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10 Blue Devils Land on USILA Preseason All-America Teams - Duke University - GoDuke.com

DURHAM, N.C.—The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association announced its 2021 USILA Preseason All-America teams Wednesday with 10 Blue Devils earning recognition on the 78-man list. Duke landed three on the top three teams, while seven more garnered an honorable mention nod.

The 10 selections by Duke are the most of any team in the nation, with Syracuse compiling seven. The Orange placed five across the top three teams. Overall, 32 players from the ACC earned notice, including 17 of the 39 on the top three squads.

Graduate student transfer Michael Sowers and returning captain JT Giles-Harris both were voted to the first team, while goalie transfer Mike Adler was a second-team pick. Earning honorable mention recognition were Kenny Brower (D), Owen Caputo (M), Tyler Carpenter (D), Terry Lindsay (SSDM), Nakeie Montgomery (M), Dan O'Connell (FO) and Dyson Williams (A).  

Sowers (Princeton), Adler (Saint Joseph's) and O'Connell (Holy Cross) all joined the Blue Devils as graduate student transfers, using their final year of lacrosse eligibility after the cancellation of the 2020 campaign due to COVID-19.

This is just the latest honor for Giles-Harris and Sowers as both also were first team All-America picks by U.S. Lacrosse Magazine. They also were tabbed the Preseason Defenseman and Attackman of the Year, respectively, by the magazine.

Giles-Harris, the 2019 ACC Defensive Player of the Year and considered the top defenseman last season, returns to anchor Duke's defense again in 2021. He enters his final year as a Blue Devil with 113 ground balls and 70 caused turnovers. Prior to the abrupt end to the 2020 season, the Nyack, N.Y., native had 21 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers, earning Inside Lacrosse All-America First-Team recognition.
The two-year team captain has started 63 of the 64 games in his career and is on his way to becoming the fourth Duke close defenseman to earn All-America First Team honors twice in his career. Amassing 70 career caused turnovers, he needs 15 caused turnovers to climb into the top 35 in NCAA history and 19 to surpass Luke Duprey's Duke record of 88.

Graduating from Princeton as the program's all-time leading scorer with 302 points (121 goals, 181 assists), Sowers led the nation in points (9.4/gm) and assists (6.2/gm) last year, both of which would have been Division I records. He broke the Ivy League single-game record for points in a game with 14 against Colgate. He had 11 assists versus the Raiders to set a Princeton single-game record. Against reigning NCAA Champion, Sowers notched four goals and four assists.

With 302 points to his name, the Dresher, Pa., native has the potential to become just the second person in NCAA history to reach the 400-point plateau. Lyle Thompson currently holds the career scoring record with 400 points. Sowers' 181 assists currently rank ninth in NCAA history and are 51 shy of breaking Pat Spencer's record of 231. For his career, Sowers is averaging 6.4 points per game and 3.9 assists per game. He scored 80-plus points in each of his three full seasons with the Tigers and had 47 through five games in 2020.

Adler joins the Blue Devils after a standout career at Saint Joseph's. A three-year starter in the cage, he graduated from Saint Joseph's ranked fourth all-time in career save percentage (.569), fifth in career goals against average (9.37) and fifth in career saves (426). He was voted to the All-NEC second team in 2018 and 2019 and was the team's pick for Outstanding Defensive Performer in 2018 and 2019 as well as the overall Most Outstanding Performer in 2018.

Brower, Carpenter and Lindsay all were key components of Duke's defensive unit in 2020. A starter in all eight games on close defense as a rookie, Brower recorded 15 ground balls and five caused turnovers. Carpenter was outstanding at long stick midfield, leading all non-faceoff specialists with 23 ground balls and ranking second in caused turnovers with nine.

The veteran of the group, Lindsay is back for his final season. Playing in 64 career games, he recently was voted a team captain by his teammates for a second consecutive season. He has 88 ground balls and 30 caused turnovers for his career.

Caputo had a breakout sophomore season in the midfield, ranking second on the team in scoring with 12 goals and eight assists for 20 points. Montgomery was just starting to hit his stride in 2020 as the season came to a screeching halt. For his career, he has started 22 games and 69 points from 43 goals and 26 assists.

Williams had a stellar rookie campaign despite only playing eight games. The Ontario native started all eight games at attack and led the Blue Devils with 26 goals and 30 points overall. He led all freshmen nationally in goals per game (3.13) and ranked fifth among rookies in points per game (3.75).

Rounding out the list is O'Connell, who had a solid career as a faceoff specialist at Holy Cross. He won 66 percent of his restarts to rank eighth nationally last season. Playing in 33 career games, he has 230 ground balls and sports a 446-of-707 record at the X for a .631 win percentage.

The Blue Devils, the consensus No. 1 team in the nation, opens their 2021 season Feb. 5 against Denver. Faceoff is at 3 p.m., at Koskinen Stadium.

Due to the impact of COVID-19, Duke University will begin its spring sport program seasons without spectators at home events. Contests played on Duke's campus will include essential game management personnel and broadcast media. Traditional parking lots used by fans on game day will be closed.

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10 Blue Devils Land on USILA Preseason All-America Teams - Duke University - GoDuke.com
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