April 23, 2015
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Three University of Notre Dame men’s lacrosse players — Matt Kavanagh (Jr./A), Matt Landis (Jr./D), and Sergio Perkovic (So./M) are among 25 nominees for the 2015 Tewaaraton Award, presented by Under Armour.
The ACC was represented by 12 players on the list, the most of any conference. Syracuse led the way with four nominees, while Notre Dame and North Carolina each had three individuals named to the list. Duke rounded out delegation from the ACC with two players selected among the 25 nominees.
The Tewaaraton Award is recognized as the pre-eminent lacrosse award, honoring the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States.
Five men’s and five women’s finalists will be selected from these groups of 25, announced on Thursday, May 7, and invited to the ceremony. The 15th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony will be held Thursday, May 28 in Washington, D.C., at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian.
The men’s award nominees include players from 14 schools. Notre Dame was among six schools represented by multiple honorees.
Today’s announcement comes just one day after the Fighting Irish trio earned all-ACC accolades after Notre Dame won its first-ever ACC regular-season by completing an undefeated conference season in just its second year in the conference. The top-ranked Irish (9-1, 4-0) will look to defend their ACC tournament crown when they open up play Friday night against sixth-ranked Duke in the first semifinal game of the 2015 ACC Conference Championship at 5:30 at PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania.
Kavanagh (Rockville Centre, N.Y.), a two-time All-America and all-ACC honoree, leads the Irish in in scoring with 43 points, 21 goals and a team-leading 22 assists. The Irish attackman registered his 29th multiple-goal game of his career with a four-goal output last Saturday in Notre Dame’s thrilling come-from-behind 15-14 victory over second-ranked North Carolina as he notched four goals in the contest that enabled Irish to clinch the regular-season crown. For his efforts, the talented junior was tabbed as the ACC Offensive Player of the Week.
Kavanagh ranks among the statistical leaders in the ACC in several categories this season. A starter in 43 of the 44 career contests he has played in during his career and is starter in all 10 Fighting Irish games this season, he ranks sixth on the all-time Notre Dame career scoring list (166 points), is tied for seventh in career goals (95) and is fifth in career assists (71).
Landis (Pelham, New York), a two-time ACC Defensive Player of the Week honoree, is tied for sixth this season with 17 ground balls. He has been in the starting lineup in all 10 games this season and helps anchor a Notre Dame defense that allows just 8.8 goals per game. During his Fighting Irish career, the junior has been a starter in 27 of the 43 games he has played.
One of the nation’s most versatile players, Perkovic (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan) has tallied 20 goals and dished off six assists and is the fourth-leading scorer for the Irish with 26 points. The talented sophomore has registered four hat tricks this season, including a three-goal performance in last Saturday’s win over the Tar Heels. Perkovic has started all 28 games he has played in during his Notre Dame career.
2015 Tewaaraton Award nominees:
Trevor Baptiste, Denver – Fr., Faceoff
Wesley Berg, Denver – Sr., Attack
Kyle Bernlohr, Maryland – Jr., Goalie
Jimmy Bitter, UNC – Sr., Attack
Ryan Brown, Johns Hopkins – Jr., Attack
Connor Buczek, Cornell – Sr., Midfield
Connor Cannizzaro, Denver – So., Attack
Deemer Class, Duke – Jr., Midfield
Dylan Donahue, Syracuse – Jr., Attack
Matt Donovan, Cornell – Sr., Midfield
John Glesener, Army – Sr., Attack
Myles Jones, Duke – Jr., Midfield
Matt Kavanagh, Notre Dame – Jr., Attack
Jesse King, Ohio State – Sr., Midfield
Matt Landis, Notre Dame – Jr., Defense
Dylan Molloy, Brown – So., Attack
Brandon Mullins, Syracuse – Jr., Defense
Conrad Oberbeck, Yale – Sr., Attack
Sergio Perkovic, Notre Dame – So., Midfield
Kevin Rice, Syracuse – Sr., Attack
Joey Sankey, UNC – Sr., Attack
Dan Taylor, Lehigh – Sr., Attack
Lyle Thompson, Albany – Sr., Attack
Chad Tutton, UNC – Sr., Midfield
Ben Williams, Syracuse – So., Faceoff