COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The 2023 World Lacrosse Men's Championship kicks off tonight as Team USA faces Team Canada and nine former Terps will take part in the event across four different teams.
Team USA features a quintet of former Terps on Team USA in
Jesse Bernhardt, Matt Dunn, Michael Ehrhardt, Connor Kelly and Matt Rambo. The five Terps on the 23-man US roster is the most of any college on the roster.
The Terps also have two players playing for Puerto Rico in
Donovan Lacey and Thomas O'Connell. Additionally, Dan Morris plays with the Philippines and
Drew Morris with Team Israel.
Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Israel are all in Pool C while the US is in Pool A as the No. 1 overall seed.
The Championship takes place in San Diego, CA from June 21 until July 1 as 30 teams from across the country take part in over 100 games in the ten-day span. ESPN will televise all 107 games on ESPN+, highlighted by six games across ESPN2 and ESPNU.
The US, under head coach John Danowski, is looking to defend its 2018 gold medal and enters as the No. 1 seed. The U.S. is looking to become the first nation to repeat as champion at this event in more than two decades. The U.S. and Canada have alternated championships since the U.S. won its sixth straight world championship in 2002. Canada won in 2006 and 2014 while the U.S. won in 2010 and 2018.
Two of the three captains of Team USA are hardshells as both Bernhardt and Ehrhardt were elected team captains along with Tom Schreiber.
Bernhardt is making his third World Championship appearance while Ehrhardt makes his second. The three other hardshells are all making their World Championship debut.
Bernhardt was a two-time USILA All-American during his stint at Maryland from 2010 to 2013 as a LSM. Bernhardt made the switch to close defense professionally and has been with the Chrome since 2020. He currently serves as an Assistant Coach/Defensive Coordinator with the Terps and was a vital part of the program's undefetaed National Championship run in 2022.
Ehrhardt wore the Maryland uniform from 2011 to 2014, beginning his career at close defense before making the switch to LSM before his senior season. Ehrhardt was also a two-time USILA All-American, earning the honors in both 2013 and 2014. He has been named the PLL LSM of the Year four years in row and currently plays on the Whipsnakes.
Rounding out the Maryland defensive players on the Team USA roster, Matt Dunn was a two-time team captain and two-time All-American who helped lead Maryland to three NCAA Final Fours and two NCAA Championship game appearances in four seasons from 2013 to 2016. Dunn is a five-time PLL all-star and two-time Defensive Player of the Year who currently stars on the Whipsnakes.
Kelly excelled as a Terp midfielder from 2015 to 2018 and was awarded the coveted Maryland number one jersey ahead of his senior year. He was named a USILA First-Time All-American in both 2017 and 2018 and was one of six players in NCAA history to be named to three NCAA All-Tournament teams. He also scored 128 career goals, the most for a Maryland midfielder in history, and appeared in a Maryland record 76 career games. Kelly is a two-time PLL all-star who recently won the PLL Championship with the Waterdogs.
Rambo was an extremely accomplished attacker at Maryland from 2014 to 2017, becoming Maryland's first-ever male recipient of the Tewaaraton Award on June 1, 2017. Rambo wore the historic Maryland #1 jersey from 2015 to 2017. The program's leader in points and goals at the time he graduated, Rambo helped lead Maryland to one national title, three title game appearances and four semifinal appearances. He currently stars for the Whipsnakes and has been a two-time all-star and the 2019 league MVP.
Puerto Rico advanced from the Pan-American Lacrosse Association qualifier in Medellín, Colombia, in a tournament of six in July. Two Terps stand on their roster in
Donovan Lacey and Thomas O'Connell.
Lacey played the 2023 season at Maryland after coming over as a graduate transfer from Sacred Heart. A SSDM, he appeared in all 16 games and totaled one assist, four groundballs and three caused turnovers.
O'Connell was also a SSDM during his time as a Terp from 2016 to 2019. A part of the 2017 National Title team, O'Connell was a 3x Academic All-Big Ten member and was a team captain as a senior in 2019.
Dan Morris, who played with the Philippines in the 2018 World Championship, is back for another run. Morris excelled in cage at Maryland from 2014 to 2018 and was a vital part of the 2017 National Championship team. Morris was a two-team All-American and finished seventh in Maryland history with 410 career saves in addition to posting a 30-7 record in two seasons as the Terps' starting goaltender.
Israel's
Drew Morris played in cage in College Park from 2018 to 2022 and was also a three-time Academic All-Big Ten Member in addition to being the reserve goalkeeper on the 2022 historic, undefeated National Championship team.
The highly-touted USA-Canada matchup, a rematch of the 2018 medal game, will kick off the Championship and can be caught at 10 p.m. EST tonight on ESPN2.
