Five Golden Eagles and MLAX Coaching Staff Honored by BIG EAST

NEW YORK – Led by unanimous first team selection Bobby O’Grady, five Marquette University men’s lacrosse players earned All-BIG EAST Conference recognition, and first-year head coach Jake Richard and staff are the BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year.

It is the first time since the year MU won its second of two league tournament titles in 2017 that at least five Golden Eagles earned postseason recognition.

In addition to O’Grady (Milton, Massachusetts), four players were named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team, including attackman Nolan Rappis (Delafield, Wisconsin), midfielders Will Foster (Eden Prairie, Minnesota) and Matt Caputo (Westbury, New York), plus short stick defensive midfielder Peter Detwiler (Devon, Pennsylvania). It is the first career postseason honor for all four second team selections.

Marquette went 7-6 in regular season play and secured its first league tournament semifinal berth since 2022 by defeating Denver, 18-11, on Friday night in the regular season finale.

Richard and assistant coaches Mark Bieda (offensive coordinator), Will Roberts (defensive coordinator) and Mason Woodward are recognized after helping MU to its first winning regular season since 2016. MU recorded its first four-game winning streak since 2017 earlier this season and its 6-3 record to start the year is its best nine-game start to a season since that year.

The Golden Eagles played a difficult non-conference schedule and all three of their losses prior to the start of league play came on the road to top-15 teams. In conference play, both of MU’s league losses came by just a single goal – at Villanova and against then-No. 14 Georgetown in double overtime on April 5.

As a team, the Golden Eagles are first nationally on man-up opportunities with a .594 success rate (19-of-32) and went 3-for-4 against Denver. Caputo is sixth in the country with seven man-up goals and has scored 20 times this season.

Marquette’s 250 points through 13 regular season games is the second-highest total in program history, while its 98 assists are 10 more than the previous program record of 88 recorded in 2023.

O’Grady earns his fourth career postseason accolade from the BIG EAST and is a first team member for the second time and the first since he was BIG EAST Freshman of the Year in 2022. He is MU’s all-time leading scorer and is fifth in NCAA Division I among active players with 145 career goals. O’Grady has 29 goals and 16 assists for 45 total points this season.

Rappis leads MU with a career-high 46 points on a team-best 31 goals and 15 assists. Rappis set a program single-game record with 10 points (five goals, five assists) in the win over Detroit Mercy on Feb. 8. He’s reached at least five goals in a game three times this season, including on Saturday against Denver.

Foster is among MU’s all-time leaders in goals, assists and total points. His 52 career assists are fourth in program history, while he is seventh in points (105) and 10th in goals (53). He’s just the third player in program history to reach 100 career points with at least 50 goals and 50 assists (Ryan McNamara and Conor Gately).

Caputo, a junior transfer from Ohio State who arrived on campus in the fall, has been a key part of MU’s man-up unit and added a valuable scoring punch to the first midfield. Caputo is one of four Golden Eagles with at least 20 goals in 2025 and added 10 assists for 30 total points.

Detwiler is a team captain who leads MU defensive players with 33 ground balls this season. He was named to the USILA Team of the Week on April 2 after helping MU to a win over St. John’s in its league opener with a goal, five ground balls and three caused turnovers.

On the MU coaching staff, Richard and Woodward are former USILA All-Americans and professional players. Richard, a Team USA defensive midfielder, is in his first season as head coach at his alma mater. Richard has been involved with every game in program history as either a student-athlete (2013-16) or assistant coach (2017-24). During his playing career, he led MU to the program’s first BIG EAST Conference title in 2016 and still ranks among MU’s all-time leaders in games played (fourth, 61), ground balls (fourth, 193), and caused turnovers (sixth, 38).

Woodward, now in his first season as assistant coach at his alma mater, was a first-round selection of the Utah Archers in the PLL College Draft and led the Archers to a repeat PLL crown in the summer of 2024. His play in the championship game was instrumental to the victory for the Archers with three ground balls and a caused turnover that spurred his own two-point goal to swing momentum. Woodward is Marquette’s all-time leader in ground balls (265) and is second in caused turnovers (84).

MU heads to Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium in Denver for the 2025 BIG EAST Conference Championship and will face top-seeded No. 13 Georgetown in Thursday’s semifinal game. First faceoff against the Hoyas is slated for 5:07 p.m. Central time and the contest airs live on CBS Sports Network.

Tickets for the event are available through the University of Denver Ticket Office online or by calling 303-871-4625. Tickets can also be purchased at the gate on Thursday afternoon.

Keep up with the Marquette men’s lacrosse program through social media by following on X (@MarquetteMLax) and Instagram (@MarquetteMLax) and ‘liking’ on Facebook (/MarquetteMLax).

2025 BIG EAST Men’s Lacrosse Honors

BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year
Aidan Carroll, A, Georgetown

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Ty Banks, D, Georgetown

BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year
Anderson Moore, GK, Georgetown *

BIG EAST Co-Specialist of the Year
Ross Prince, FOS, Georgetown
Jake Melchionni, LSM, Villanova

BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Ross Prince, FOS, Georgetown

BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
Marquette (Jake Richard, Mark Bieda, Will Roberts, Mason Woodward, director of operations Joey Artinian)

All-BIG EAST First Team
Jimmy Freehill, D, Denver *
Mic Kelly, M, Denver *
Noah Manning, A, Denver
Casey Wilson, SSDM, Denver *
Ty Banks, D, Georgetown *
Aidan Carroll, A, Georgetown *
Anderson Moore, GK, Georgetown *
Bobby O’Grady, A, Marquette *
Ryan Bell, A, Providence *
Richie Joseph, A, Providence
Matt Licata, A, Villanova
Jake Melchionni, LSM, Villanova
Jack Shoemaker, D, Villanova *

All-BIG EAST Second Team ^
Cody Malawsky, A, Denver
Robert Plath, D, Georgetown
Ross Prince, FOS, Georgetown
Jack Ransom, A, Georgetown
Matt Caputo, M, Marquette
Peter Detwiler, SSDM, Marquette
Will Foster, M, Marquette
Nolan Rappis, A, Marquette
Dan Donahue, G, Providence
Jack Horrigan, A, Providence
Quinn McConnaughey, FOS, Providence
Brian Kelly, A, St. John’s
Bobby Seel, M, St. John’s
Beau Kemler, D, Villanova
Colin Michener, A, Villanova

*Unanimous selections
^15 Players on the second team due to a tie in the voting

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.