Courtesy Loyola University Maryland Athletic Communications
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Loyola University Maryland sophomore attacker Pat Spencer was named one of five finalists for the Tewaaraton Award presented by Under Armour, an honor given yearly to the top player in college lacrosse that will be awarded on June 1.
Spencer will be joined at the awards ceremony held at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian by the University of Denver’s Trevor Baptiste, Albany University’s Connor Fields, the University of Maryland’s Matt Rambo and Yale University’s Ben Reeves.
In the Patriot League Championship Game against the U.S. Military Academy, Spencer became Loyola and the Patriot League’s single-season leader in assists, logging three to increase his 2017 total to 55. That mark snapped the 2014 total set by Justin Ward. He leads the NCAA in assists per game (3.67) and is third in points (5.47) heading into the NCAA Championships.
The Davidsonville, Maryland, native is Loyola’s third Tewaaraton Award finalist since its inception in 2001. Mike Sawyer was one of the final five in 2012, and Joe Fletcher was in 2014. Spencer is the fifth Patriot League student-athlete to be named a Tewaaraton Award finalist since 2001. He joins Fletcher, 2012 winner Peter Baum (Colgate), Jeremy Boltus (2011, Army West Point) and John Walker (2005, Army West Point) among this elite group.
In addition to his 55 assists this year, Spencer has 27 goals for a total of 82 points. Last year, he tied Gary Hanley’s 1981 school record with 89 points. The duo are the only players in program history to record 80 or more points in a season; Hanley did it three times from 1979-1981, and Spencer has accomplished the feat in each of the last two seasons.
Earlier this year, Spencer broke the Patriot League record for assists in a game, recording nine in a March 4 victory over College of the Holy Cross. His total tied Hanley’s school record and eclipsed Brian Duffy’s school Division I mark.
Spencer is the first player in conference history to be named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year in his first two seasons of collegiate competition. He was also named to the All-Patriot League First Team while earning two Corvias Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week honors and a BSN Sports/USILA National Offensive Player of the Week nod.
He has scored two or more points in all but one of his 33 career games, and he has 19 multi-goal and 23 multi-assist games. Spencer is the NCAA’s active career leader in assists (3.24), and he is third in points per game (5.18).
His 107 career assists rank third in program and seventh in Patriot League history, while he has 171 career points which are good for eighth in Loyola’s history.
Spencer and the Greyhounds open NCAA Championships action on Sunday, May 14, when they take on The Ohio State University at 5 p.m. on ESPNU.
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