NAC news release

WATERVILLE, Maine – The North Atlantic Conference announced the NAC men's lacrosse preseason coaches' poll on Friday, with two-time champion Maine Maritime Academy a close second to favorite SUNY Delhi. The Mariners received 37 points and one first-place vote to trail the Broncos by only four points (41, 5).

Maine Maritime fell to SUNY Poly in the 2024 NAC Championship as part of a current three-year run in the conference title game for the Mariners. Husson University (27 pts), Thomas College (25 pts), SUNY Cobleskill (18 pts) and Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (14 pts) round out the 2025 preseason poll, as voted on by the conference's six men's lacrosse head coaches.

Last season, MMA finished 11-5 overall and 7-1 for a share of its second-straight NAC regular-season crown. The Mariners are led by senior Sam Nichol (Concord [N.H.] High School) who earned first-team All-NAC accolades from his midfield spot after ranking tied for sixth with 60 points, sixth with 37 goals and sixth with 23 assists. Also returning are all-conference second team standouts senior midfielder Brendan Reddington (Wallingford, Conn./Lyman Hall High School), sophomore defender Finnian O'Donnell (South Portland High School) and sophomore midfielder Bryce Crowell (Oakland, Maine/Messalonskee High School). Reddington pumped in 34 points on 20 goals and 14 assists, O'Donnell posted 18 caused turnovers and 54 groundballs, and Crowell went 292-461 at the face-off "X" for a .633 winning percentage and he collected 160 groundballs to go with 14 assists among 17 points.

The 2025 NAC Tournament will feature four teams with the top seed hosting two semifinal games on Saturday, May 3, and the championship on Sunday, May 4. The tournament champion earns the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship, which begins on Wednesday, May 7.

Maine Maritime, which claimed the 2022 and 2023 conference championships, leads the current NAC membership with two.
 
2025 NAC Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll:

Team	Pts (1st Place Votes)
SUNY Delhi	41 (5)
Maine Maritime	37 (1)
Husson	27
Thomas	25
SUNY Cobleskill	18
MCLA	14