. He was selected by the Ohio Machine with the first pick of the sixth round (41st overall) of the 2014 Major League Lacrosse (MLL) Draft.
Marlatt (Clarksville, Md./River Hill) is a two-time United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) All-American and he has compiled 39 goals and 24 assists in the last two seasons on Notre Dame’s first midfield line. He earned third team All-America and first team all-BIG EAST honors last season after registering 20 goals, 12 assists and 43 ground balls. Marlatt, who joins O’Hara as an Irish team captain this season, produced five multiple-goal games during the 2013 campaign. Along with his preseason All-America citation, Marlatt was Notre Dame’s lone representative on the 13-man All-Atlantic Coast Conference Preseason Team.
Kavanagh (Rockville Centre, N.Y./Chaminade/Hotchkiss) had a breakout rookie campaign with the Irish in 2013 as he posted team-high marks in goals (32) and assists (16). The attackman registered 11 multiple-goal games, including three four-goal efforts, and the 32 goals established a program record for a freshman. He copped honorable mention All-America accolades from the USILA in addition to being on the all-BIG EAST first team.
Landis (Pelham, N.Y./Pelham Memorial) also had an impactful freshman season with the Fighting Irish from his long-stick midfielder position. He played in 15 of the team’s 16 games and picked up 23 ground balls while being a key figure in Notre Dame’s defense.
The Fighting Irish, who are entering their first season of ACC play, are ranked fifth in both the USILA and Warrior (media) preseason polls. Notre Dame opens the campaign Feb. 16 against Jacksonville in the Moe’s Southwest Grill Lacrosse Classic at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Fla.
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The Fighting Irish posted an 11-5 record last season and earned the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Championship. Notre Dame defeated five top-10 teams and concluded the regular season with the nation’s top RPI before advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals for the fourth straight season. The Irish fell to Duke, 12-11, in the quarterfinal round.
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