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Writer's pictureAhmed Ghafir

Maryland Men's Lacrosse Inks Top-20 Recruiting Class

With national signing day now in the rear view mirror, Maryland head coach John Tillman signed his six-man, 19th-best recruiting class to their national letters of intent. The biggest recruit of the class is Elijah Stobaugh, a midfielder that is ranked as the 28th-best player of the 2023 class. Elijah is from the IMG Academy down in Florida. Inside Lacrosse described Elijah as a "tall, lanky split dodging midfielder with a hammer of a lefty overhand release that makes the ball explode out of his stick into the back of the net, both on the run and when he has time and room to set his feet. He loves to shoot for the top off side corner, but he can also change up locations and score low or offside hip. While he is a shoot first dodger, he has the visions and feeding ability to rack up assists when the slide manages to get to him on time." Elijah adds height to the Terps midfield position which is something the Terps lack currently. Next up is Thomas Gravino, another midfielder that is ranked 48th in the 2023 class. Midfield was a big need in this class for the Terps which is why three of their six commits are midfielders. Gravino playerd at Victor Senior High School up in New York. Inside Lacrosse described Thomas as "athletic, has a solid frame and gets up and down the field well with a good motor and savvy ability on both ends. As an offensive weapon, he can create his own shot off the dodge or bury step-downs when opportunities presented themselves." While he is not 6-foot-3 like Elijah, he is a quick and elusive player that when given time will make you pay. Moving on we have the Terps last four-star of the class, Sean Creter. Creter is a faceoff man out of Hunterdon Central Regional High School in New Jersey. Creter is described by NLF Rankings as "really explosive out of his stance, is very clean off the ground and puts a ton of stress on a defense off of his wins. He stays low to the ground and uses his strength to outmuscle his opponents, too." Another bonus to Creter's game is his offensive ability. He is not like your typical faceoff man where they get off everytime after getting the ball to a teammate. Creter has the offensive ability that when given the chance can go down and score which adds a big matchup advantage when face faceoff guys that can't defend fairly well. Hamish McPherson is the lone attackman of the 2023 class for the Terps. Hamish is from a Canadian that plays at the Everest Academy in Ontario. According to US Club Lax, Hamish is described as "a quick lefty with great hands and I.Q to match, thanks to his box experience. He can finish from nearly anywhere after smoking his defender with a quick step and has pinpoint accuracy." Hamish is listed as an attackman but can also play as an offensive midfielder if need be as well which will help Coach JOhn Tillman be able to add depth to the midfield position. As the lone defender in the 2023 class for the Terps, Trey Brown is a guy that will be hard to not notice. Trey is a 6-foot-4 defender from Westfield High School in New Jersey. US Club Lax describes Trey as "You can’t teach height and Brown being 6’4 has already learned how to use his tall, rangy frame to his advantage. One thing that’s obvious about Trey is he isn’t shy or confused when he’s out on the field. Goes after the ball, delivers solid checks and knows where he and everyone else is at all times. Head is on a swivel. Great defenseman that’s going to continue to get better." Trey will be the tallest defender on the team with freshman AJ Larkin listed an inch shorter the Trey. With not many tall defenders on the roster, height was clearly a big need for the Terps on defense. After signing two four star midfielders, the Terps went out and got another midfielder to finish off the class. Ryan Falkenstein is a 6-foot-1 midfielder out of Malvern Preparatory School in Pennsylvania. NLF Rankings describes Falkenstein as “the type of athleticism that jumps off the page, even against elite competition. An absolute animal in transition who gets open rather easily when going downhill, Falkenstein also does a nice job of keeping his head up and finding his teammates.” With his athletic ability, Ryan is also very good at using his big frame to get around or through defenders as well. While this is a smaller class then usual, it was expected due to the COVID season and allowing lots of players to stay extra years or use those extra years and transfers in which Tillman has used that to his full advantage. This class will be able to make a splash for the Terps in year one in the spring of 2024 so be prepared. Until then, be ready for the Terps to look to repeat as national champs in 2023 along with their freshman class which was ranked second in the nation. Related Links Players react after Penn State pitches a shutout vs. Maryland  Locksley: “It’s time that we…take a deep look at everything” Instant Reactions: Penn State 30, Maryland 0

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