HIGH POINT, N.C. -- The High Point University men's lacrosse team has added 18 recruits for 2012-13, head coach Jon Torpey announced on Tuesday. The group includes four attackmen, nine midfielders, four defensemen and a goalie coming from 10 states and two Canadian provinces. They will join HPU's 18 current players for the team's first season of 2012-13.
"We are very excited to welcome the newest members of the High Point University lacrosse program," said Torpey. "This diverse group of young men along with our current players will serve to be the foundation of our program as we move forward.
"It was evident in our discussions throughout the recruiting process that these student-athletes shared the passion and the vision our staff and administration has for lacrosse here at High Point University. We are very much looking forward to watching them develop both on and off the field over the next four years."
High Point's incoming attackmen are Dan Lomas of Burlington, Ontario, Dan Murray of Warren, N.J., Cory Palmer of Mableton, Ga., and Bryce Parietti of Centennial, Colo.
Lomas attended Notre Dame Catholic, scoring 45 goals with 27 assists in 16 games last spring. He led his team to the Halton high school championship and the bronze medal in the OFSAA festival in 2011. He also played box lacrosse scored 26 goals with 22 assists in 21 games last season. He played club for the Burlington Chiefs.
Murray lists at 5'11 and 165 pounds. He attends Seton Hall Prep in New Jersey and helped his team to the 2010 county championship. He played club lacrosse for DeCicco and attended the Jack Reed Blue Chip Camp.
Palmer will join the Panthers out of the Lovett School in Atlanta. In 45 career games, Palmer has totaled 104 goals and 53 assists, including 63 goals and 30 assists as a junior last spring. He was a first-team All-State and All-American selection and was a top 205 All-Star in 2011. He played club lacrosse for the Atlanta Rage and Georgia Peaches.
Parietti attends Arapahoe High School and helped his team to the state championship in 2009 as well as semifinal appearances in 2010 and 2011. He scored 33 goals and had 17 assists in 17 games as a junior after scoring 23 goals with 21 assists in 18 games as a sophomore. He was selected first-team All-Conference and second-team All-State last spring.
The Panthers add nine midfielders with this group of recruits: Christian Beith of Dublin, Ohio, Tyler Cook of Warrenville, Ill., Daniel Czerkawski of Cohasset, Mass., Nicholas Fisher of Darnestown, Md., Michael Messenger of Surrey, British Columbia, James Piluso of Ridgewood, N.J., Zack Price of Cumming, Ga., Wade Rollins of Bel Air, Md., and Joe Taulane of Garnet Valley, Pa.
Beith is a 6'2, 190-pound attacker and midfielder who helped Dublin Jerome High School to Ohio Div. II championships in both 2010 and 2011 as well extend its streak to seven consecutive Emerald Cup titles. He played club lacrosse for Under Armour and Titanium Lacrosse. He was Attackman of the Year in Ohio and earned All-State and All-Midwest honors.
Cook will join HPU from Wheaton Warrenville South, which he helped to a 14-4 record and the Illinois state quarterfinals last spring. He earned team offensive co-MVP honors and was named first-team All-Conference after scoring 25 goals with 12 assists and 34 ground balls in 17 games as a junior last spring. He also played for True Lacrosse.
Czerkawski played for the Landmark School and Laxachusetts AA. A faceoff specialist, he won 78 percent as a junior and 74 percent as a sophomore. He also had 32 goals and 42 assists as a junior and 34 goals and 22 assists as a sophomore. His team earned its first Eastern Independent League tournament berth in 2010 and Czerkawski earned EIL All-Star honors in each of the last two seasons.
Fisher played for the Bullis School, helping his team to a 13-3 overall record and 4-1 league record last spring. The Bullis School finished second in the Interstate Athletic Conference. He scored 20 goals with 10 assists and 52 ground balls in 19 games as a junior after scoring 14 goals with six assists as a sophomore.
A 6'2, 210-pound midfielder and faceoff specialist, Messenger will join High Point after attending Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary School. He played field lacrosse for Holy Cross High School and played box lacrosse for the Coquitlam Intermediate Adanacs, where he was a provincial All-Star and leading scorer. He was selected to Team British Columbia three times, where he was starting center and won a silver medal with the under-19 team. He was also starting quarterback and offensive team MVP for the Lord Tweedsmuir football team.
Piluso is also a midfielder and faceoff specialist who attended Bergen Catholic and played club for the Tri-State Black. He won 70 percent of faceoffs and grabbed a team-leading 111 ground balls while scoring five goals in 17 games as a junior. His team went 7-10 while playing the sixth-hardest schedule in New Jersey.
Price is a 6'2, 195-poind midfielder out of Lambert High School. He scored 22 goals and had nine assists and 39 ground balls as a junior, helping his team to a 23-1 record and state championship. Price scored eight goals with 12 assists and 53 ground balls his sophomore year as the team went 18-2 and made it to the state semifinals. He was named All-State, named to the Under Armour All-America South team and earned several other honors in 2011.
Rollins lists at 6'2 and 185 pounds in the midfield. He played lacrosse for C. Milton Wright High School, where he scored 23 goals with 31 assists in 12 games last spring. He also played club for the Harford Mavericks and scored 29 goals with 18 assists in 14 games last season.
Taulane is a midfielder who played for Garnet Valley High School and Jags Lax. He scored 20 goals and had 19 assists and 72 ground balls as a junior, when he was named to the All-Central League second team. He earned honorable mention as a sophomore when he scored 26 goals with five assists and 65 ground balls. Garnet Valley qualified for the state tournament in 2009 and 2010. With Jags Lax, Taulane helped his team to several tournament championships.
The Panthers are bringing in four defensemen for next season – James Dunn of Arnold, Md., Ben Hughes of Malvern, Pa., Alex Rock of McLean, Va., and Braxton Roman of Suwanee, Ga. – as well as one goalie, Matthew Siegmund of Greensboro, N.C.
Dunn was ranked No. 16 among long-stick midfielders by ESPN High School Sports, ranked in the top 44 by the Maryland State Lacrosse Coaches Association and earned several All-American honors while playing for Broadneck High School and Roughriders Elite. His teams won the Paradise Shootout, Rockfish Tournament and Patriot Games. Dunn is also a linebacker and helped his football team to the 4A regional title in 2010.
Hughes is a defenseman and long-stick midfielder from Great Valley High School. He also played for Mesa Fresh. He earned first-team All-Ches-Mont league honors and was named second-team All-Area as a junior after earning second-team All-League honors as a sophomore.
Rock comes from Gonzaga College High School in Virginia and also played for Chesapeake Rock, Madlax and VLC. He helped Gonzaga to two straight Washington Catholic Athletic Conference championships with records of 19-3 his junior year and 20-2 his sophomore year.
Roman comes to HPU out of Lambert High School, where he helped his team to a 21-1 record and the Georgia state title last spring. His team went on the road to defeat the Texas state champ, Coppell. Roman was named All-State and to the Under Armour South team. He was named All-County in both lacrosse and football. He also played club lacrosse for the ATL Rage.
Siegmund is the only local product on the list, having played at Western Guilford High School in Greensboro. He helped his team to a 10-3 record last spring, saving 70 percent of the shots he faced in 13 games. As a sophomore, Siegmund saved 62.7 percent of shots – 212 total – in 15 games. He was named All-State and All-American both seasons and was conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2011.
These additions will join the 18 players currently on High Point University's roster. The Panthers' current squad includes two attackmen, seven midfielders, nine defensemen and one goalie.
HPU Men's Lacrosse Recruits
Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Christian Beith M 6'2 190 Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Jerome
Tyler Cook M 6'3 190 Warrenville, Ill./Wheaton Warrenville So.
Daniel Czerkawski M/FO 5'9 160 Cohasset, Mass./Landmark School
James Dunn M 5'10 175 Arnold, Md./Broadneck
Nicholas Fisher M 5'11 185 Darnestown, Md./The Bullis School
Ben Hughes D 6'3 215 Malvern, Pa./Great Valley
Dan Lomas A 5'10 180 Burlington, Ontario/Notre Dame
Michael Messenger M/FO 6'2 210 Surrey, B.C./Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary
Dan Murray A 5'11 165 Warren, N.J./Seton Hall Prep
Cory Palmer A 5'9 175 Mableton, Ga./Lovett School
Bryce Parietti A 5'11 180 Centennial, Colo./Arapahoe
James Piluso M/FO 6'1 188 Ridgewood, N.J./Bergen Catholic
Zack Price M 6'2 195 Cumming, Ga./Lambert
Alex Rock D 6'4 185 McLean, Va./Gonzaga College HS
Wade Rollins M 6'2 185 Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright
Braxton Roman D 5'10 190 Suwanee, Ga./Lambert
Matthew Siegmund G 5'10 180 Greensboro, N.C./Western Guilford
Joe Taulane M 5'8 170 Garnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley