WHAC Release

As announced on Tuesday (Jan. 23), the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference published the standings for the coaches' preseason polls for the 2024 men's lacrosse season. The Saints have been selected to finish fourth in the WHAC and received one first-place vote in the poll.

Taking first in the men's poll is Indiana Tech with 76 votes, including six first-place votes. Indiana Tech had an incredibly strong finish last year as overall they held a 17-4 record, with a conference standing of 7-1. The Warriors of IT made a run to the NAIA National Championship game where they ultimately fell to No. 1-ranked Kaiser, despite defeating them earlier in the season. Due to the success of IT, not only did they receive the first-place preseason poll finish, but have already received the national ranking of No. 2.

Second in the poll comes the Cardinals of Concordia (71) with two first-place votes. The Cardinals had a 15-3 overall, with a 8-0 conference record in the previous season. Concordia made a run in the NAIA national tournament but fell in the first round to No. 3-ranked Cumberlands.

Madonna takes the third seed in the WHAC Poll (52). The Crusaders had a split finish in the previous season as they had an overall of 8-8, and conference play of 4-4. MU had a post season glimpse in the WHAC tournament but fell to Aquinas in the first round.

AQ stands right behind Madonna in the poll (50) with one first-place vote. Similar to the Crusaders the Saints had a split season with an 8-8 record, with a conference final of 4-4. Aquinas advanced farther in the WHAC Tournament but were stopped in their tracks by Concordia.

The Saints are set to enter their third season under the direction of head coach, Chris Klaiber. In his time on the sidelines, Klaiber has a record of 19-13 and led AQ to a national tournament semifinals appearance in 2022.

Aquinas will have some gaps to fill this season after the departure of several key players. AQ's top three point generators in Mitch Haggart, Jon Jardis, and Zachary Sweet all graduated out of the program. Clayton Boerigter, the Saints' starting goaltender for the past four seasons, also graduated from Aquinas following the 2023 season.

AQ will be looking for increased contributions from key returners such as Brady Waling, Jack Rioux, Noah Szarejko, Lou Nageotte, and Dean Cooper.

The Saints have an exhibition match against Central Michigan University on February 24th at 6:00 p.m. Aquinas will begin their regular season with a road trip to Davenport, Iowa to take on Saint Ambrose on March 2nd. The first faceoff is set to take place at 3:00 p.m.