2024 NCAA Lacrosse Preview: No. 16 Delaware (Men)
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© 2024 USA Lacrosse. All Rights Reserved.
© 2024 USA Lacrosse. All Rights Reserved.
2023 record: 13-5 (6-1 CAA)
Final ranking (2023): No. 15
Head coach: Ben DeLuca (56-29 in six seasons at Delaware; 93-40 in nine seasons overall)
Assistants: Matt Rewkowski (associate head coach), Trey Wilkes, Mark Bieda
It is a sign of respect for the considerable talents of attackman Tye Kurtz and defenseman Owen Grant that last year’s discussions about Delaware usually started with a measure of their influence. This season’s analysis invariably begins with how the Blue Hens must replace them.
That’s life when a program is thriving. Want to be good enough to win games in the NCAA tournament as Delaware has in back-to-back seasons? Somebody pretty good is bound to be out of eligibility each year. Probably multiple somebodies.
The Blue Hens’ blueprint was never about one or two guys, and their player development up and down the roster is what will be leaned upon to keep them atop the rechristened Coastal Athletic Association and in the mix nationally.
“The development process is critically important for the way we coach our guys, the way we expect every one of our guys to prepare like they’re a starter and like they’re an impact guy and fulfill their role to the best of their ability is what has allowed us to have a decent amount of success recently,” coach Ben DeLuca said.
That’s not to diminish the task in front of Delaware. Kurtz is the school’s career leader in goals and points and became only the second Blue Hen to record 100 goals and 100 points. Grant’s work not only on defense but in the middle of the field instantly commanded attention every time he played.
“It’s hard to graduate guys that are as impactful as the all-time leading scorer for a program and arguably the best defenseman that’s ever played for your program,” DeLuca said. “We’re going to see a hit there, for sure. But I think we have a good group of young men who have played with those guys and learned from those guys and have benefited from their leadership and their example, and I think they’re ready to step forward.”
Cam Acchione, M, Sr. (23 G, 10 A)
Mike Robinson, A, Gr. (32 G, 16 A)
JP Ward, A, Sr. (42 G, 43 A)
Kurtz’s place atop Delaware’s career goals list might be short-lived, considering Robinson needs 36 to overtake him. But this season might also be the best platform yet for Ward’s considerable talents. Not that he hasn’t provided stellar production the last few years, including four multi-goal games in the NCAA tournament and the Blue Hens’ game-winner in the closing seconds against Georgetown in the first round in 2022.
“When people talk about some of the best attackmen in the country, I think Mike Robinson is the first out of people’s mouths when talking about Delaware, and rightfully so,” DeLuca said. “He’s got some highlight-reel goals and some major production for us throughout his career, but JP is just kind of a silent killer. He flies under the radar a little bit, and I think he’s a guy who’s really going to be good for us.”
Louie Atkinson, D, Fr. (Haverford School, Pa.)
Donny Gayhardt, D, Gr. (23 GB, 12 CT at Colgate)
John McCurry, A, Fr. (Wall HS, N.J.)
With both Grant and Kevin Lynch graduating, the Blue Hens have two vacancies on the starting close defense. (Grad student Tate Wasson returns.) Atkinson impressed with his athleticism in his first fall as a college player, while Gayhardt arrived after earning second-team all-Patriot League honors at Colgate. At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, he also provides a formidable presence for a defense known for its rugged play.
“He brings size, he brings experience, he brings a wealth of knowledge,” DeLuca said. “He came in and meshed really well with our guys in the fall.”
Graduations: Owen Grant, D; Roland Hockenberry, FO; Matt Kilkeary, G; Tye Kurtz, A; Kevin Lynch, D; Clay Miller, M/A; Jason Seiter, SSDM
Kevin Ellington, G, Sr.
Delaware has enjoyed remarkable stability in the cage, with Matt DeLuca (2017-20) and Matt Kilkeary (2021-23) combining to start all but 11 games over the last seven seasons. Ellington has played sparingly during three seasons in Newark, including an appearance at the end of the Blue Hens’ defeat of Robert Morris in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, but he had a solid fall and heads into the preseason leading what DeLuca calls “a competitive room” that also includes senior Tim Beach and junior Aidan Koff.
“He comes out of the MIAA at Loyola, and he was a first-team guy there his senior year,” DeLuca said of Ellington. “He knows how to compete and man the pipes, and I think he has established himself as our starter right now, so we’re excited about that.”
There is an unmistakable distinctiveness to watching Delaware play, a direct result of the identity DeLuca has forged over a half-dozen years with the program.
Those who watched his Cornell teams in the early 2010s are familiar with it. There’s talent there, for sure, but also an unrelenting, bruising approach. Win or lose, playing the Blue Hens means a team is not in for a fun day physically.
That’s especially true at the defensive end. In five games over the last two postseasons, Delaware has yielded an average of just 9.8 goals while beating Georgetown and losing tight games to eventual finalists Cornell (2022) and Duke (2023).
“We do pride ourselves on a certain style of play,” DeLuca said. “We want our guys to play selfless, tough, disciplined, and we want to play hard and outwork our opponents, but we want to be fundamentally sound to work together as a unit.”
As a team, the Blue Hens have rattled off 10-plus victories in each of their last four full seasons, an impressive degree of consistency that dovetails with a reliably rugged approach. All of which suggests Delaware isn’t about to fade from relevance anytime soon.
“I think they’ve worked extremely hard to try to accomplish some of these goals that we’ve set for ourselves and maintain the standard of the program, and I do think we’ve done that at a reasonably high level and very pleased with what we’ve done over the course of the last couple years,” DeLuca said. “I feel we’re just starting to scratch the surface of the capacity of this program.”
“They’re a really, really good team. Very underrated.”
Avoiding empty possessions and getting second chances were key factors for the 2023 Blue Hens. They were undefeated in nine games when their offense averaged 0.96 or more shots-per-possession. When they averaged fewer shots on a per-possession basis, they didn’t win any of their four contests.
Patrick Stevens has covered college sports for 25 years. His work also appears in The Washington Post, Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and other outlets. He's provided coverage of Division I men's lacrosse to USA Lacrosse Magazine since 2010.
