COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Two members of the fourth-ranked Maryland men's lacrosse team were named to the 25-player Tewaaraton Award nominee list, the foundation announced Thursday.

Defender Brett Makar and faceoff specialist Luke Wierman were among the 25 selected. Both Terps appeared on Tewaaraton watch lists throughout the season, but this is the first official nomination for all three.

Both players were also on the top-25 list last season, along with eventual Tewaaraton Award winner Logan Wisnauskas. 

Makar, the team's leader on defense, has followed a spectacular senior season where he was a consensus All-American with one just as strong. The Yorktown Heights, NY native has picked up 35 groundballs and caused 17 turnovers in eleven games this season, while the defensive unit is holding foes to only 10.27 goals per game (the 13th best mark in the nation). 

Wierman, who owns the fourth-best faceoff rate in the nation, has been dominant at the X all season. He has not only has he won 178 faceoffs on a 63.3 percent rate, he's also scooped 96 groundballs, scored a goal and notched two assists. Wierman currently stands second all-time in program history in faceoff wins with 563 and is third all-time at Maryland in groundballs with 299. 

Maryland has won three of the previous five Tewaaraton awards with Wisnauskas winning last year, Jared Bernhardt taking it home in 2021 and Matt Rambo in 2017.

The Tewaaraton Award annually honors the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. The selection committees are made up of premier collegiate coaches and are appointed annually by The Tewaaraton Foundation. The five men's and five women's finalists will be announced on May 11 and will be invited to the Tewaaraton Award Ceremony in Washington, D.C., on June 1.