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Opening day of the 2026 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse season is Jan. 31.
Throughout the month of January, we'll pose three burning questions for each team ranked in the USA Lacrosse Division I Men's Preseason Top 20, presented by CWENCH Hydration, starting with No. 20 Michigan and finishing with No. 1 Maryland.
Join the conversation on social media @USALMag (IG/X/FB). Wrong answers only.
The UAlbany men's lacrosse team ended a four-year NCAA tournament drought in 2024 and ran it back with its second consecutive America East championship last year, defeating crosstown rival Siena in an opening-round game before running out of gas against eventual national champion Cornell.
Among teams ranked in the top 20, the Great Danes return the most production, offensively and defensively. That includes senior attackman Silas Richmond, who registered 89 points (43G, 46A) last season en route to being named America East Offensive Player of the Year.
UAlbany has played in the NCAA tournament’s play-in game the past two years after winning the America East, but won 10 games in each of those seasons. The Great Danes could be set up for more non-conference success this season with a boatload of returning talent.
They'll get a huge opportunity right out of the gate. UAlbany hosts Cornell in its season opener Feb. 14.
Most lacrosse fans have probably seen Richmond’s highlight-reel goals, but UAlbany coach Scott Marr raves about the type of teammate the honorable mention All-American is off the field.
Richmond was named a captain this year alongside senior midfielder Alex Pfeiffer and senior defenders Max Neeson and Connor Gerlach.
“I’ve been around a lot of kids. Silas’ character is as good as anybody’s I’ve ever coached,” Marr said. “His approach with his teammates and the positivity with which he lives his life is really refreshing.”
Richmond has scored at least 73 points in the past two seasons, but registered 19 more assists last year than in 2024. His improvement as a facilitator has made him a true dual threat as a dodger and a potential No. 1 overall pick in the Premier Lacrosse League draft.
UAlbany has a rich Tewaaraton Award history for a mid-major program. Lyle Thompson won it twice, sharing the honor with his brother, Miles Thompson, in 2014 and taking home the trophy on his own in 2015. UAlbany’s last finalist was Connor Fields in 2017.
UAlbany has overcome slow starts the past two seasons to finish above .500, but the Great Danes are just 4-12 against non-conference competition during that stretch.
They face Cornell, Penn, Drexel, UMass, Hobart, Georgetown, Siena and Yale to start the season.
An America East three-peat would be nice, but compiling a resume that would keep them out of the play-in game would be even better.
There's a precedent. Bolstered by non-conference wins over Syracuse, Cornell and Maryland, UAlbany made it to the final four as the No. 2 seed in 2018. A fairer comparison for this team could be the 2016 squad, which finished 12-4 and faced No. 8 Syracuse in the first round.
“We’re very optimistic about where we can be,” Marr said. “But we have a challenging schedule and a challenging conference, so we need to do everything the right way and let the process play out.”
Our eventual goal is to win a national championship.
Scott Marr
In addition to Richmond, UAlbany returns eading goal-scorer Ryan Doherty, reigning America East Defensive Player of the Year Max Neeson and All-Rookie Team goalie Brady Smith.
The Great Danes bring back their top-six goal scorers overall, all three starting close defensemen and their long-stick midfielder. Marr sets high expectations for all of his teams, but a roster with this type of experience puts no limit onto those expectations.
“Our eventual goal is to win a national championship,” he said.
Marr added that he’s grateful for the loyalty of his star players not to test the transfer portal and that it's been an exciting process developing this current group of seniors. If the right pieces are placed around them, he said this year’s team could have similar success to those in 2014, 2015 and 2018 that went deep into the NCAA tournament.
“They’ve really come together,” Marr said. “They’re a really tight group of kids. The energy and enthusiasm and the positivity that they bring every day has really been awesome.”
Marr said he does mention playing for a championship with his team, but only because he knows they realize that everything has to be earned during a new season.
“I’ve been in the conference for 26 years, and it’s as competitive as it’s ever been,” Marr said.
Hayden Hundley has been involved with lacrosse since he was 6 years old and was brought on as Editorial Intern at USA Lacrosse in May 2025. He has covered Virginia men’s lacrosse with Streaking the Lawn, scouted DMV talent with Prep Lacrosse and was formerly the Sports Editor for James Madison’s student newspaper "The Breeze."
