Folks, buckle up: the Joey Spallina senior year finale brings even more hype to an Orange team that has true National Championship aspirations. Inside Lacrosse, one of the largest lacrosse news websites, named the Orange’s trusty #22 as the favorite to take home the prestigious Tewaaraton Award (College lacrosse player of the year).
Last year’s winner, Cornell senior attackman CJ Kirst, gave the Big Red their first national title since 1977. While Syracuse’s last banner year came in 2013, the fanbase is hungry for a ring season. Spallina, in addition to his senior mates that defined an unprecedented recruiting class for the Orange, look to make their mark on the program by delivering a title in May.
Spallina will dominate no matter what, with the IL writers noticing that his presence alone draws top defenders from the opposing side (And, in all honesty, double teams once he commits to driving towards the crease. Similar to Kirst, he plays in a highly competitive conference that never allows for a stat-padding game. The Mount Sinai native has been the face of Syracuse since his commitment as the #1 overall recruit in the 2022 high school class.
After a team-high 90 point season in 2025, Spallina and his attack line will have to bear even more weight with the loss of Owen Hiltz. Hiltz lead the Orange with 46 goals in his senior season en route to being a first round PLL draft pick. SU still has highly-skilled offensive pieces such as Michael Leo, Finn Thompson, and Trey Deere, but the Hiltz loss puts a bit of uncertainty around the offensive gameplay. He was Cuse’s main “Shooter” who would always find a hole in the defense and pick out an open piece of netting almost immediately after getting the ball. Shots were on target and generated multiple chances in one offensive possession.
Following Spallina as Inside Lacrosse’s top candidate, Cornell’s Ryan Goldstein and North Carolina’s Owen Duffy round out the top three. Potential #1 PLL draft pick Eric Spanos lands at #4 on the list, a player the Orange know all too well after their two meetings in 2025.
Its only October, but the Spallina hype train is off and running.
