Here at LCD, we like to get out in front of the audience. Let’s be clear, this is not a ranking of freshmen.
Lacrosse is a complicated and beautiful game. To win, you need players who can score, pass, initiate offence, pick up loose balls, win faceoffs, defend dodgers, and make saves. This article will ignore most of those things.
Instead, we will focus on one very important part of winning games: scoring (and assisting on) goals.
It’s not necessarily an easy time to be a freshman. NCAA sports are still sorting through the end of the COVID era players and their extra years of eligibility, meaning that opportunities for freshmen are even more scarce than normal.
Lets just say more players than normal around the country can get into the local bar with identification that matches their roster name. Unless there is a team in Quebec that I am not aware of, this list won’t feature any of those players.
With that, let’s get into the top 30 most productive freshmen from both Mens and Womens Division I lacrosse.
Methodology
It’s admittedly a little bit early in the season for this article, so it was difficult to choose whether raw points were more important, or per-game rates. The problem with the per-game option was that it was hard to choose the right number of minimum points to be eligible.
So in the end, the list includes the 30 highest scorers in both men’s and women’s lacrosse, but it’s sorted by points per game. With that in mind, the 60 athletes are represented on the below scatter plot.
Mens
10: Chris Patterson, Hobart
5 Games Played, 8 Goals, 6 Assists
An attackman from Bronxville, Patterson’s production was paved by a monster 3 goal, 4 assist performance in their victory against Robert Morris. Hobarts record (2-3) is better than it looks with a loss to Michigan and a pissed off Cornell team off a tough loss at Denver. Patterson has been big for the Statesmen.
9. Brody Atkinson, Mount St. Mary’s
6 Games Played, 11 Goals, 7 Assists
The Manchester, Md native has been one of the most balanced freshmen in the country. With 11 goals and 7 assists in six games, he’s currently leading the Mount in scoring.
8: Brendan Dundas, Monmouth
5 Games Played, 11 Goals, 4 Assists
Dundas has gotten out to a great start for the Hawks, scoring hat-tricks in three of his first four college games. Dundas is producing at an efficient clip, shooting 37% so far this year. His biggest game came against Wagner when he buried 3 goals and 2 assists.
7: Jake Kucinski, St. Bonaventure
4 Games Played, 9 Goals, 4 Assists
Kucinski rebounded from a 0 point, 1 shot effort in his collegiate debut by scoring 6 goals against Binghamton. With 3 and 4 point efforts in the two games since then, it’s been a nice start for the rookie from Crofton, Md.
6. Colin Burns, Princeton
5 Games Played, 12 Goals, 5 Assists
Coming off a 5 goal weekend in the Carolinas, Burns has 17 points through his first five games. Another efficient shooter, he has scored his 12 goals on just 20 total shots, good for a 60% shooting percentage. Is that good?
5: Willem Firth, Cornell
4 Games Played, 10 Goals, 4 Assists
The slick lefty Canadian started his career with a bang, scoring 4 goals in each of the Big Red’s first two games. Then in game three, he showed off some vision with 1 goal and 3 assists, and added another goal and assist against Ohio State. Firth is doing all of this from the midfield, and his efficiency has been impressive. He’s shooting 55% and has just one turnover on the season.
T-3: Owen Duffy, UNC
5 Games Played, 9 Goals, 9 Assists
The 2023 number one ranked player by Inside Lacrosse, Duffy has gotten out to a nice start to his career. After scoring 7 points against Fairfield, arguably his best game was the 4 goal, 2 assist effort in the Heels’ loss to Princeton. He’s shooting just 17% thus far, but expect that to even out as he gets more comfortable. His production so far has been split right down the middle with 9 goals and 9 assists.
T-3: Nate Kabiri, Princeton
5 Games Played, 14 Goals, 4 Assists
Another top ranked player in the 2023 class, Kabiri has produced against some solid defences. He had 4 goals against Maryland and 4 more against UNC, which came after two hat-tricks to start his career. Like the second player on this list, Kabiri has been aggressive shooting it, with 41 shots in five games.
2: Dominic Pietremala, UNC
5 Games Played, 14 Goals, 6 Assists
One of a number of freshmen playing for UNC, Pietremala has been productive every game, never scoring less than 3 points. Pietremala clearly has the green light, as he’s shot ten times or more in three of the five Carolina games. As he and Duffy develop, the future is bright in Chapel Hill.
1: McCabe Millon, Virginia
5 Games Played, 15 Goals, 8 Assists
Easily the most prominent freshmen this year on lacrosse social media, Millon has delivered for the Hoos. With 4 goals against Robert Morris, he quickly put his only quiet game of the season (UVA’s loss to Hopkins) behind him. In five games played, he’s had games of 1,4,5,6, and 7 points. That’s good.
Womens
10: Megan Previdi, Canisius
5 Games Played, 3 Goals, 11 Assists
Previdi is a disher. With 11 assists in her first five college games, she leads all first years in that category. Amazingly, she has more assists (11) than she does shots (9). To make it even better, the Golden Griffins are out to a 4-1 start.
T-7: Catherine Berkery, Penn
4 Games Played, 9 Goals, 3 Assists
The Bronxville native has 9 goals in her first four games, and is shooting 64% on the year. Penn currently sits 14th in the media poll.
T-7: Alissa Digiacinto, Lindenwood
7 Games Played, 16 Goals, 5 Assists
The first of two Canadians in the top ten, the rookie from Brooklin, Ontario, is second on the Lions in points. With 16 goals and 5 assists in seven games, she’s scored 5 points or more in five of the seven contests.
T-7: Jenna Skibbe, Davidson
7 Games Played, 18 Goals, 0 Assists
Skibbe’s numbers are pretty easy to explain, and very fun. She’s got 18 goals, and 0 assists. She’s had games of 3, 4 (twice), and 6 goals. Keep shooting Jenna!
T-5: Michelle Zhai, Columbia
4 Games Played, 6 Goals, 7 Assists
As Zhai goes, so too does Columbia. In Columbia’s two wins, Zhai has a combined 10 points on 4 goals and 6 assists. In their two losses, she’s got just 3 points total. Still, the freshman is out to an impressive start.
T-5: Aliya Polisky, Stanford
4 Games Played, 10 Goals, 3 Assists
Another talented finisher, Polisky had 6 goals in a recent victory over Davidson. After two tough losses to open the year, the Cardinal have one back to back and look to be on the winning track. Polisky looks to be key for their success.
4/3: Jillian Goldie and Chloe Bowers, UMass Lowell
Goldie: 7 Games Played, 15 Goals, 8 Assists
Bowers: 7 Games Played, 21 Goals, 3 Assists
Sitting first and third on the team in scoring, the freshmen duo has been impressive for the River Hawks. Bowers is a lights out shooter, with 21 goals in seven contests. Meanwhile Goldie leads the team with 8 assists.
2: Regan Byrne, Clemson
4 Games Played, 11 Goals, 3 Assists
Another player with only a few games played, Byrne started her college career off with 6 goals against Davidson. She’s scored in every contest for the Tigers, who find themselves at 4-0, fresh off a massive conference win over Duke.
1. Fiona O’Keeffe
5 Games Played, 10 Goals, 10 Assists
Not to be confused with the American Marathoner of the same name, O’Keeffe has an even 10 goals and 10 assists in her first five college games. O’Keeffe has scored in every game and helped the Big Green to a 3-2 record.
That’s all for this time, check back later in the year for an update!