Washington, D.C. – Le Moyne College men's lacrosse graduate student midfielder Ben McCreary (Cicero, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) has been named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List, as announced on Thursday evening by the Tewaaraton Foundation.
 
The Tewaaraton Award, which is in its 21st year, 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 initial men's watch list consists of 51 student-athletes spanning each of the three divisions.
 
McCreary, who gives the Dolphins a member of the watch list for the second straight year after Matt Hutchings was included last year, is the only Division II student-athlete named to the men's list and is one of only two non-Division I student-athletes to be recognized.

"What a tremendous honor for Ben to be mentioned alongside the best players in the college game," said head coach Dan Sheehan.

A 2022 preseason USILA All-America selection and USA Lacrosse Magazine's Division II Preseason Player of the Year and Midfielder of the Year, McCreary recorded a career-best 28 points on a career-high 26 goals and two assists over 14 games last year to guide the Dolphins to their sixth national championship and a 15-0 record.

A 2021 USILA All-America, USILA East Region and Northeast-10 Conference All-Conference First Team selection, he tallied 12 goals after moving into the starting lineup for the team's final five games. The only Dolphin to score in every game played, he scored multiple goals in eight games, including a career-best three goals four times, three of which came in the postseason. He finished the season ranked fifth in the NE10 in goals scored.

Through 47 games in his first four seasons on the Heights, during which the Dolphins are 42-5, he has 52 career points on 45 goals and seven assists.

The Dolphins, who have been ranked first in each of the first two USILA Top 20 rankings of the season, open the year on Sunday, February 20 at 12:00 p.m. against second-ranked Wingate University at Homewood Field on the campus of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
 
The men's watch list candidates, with school, year and position noted:
 
2022 MEN'S WATCH LIST
Ryan Archer, Hobart - Grad. Student, Attack
Ryan Aughavin, Brown - Grad. Student, Midfield
George Baughan, Princeton - Sr., Defense
Will Bowen, Georgetown - Grad. Student, Defense
Matt Brandau, Yale - Jr., Attack
Graham Bundy Jr., Georgetown - Jr., Midfield
Matt Campbell, Villanova - Sr., Midfield
Arden Cohen, Notre Dame - Grad. Student, Defense
Zach Cole, Saint Joseph's - Sr., Face Off
Chris Connolly, UMass-Amherst - Grad. Student, Attack
Brendan Curry, Syracuse - Grad. Student, Midfield
Connor DeSimone, Johns Hopkins - Grad. Student, Attack
Tucker Dordevic, Syracuse - Sr., Midfield
Liam Entenmann, Notre Dame - Jr., Goalie
Chris Fake, Yale - Sr., Defense
Cross Ferrara, Salisbury - Grad. Student, Attack
Dylan Gergar, Pennsylvania - Sr., Attack
Owen Grant, Delaware - Sr., Defense
Chris Gray, North Carolina - Grad. Student, Attack
Sam Handley, Pennsylvania - Sr., Midfield
Jack Hannah, Denver - Grad. Student, Midfield
Marcus Hudgins, Army West Point - Sr., Defense
Patrick Kavanagh, Notre Dame - Jr., Attack
Colin Kirst, Rutgers - Grad. Student, Goalie
Ryan Lanchbury, Richmond - Grad. Student, Attack
Petey LaSalla, Virginia - Sr., Face Off
Kevin Lindley, Loyola - Grad. Student, Attack
Kyle Long, Maryland - Sr., Midfield
Brett Makar, Maryland - Sr., Defense
Thomas McConvey, Vermont - Sr., Midfield
Ben McCreary, Le Moyne - Grad. Student, Midfield
Owen McElroy, Georgetown - Grad. Student, Goalie
Ryan McNulty, Loyola - Grad. Student, Longstick Midfield
Nakeie Montgomery, Duke - Grad. Student, Midfield
Matt Moore, Virginia - Grad. Student, Attack
Jack Myers, Ohio State - Sr., Attack
Brendan Nichtern, Army West Point - Sr., Attack
Asher Nolting, High Point  - Grad. Student, Attack
Brennan O'Neill, Duke - Soph., Attack
Marc O'Rourke, Bryant - Grad. Student, Attack
John Piatelli, Cornell - Sr., Attack
Michael Robinson, Delaware - Jr., Attack
Connor Shellenberger, Virginia - Soph., Attack
Alex Simmons, Denver - Sr., Attack
Mike Sisselberger, Lehigh - Sr., Face Off
Koby Smith, Towson - Fifth Year Senior, Defense
Gibson Smith IV, Georgetown - Grad. Student, Defense
James Spence, Lehigh - Grad. Student, Goalie
Alec Stathakis, Denver - Jr., Face Off
Logan Wisnauskas, Maryland - Fifth Year Senior, Attack
Josh Zawada, Michigan - Jr., Attack