BETHLEHEM, Pa. —  In a vote cast by the league's coaches and sports information directors, Navy has been picked to finish third in the 2026 Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll, it was announced by the conference office Wednesday afternoon. Additionally, Navy's AJ Marsh (Jr / D / Reisterstown, Md.) was named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, Zach Hayashi (Jr / FO / North Potomac, Md.) was named the Preseason Faceoff Specialist of the Year and Jack Ponzio (So / M / Ronkonkoma, N.Y.) join Marsh and Hayashi on the Preseason All-Patriot League Team.     

Breaking Down the Poll
Army, the 2025 Patriot League Regular-Season Champion, secured 7 of the 9 first-place votes (eligible for only 8 due to not being able to vote for your own team) and amassed 63 points to top the poll for a third-consecutive year. 

Boston U., who placed second in the regular-season standings and played in the Patriot League Championship Game a year ago, earned 56 points and the remaining two first-place votes to finish second in the balloting. Just three points separated the third (Navy, 40), fourth (Loyola, 39) and fifth-place teams (Lafayette, 37), while just a point separated Lehigh (33) and Colgate (32) for sixth and seventh, respectively. Closing out the poll in eight and night were Bucknell (15) and Holy Cross (9), respectively.

Navy in the Patriot League
The Mids have won at least a share of the regular-season Patriot League title in 8 (2004-05-06-07-08-15-16-18) of the 21 seasons they have been a member of the conference. Meanwhile Navy has compiled a 12-12 record in the Patriot League Tournament to earn 5 conference tournament crowns (2004-05-06-07-09). Navy has amassed an 97-54 (64.2) regular-season record in the Patriot League since 2004 in joining what is now a nine-member lacrosse conference (Hobart left following the '04 campaign; Loyola and Boston U. joined in 2014), and includes two undefeated seasons (2004, '07).

The Cream of the Crop
In addition to the preseason poll, the 2026 Preseason All-Patriot League Team was also unveiled and headlining the 16-player team were the Patriot League's Preseason Players of the Year -  Offense (Evan Plunkett / Army / Sr), Defense (AJ Marsh / Navy / Jr), Goalkeeper (Sean Byrne / Army / Sr) and Faceoff (Zach Hayashi / Navy / Jr). 

The 2026 Preseason All-Patriot League Team is comprised of nine seniors three juniors and four sophomores. Seven of the nine teams placed players on the preseason team, including Army who led the way with five players. Navy and Boston U. both placed two on the preseason team, Lehigh had two, while Bucknell, Colgate and Loyola each had one. 

Marsh, who garnered Honorable Mention All-America honors by the USILA, USA Lacrosse and Inside Lacrosse last spring, is a two-time All-Patriot League selection earning second-team honors as a freshman and first-team recognition a year ago. After spending his rookie year as a long-stick defensive middie, he flourished last season in his role down low on a Navy defense that held its opponents to 10.60 goals per game. He was named to the USILA National Team of the Week following his performance against Lafayette where he held First-Team All-Patriot League attackman Riley Sullivan, who was the nation's #2 point producer (6.67) and #1 assist distributor (3.89) at the time, to just ONE point (G) in the contest. Active on the ball, Marsh, along with 205 graduate Jacob Darrow and All-Patriot League long-stick midfielder Sean Gallagher (Sr / Garnet Valley, Pa.), led the team with 14 caused turnovers.

In addition to his defensive efforts, he's one of the most dynamic players in the country in the transition game. Marsh recorded 9 points on 5 goals and 4 assists this spring. In just 2 seasons, he has recorded 14-career points (7G, 7A), the third-most points by a Navy pole, while his 5 goals are tied as the fourth most.

Hayashi, who helped lead the USA Lacrosse Team to silver at the 2025 World Lacrosse Men's U20 Championship this past summer, returns after missing half of the 2025 campaign due injury. In just two short seasons, Hayashi has rewritten the record books at Navy. His body of work from his freshman season was spectacular, as he closed out the 2024 campaign by being named the ECAC Rookie of the Year along with Patriot League Rookie of the Year, becoming just the third Navy player to earn the award. Garnering Second-Team All-Patriot League recognition, Hayashi also became one of only 5 Navy freshmen all-time to garner All-Patriot League accolades. 

He broke several school records in his first season, including the single-season faceoff mark. He stands alone as the only player in program history to reach 200 faceoff wins in a single season, breaking the previous record of 185 wins. He also broke the Navy freshman records for faceoff wins (214) and attempts (372) which were both previously held by Brady Dove (163-289 / 2014).

Just 24 games into his career, Hayashi stands fourth on Navy's career top-20 faceoff wins list (277) and is 23 wins shy of becoming only the fourth faceoff specialist in program history to reach 300 wins. Meanwhile, he needs just 5 ground balls to join Navy's career top-20 ground balls leader board. He owns 134 ground balls to date.

Ponzio, a 2025 Second-Team All-Patriot League selection, is just the sixth Navy freshman to earn All-Patriot League recognition and only the program's second freshman offensive player to be named all-league. He was the team's second-leading scorer, closing out his rookie campaign with 31 points on 18 goals and 13 assists. A year ago, Ponzio and William Goers (So / A/M / Chester, Md.) become just the third freshman tandem in school history to reach the 30-point mark, joining Paul Basile and Tom Hanzsche in 1986 and Tucker Hull and Sam Jones in 2011. 

Ponzio produced points in 12 of the 15 games last spring, including 9 multiple-point games and 6 multiple-assist contests. He etched his name into the record books with his 5-goal performance against Lehigh, marking the most goals by a Navy rookie since Jack Ray scored 5 at Air Force on May 2, 2015.

Season Opener Fast Approaching
Navy will open its 119th year of varsity lacrosse on Jan. 31 when it plays host to High Point. The contest is slated for a 12-noon faceoff and will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Joe Miller calling the action. The game can also be heard on 1430 WNAV.

Navy is offering a season ticket package which includes all eight home regular-season men's games for $50 and a reserved seat. Additionally, single-game tickets for home Navy men's lacrosse games are on sale now and may be purchased by stopping by the Navy Ticket Office at Ricketts Hall, by calling or texting 1-800-US4-NAVY, via the internet at www.navysports.com or at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on game day. Single-game tickets are $10 for adults and kids, while groups of 20 or more will be offered a discounted $5 ticket (in advance only, contact grouptickets@usna.edu). Additionally there is a $10.50 charge (credit card only) to park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium for all home games.

2026 Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll
1. Army, 63 points (7 first-place votes)
2. Boston U., 56 (2)
3. Navy, 40
4. Loyola, 39
5. Lafayette, 37
6. Lehigh, 33
7. Colgate, 32
8. Bucknell, 15
9. Holy Cross, 9

2026 Preseason All-Patriot League Team
A - Hill Plunkett, Army (So)
A - Timothy Shannehan, Boston U. (So)
A - Hunter Drouin, Colgate (Sr)
A - Matt Minicus, Loyola (Sr)
M - Evan Plunkett, Army (Sr)
M - Andrew Pape, Boston U. (So)
M - Peter Grandolfo, Bucknell (Jr.)
M - Jack Ponzio, Navy (So)
D - Jack Sullivan, Army (Sr)
D - Connor Kehm, Boston U. (Sr.)
D - Luke McAuliffe, Lehigh (Sr)
D - AJ Marsh, Navy (Jr)
GK - Sean Byrne, Army (Sr)
FO - Zach Hayashi, Navy (Jr)
LSM - Richard Checo, Lehigh (Sr)
SSM - Keagan Treacy, Army (Sr)

Preseason Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year:  Evan Plunkett, Army (Sr / M)
Preseason Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year:  AJ Marsh, Navy (Jr / D)
Preseason Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Year:  Sean Byrne, Army (Sr)
Preseason Patriot League Faceoff Specialist of the Year:  Zach Hayash, Navy (Jr)

### Go Navy ###