Michigan Lacrosse Welcomes 20 Newcomers

September 17, 2009

Ann Arbor, Michigan - Following three days of tryouts, Michigan head coach John Paul has announced the addition of 20 new players to the Wolverines' roster.  Looking to replace 10 graduated seniors from the 2009 MCLA national championship team, and also to expand the roster, Michigan will add 18 freshmen, and one sophomore transfer and one junior transfer to the squad.  The group is comprised of three attackmen, seven midfielders, three longstick midfielders, five defensemen and two goalkeepers.  The players represent 11 states, with five hailing from Michigan, three from Illinois, two each from California, New York and Ohio, and one each from Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Utah and Virginia. 

The group includes two high school All-Americans, eight all-state selections, and 14 of the 20 were captains of their high school teams, many for more than one season.  There are three sets of high school teammates, and one younger brother of a current Wolverine lacrosse player.

"We are really excited about this group," said Paul.  "We knew our recruits would be great additions, but we were very pleasantly surprised by some of the walk-ons who made the team through our open tryouts.  We filled all of the holes we needed to fill."

The 20 newcomers, when combined with Michigan's 28 returning players, make up the largest Wolverine roster in the MCLA era at 48.  Paul explained that this was by design, "We planned to expand the roster this year.  We wanted to add depth so we can better handle injuries through the season and to enable us to run more scout team situations.  The caliber of players trying out now allows us to keep more players without sacrificing quality.  Plus, a lot of these guys have the potential to develop into impact players for us."

Cy Abdelnour ... 5-5 ... 160 ... G ... Ann Arbor, Michigan (Pioneer HS)

Abdelnour was a two year starter and a three-year letter winner at Pioneer.  He was also a captain as a senior.  He was 1st-Team All-State as a junior  and 2nd-Team All-State as a senior.  Pioneer won back-to-back regional championships with Abdelnour in goal.

Nick Asher ... 6-1 ... 165 ... M ... Kalamazoo, Michigan (Portage Northern)

Asher earned four varsity letters in lacrosse at Portage Northern and was a captain for both his junior and senior seasons.  He was voted the team MVP as a junior and as a senior.  He was a 3-time 1st-Team All-League selection.

Lee Boshes ... 6-0 ... 165 ... LSM ... Deerfield, Illinois (Deerfield)

Boshes earned three varsity letters in lacrosse at Deerfield, where one of his coaches was former Michigan assistant coach Chris Ridella.  Boshes was a captain as a senior.  He was an all-conference selection in his final year, and he participated in the IHSLA All-Star Game.

Forrest Cox ... 6-2 ... 195 ... D ... Alexandria, Virginia (Phillips Andover Academy, Mass.)

Cox has earned five varsity letters in lacrosse, four at West Potomac High School in Potomac, Maryland and one as a post-grad at Andover.  He was a team captain at West Potomac in both 2007 and 2008.  He played for the Iroquois Under-19 National Team in the 2008 Under-19 World Championships in Vancouver, Canada, and he has been invited to tryout for the senior team that will be competing in the 2010 World Championships in Manchester, England.  Cox also lettered in cross-country and indoor track.

Zach Dauch ... 5-9 ... 165 ... A/M ... Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (Lahser)

Dauch lettered three times in lacrosse and twice at defensive back and wide receiver in football at Lahser.  He was captain of the lacrosse team both as a junior and a senior.  He was 3rd-Team All-State as a senior and Honorable Mention as a junior.  Dauch was honored as his team's Offensive MVP last year.

Max Greenspan ... 6-0 ... 170 ... LSM/D ... San Diego, California (The Bishop's School)

Greenspan earned three varsity letters in lacrosse, along with three in soccer and one in football at The Bishop's School.  He was All-Coastal Conference in 2009 and played for the conference champions for three straight years.  He was also all-conference in soccer as a senior.

Brian Greiner ... 6-0 ... 205 ... M ... Grosse Pointe, Michigan (Grosse Pointe South / RPI)

A junior transfer, Greiner joins the team after playing for two years at the Rensselaer Poytechnic Institute.  At RPI Greiner played in 25 games over two years, including five as a starter.  At Grosse Pointe South he lettered in lacrosse for three years and was a captain as a senior.  He was First-Team All-State, All-Region and All-Conference as a senior and Third-Team All-State as a junior.  He was the team's offensive MVP as a senior.

Patrick Grogan ... 6-0 ... 185 ... D ... Salt Lake City, Utah (Judge Memorial)

A three sport athlete at Judge Memorial, Grogan lettered three times in lacrosse and swimming and four times in football.  In lacrosse he was team captain and 2nd-Team All-Conference as a senior.  He was his team's defensive player of the year as a senior as well and helped lead the team to the Utah Class A championship game as a senior and as a sophomore.  He was a 1st-Team All-Region honoree in football as a senior.

Joseph Hrusovsky ... 5-10 ... 170 ... M ... Lake Forest, Illinois (Lake Forest)

Hrusovsky joins his older brother Anthony on the Michigan team where they will have a chance to play together for the first time in their lives.  He was a team captain as a senior, and he earned 1st-Team All-State honors in both his junior and senior years.  Lake Forest reached the Illinois state semifinals every year he played.  Hrusovsky also lettered in football at safety.

JD Johnson ... 6-0 ... 190 ... D ... Malibu, California (Loyola)

Johnson lettered for four years in lacrosse and was also a hockey goalie for the Junior Kings program.  In lacrosse he was a high school All-American as a senior.  He was a two-year captain and was his team's MVP as both a junior and senior.  He was All-Mission League as a junior and as a senior as well.  He led Loyola to Mission League championships as a sophomore and as a senior and to the sectional championship game as a senior.

Matthew Joseph ... 5-11 ... 170 ... M ... Westlake, Ohio (St. Ignatius)

Joseph earned three varsity letters in lacrosse at St. Ignatius.  He was a captain as a senior.  His team reached the Ohio Division 1 quarterfinals in his junior and senior seasons.

Corey Kasperski ... 5-11 ... 175 ... A ... Riley, Michigan (De La Salle Collegiate)

Kasperski earned two varsity letters in lacrosse.  He was 2nd-Team All-State as senior.  Kasperski joins the team as a sophomore after spending last season in a staff role.

Theo Lederfine Paskal ... 6-1 ... 205 ... D ... Andover, Massachusetts (Phillips Andover Academy)

Joining his high school teammate Forrest Cox in this year's freshman class, Lederfine Paskal was a three year letter winner in both lacrosse and football at Andover.

Conor McGee ... 6-1 ... 165 ... G ... Baltimore, Maryland (Gilman School)

A two year letter winner at Gilman, McGee was the starting goalie for the 2009 Inside Lacrosse High School National Champions.  The team also won the MIAA championship in 2009 and was named the 2008 High School National Champion by LaxPower.  McGee was a 2009 Baltimore Sun 1st-Team All-Baltimore selection and made the Towson Times All-Star team.  He also lettered four times in squash and once in volleyball.

Brian O'Callaghan ... 5-11 ... 170 ... LSM ... Lake Forest, Illinois (Lake Forest)

O'Callaghan joins his high school teammate Joseph Hrusovsky in this year's freshman class.  A two year letter winner in both lacrosse and football, he was all-conference in lacrosse.  The Scouts finished as Illinois Division 1 semifinalists his senior year.

Thomas Paras ... 6-1 ... 190 ... A ... Lakewood, Ohio (St. Ignatius)

Paras joins his high school teammate Matt Joseph in this year's freshman class.  He was a four year letter winner in lacrosse and also earned three letters in hockey.  Paras was a high school All-American as a senior.  He was the St. Ignatius offensive player of the year for three consecutive seasons and team MVP as a senior.  He led the team to two state quarterfinal appearances.  He was a captain in both lacrosse and hockey as a senior.

Matt Rizzo ... 6-0 ... 215 ... D ... Hewlett, New York (Hewlett)

Rizzo was a four year varsity letter winner in lacrosse.  He also earned two letters in football and one in track.  In football he was all-county as a running back his senior year and all-conference as a junior.  He was also a captain in football.

Harrison Silver ... 5-9 ... 175 ... M ... South Salem, New York (John Jay)

Silver lettered for three years at John Jay and was a captain as a senior, helping lead the team to a regional championship.  He also lettered twice in football as a running back and cornerback.  In lacrosse he was an all-section and all-league selection.

Willie Steenland ... 6-0 ... 180 ... M ... Minneapolis, Minnesota (The Blake School)

Steenland lettered for three years in lacrosse and three in basketball at The Blake School.  He was a varsity captain in lacrosse as a senior.  The team won the Minnesota state championship in 2008 and sectional championships in both 2008 and 2009.  Steenland was All-State and All-Conference as a senior.

Sean Sutton ... 5-11 ... 180 ... M ... Greenwich, Connecticut (Greenwich)

One of two transfers joining the team, Sutton is a sophomore.  He lettered three times at Greenwich in both lacrosse and football.  As a senior, Sutton served as a team captain.  He was a two-time All-State and All-County selection.  He spent the 2008-2009 school year at the University of Charleston.

Contact:  Joe Hennessy - jjhennes@umich.edu - 734-276-8493