MaxPreps Top 25 high school boys lacrosse national rankings

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The MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Boys Lacrosse Rankings find a pair of unbeaten teams from 2015 at the top.

Haverford School went 26-0 last year and captured the Inter-AC title in Pennsylvania. The Fords were ranked No. 1 by several media outlets and a deep senior class has them at the top of this year's preseason rankings.

Meanwhile, Victor also went undefeated last year to claim the Class B state championship in New York. The Blue Devils start the year at No. 2.

The majority of the teams in the Xcellent 25 are from the northeast, with nine teams coming from the state of New York. Regular Xcellent 25 boys lacrosse national rankings will begin later this week.


1. Haverford School (Pa.), 26-0 last year
Ranked No. 1 in the nation last year by several ranking services, the Fords won the Inter-AC championship and finished the season unbeaten. Haverford School has 11 Division I commits among its senior class, including Virginia-bound defenseman Dox Aitken, who earned all-American honors from US Lacrosse as a junior.

2. Victor (N.Y.), 22-0
Victor topped Manhasset for the Class B state championship in New York last year and finished undefeated. The Blue Devils return a pair of all-Americans in midfielders T.D. Ierlan and Jamie Trimboli.

3. Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.), 18-3
The Eagles won the WCAC championship last year with their only losses to McDonogh, Landon and Georgetown Prep. Gonzaga has eight players headed to Division I schools next year, including a strong group of midfielders that includes Nick Mcevoy (Penn State), Avery Myers (Michigan) and Sam Offut (Virginia).

4. Landon (Bethesda, Md.), 20-2
The Bears won the Interstate Athletic Conference and lost only to St. Ignatius (San Francisco) and St. Stephen-St. Agnes last year. Landon has a strong group of underclassmen, led by juniors Andrew Fowler (defense) and Justin Shockey (face-off).

5. Syosset (N.Y.), 18-2
The Braves fell to eventual Class A state champion Niskayuna in the playoffs, but their only other loss on the season was to Massapequa. Syosset will look to senior midfielder Lucas Cotler and junior midfielder Matthew Benus to lead the team.

6. McDonogh (Owings Mills, Md.), 14-5
The Eagles finished behind St. Mary's in the MIAA Class A playoffs, but McDonogh has a strong senior class led by midfielder Barrett Sutley, attack Jackson Morrill and defenseman Arman Medghalchi.

7. Darien (Conn.), 20-3
The Connecticut large school champions return a pair of all-Americans in attack Colin Minicus and defense Mark Evanchick.

8. Culver Academies (Ind.), 17-6
Culver reportedly has eight Division I recruits in its senior class, but it might be even stronger in the junior class where they have all-American candidates Matthew Schmidt at goalie and John Ryan Hakkenback at midfield.

9. Chaminade (Mineola, N.Y.), 13-4
Chaminade topped St. Anthony's for the CHSAA AAA championship last year and the Flyers return a solid group that includes seniors Jack Zullo at goalie, Brendon Luu at faceoff and Kyle Thornton on defense.

10. Hun (Princeton, N.J.), 19-1
The Raiders won the Private School Class A Conference with their only loss coming against Haverford. Hun has one of the nation's top junior defensemen in all-American Chris Fake.

11. St. Paul's (Brooklandville, Md.), 13-6
The Crusaders return seven Division I prospects in their senior class, including LSM John Faus (Holy Cross) and attack Mitch Gordon (Virginia).

12. Smithtown East (N.Y.), 18-2
Smithtown East fell to Syosset in the New York Class A playoffs, but returns one of the top players in New York in midfielder Gerard Arceri, who earned all-American honors last year.

13. Brunswick School (Greenwich, Conn.), 14-4
The Bruins had a one-goal loss to Haverford School last year (8-7) and they return all-American midfielder Reilly Walsh.

14. Georgetown Prep (North Bethesda, Md.), 13-4
Georgetown Prep lost to Landon for the IAC championship. It returns a pair of all-American candidates in midfielder Terry Lindsay and defenseman John Railey.

15. Bridgewater-Raritan (Bridgewater, N.J.), 23-0
One of the few unbeaten teams in the country, Bridgewater-Raritan won the New Jersey Group IV championship. All-American defenseman Nick Grill returns for his senior season.

16. IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), 10-4
The Ascenders showed their worth last year with one-goal losses to Hunn and Haverford School and a win over McDonogh. Two all-Americans return in midfield Massimo Bucci and attack Ben French.

17. Boys Latin (Baltimore), 15-5
The Lakers went 7-4 in MIAA A play and they return senior goalie Jack Pezulla and junior midfielder Koby Russell.

18. Massapequa (N.Y.), 17-1
The Chiefs suffered their only loss last season to Syosset in the state playoffs. Massapequa has five Division I recruits in its senior class.

19. Niskayuna (N.Y.), 21-2
The Class A state champions in New York with a win over Syosset in the semifinals and West Genesee in the championship game. The Silver Warriors return all-American Dylan Pantalone in the midfield.

20. Deerfield Academy (Mass.), 9-7
The Big Green finished 4-4 in the Founders League last year, but they return five scholarship seniors, including goalie Philip Goss and attack Andrew Bowman.

21. Ward Melville (East Setauket, N.Y.), 17-3
Smithtown East eliminated Ward Melville from the Class A state playoffs last year. A total of four Division I recruits return for the Patriots.

22. New Canaan (Conn.), 18-4
The Rams captured the Class M state championship last year and they return one of the state's top midfielders in all-American Kyle Smith.

23. St. Anthony's (Melville, N.Y.), 12-4
One of the top teams on Long Island, St. Anthony's lost twice to Chaminade in conference play. A strong senior class includes LSMs Christopher Adamo and Lawrence Galizia and midfielder Jared Nugent.

24. St. Mary's (Annapolis, Md.), 12-6
St. Mary's went 9-3 in MIAA A play last year and it returns a pair of Division I prospects in Kane Randolph and Jake Carraway.

25. Cold Spring Harbor (N.Y.), 19-1
The Seahawks lost just once last year, falling to Syosset early in the season. Cold Spring Harbor won the Class C state championship and has one of the state's top juniors in Matthew Licciardi.