Eight Cortland Players Earn 2025 USILA Men's Lacrosse All-America Honors
Eight members of the Cortland men's lacrosse team have been recognized as 2025 Division III All-Americans by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA). In addition, senior Alex Thrasher (Vestal) has been chosen as the 2025 USILA Short-Stick Defensive Midfielder of the Year.
The eight USILA All-America selections are tied for the most in a single season in program history, with eight players also earning All-America certificates in the 2010 season.
Thrasher was a first team selection, while sophomore offensive midfielder Sean Kavanagh (North Canton, OH/Hoover) was a second team honoree, and senior defender Christian Lembo (Farmingdale) was named to the third team. Five players were honorable mentions, including senior attack Sam Rothman (Dix Hills/Half Hollow Hills East), senior offensive midfielder Ryan Scanlon (Cornelius, NC/William Amos Hough), junior long-stick midfielder Tucker Macknik (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker), junior defender Dino Bowen (Yorktown), and graduate student goalkeeper Travis Wagner (Penfield).
Thrasher is the first Cortland player since Chris DeLuca in 2011 to earn a national positional player of the year award. He jumps to the first team after being an honorable mention in 2024, and was also named a third team All-American by USA Lacrosse Magazine last week. A first team All-SUNYAC honoree, he played in and started 21 games for the Red Dragons, while leading the team with 33 caused turnovers, the second-highest total in a single season in program history. He also added 65 ground balls, and three goals and an assist. Thrasher recorded six caused turnovers and four ground balls in a road win over Skidmore, and had two caused turnovers with six ground balls in a road win at Oswego.
Kavanagh earns the first All-America certificate of his career. Also a first team All-SUNYAC selection, he played in all 22 games and scored 79 points on 48 goals and a team-high 31 assists. Kavanagh scored at least one goal in 20-of-22 games, and provided at least one assist in 19-of-22 games. He scored four goals and added three assists in a win over Plattsburgh, and scored three times with four assists in a victory over Illinois Wesleyan in the second round of the NCAA Div. III playoffs.
The SUNYAC Defensive Player of the Year and a first team All-SUNYAC honoree, Lembo was also chosen as an honorable mention All-American by USA Lacrosse Magazine last week. He started all 22 games this spring, finishing second on the team with 32 caused turnovers, also the third-most caused turnovers in a single season in program history. Lembo led the Cortland defense that finished sixth in the country in scoring defense with just 7.68 goals allowed per game, and he registered four caused turnovers and five ground balls in a road win at Oswego.
Rothman collects his first career All-America honor after leading the team in scoring with 84 points and 57 goals. His 57 goals are the second-most goals in a single season in program history and were one shy of tying the single-season scoring mark. Rothman was a first team All-SUNYAC honoree and scored at least one goal in each of the final 21 games of the season for Cortland, including netting five goals in a win over Brockport and adding four goals and four assists in a victory at Plattsburgh.
Scanlon earns honorable mention All-America honors for the second straight year. He played in 18 games for the Red Dragons, scoring 42 points on 33 goals and nine assists, while adding 33 ground balls. Scanlon was the MVP of the SUNYAC Tournament and a second team All-SUNYAC selection, and scored at least one goal in 16-of-18 games, including providing four goals and an assist in a win over Potsdam in the SUNYAC Semifinals, and scoring three goals with an assist in a win over Illinois Wesleyan in the second round of the NCAA Div. III playoffs.
Macknik played in all 22 games with 19 starts for the Red Dragons in earning his first career All-America honor. A first team All-SUNYAC honoree, he was second on the team with 66 ground balls, and finished third on the team with 28 caused turnovers. Macknick scooped up at least one ground ball in each of the final 21 games for Cortland, and had at least one caused turnover in 16-of-22 games. He recorded four caused turnovers and scooped up two ground balls in a win over Ithaca, and had three caused turnovers and three ground balls in a road win at Skidmore.
A first-time All-American, Bowen was a force defensively for the Red Dragons. He earned first team All-SUNYAC recognition and played in all 22 games with 21 starts for Cortland. Bowen finished fourth on the team with 26 caused turnovers, and also contributed 43 ground balls. He had five caused turnovers and six ground balls in a win over Ithaca, and added two caused turnovers and four ground balls in a win over Oneonta in the SUNYAC Finals.
Wagner ends his career with his first All-America certificate. Also a first team All-SUNYAC selection, he played and started 20 games in goal with a 17-3 record, a .584 save percentage, and a 8.40 goals-against average which ranked 15th in the nation. Wagner made at least 10 saves in 11-of-20 games played, including making 17 saves in a home victory over St. Lawrence, and stopping 12 shots in a victory over York in the third round of the NCAA Div. III playoffs.
Cortland finished the season with a 19-3 record. The Red Dragons won the SUNYAC regular-season and conference tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA Div. III Quarterfinals to tie for fifth place nationally.
