Men's Lacrosse | 5/6/2026 10:00:00 AM
PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher men's lacrosse team had two players claim major Empire 8 awards and 12 total named to the All-E8 teams as the conference announced its honors for the 2026 season on Wednesday morning.
Senior Tyler Manning won Empire 8 Goalkeeper of the Year for the second consecutive season, and freshman faceoff specialist Jonah Vormwald became the fourth player in program history to be named Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. Fisher has had the conference's last three Rookie of the Year honorees.
Both players also earned first-team All-Empire 8 honors along with five of their teammates – junior attacker Scott Bovard, junior midfielder Sean Donaldson, senior midfielder Lane Edinger, freshman defender Connor Gray and freshman long-stick midfielder Jake Vernieri. The Cardinals' seven first-team selections led the conference.
Freshman attackman Grady Swidersky and junior defender Ethan Hodge garnered second-team honors. Junior attackman Garrett Sutton, freshman midfielder Hayden Lauer and senior defensive midfielder Matt Slowinski received third-team recognition.
Fisher's list of All-Empire 8 selections includes five upperclassmen who are first-time honorees: Bovard, Edinger, Hodge, Sutton and Slowinski.
Additionally, senior midfielder Brett Seaman was chosen as St. John Fisher's representative on the conference's Tomorrow's Leaders Team. The Tomorrow's Leaders Team recognizes a student-athlete from each E8 team who has demonstrated leadership in competition, in the classroom and in their community.
Manning, also recently named MVP of the Empire 8 Championship Tournament, has once again been one of the top goalkeepers in Division III this season. He ranks eighth in the country with an 8.03 goals against average and 15th with a save percentage of 60.1% entering the NCAA Tournament. An All-American last season, Manning has made 10 saves or more in 10 of the Cardinals' 19 contests, including a season-high 18 in a 14-7 victory over rival Nazareth in the Empire 8 Championship game. His 186 total saves mark the third-most by a Cardinal in a season.
Vormwald has been dominant more often than not at the faceoff X this season, as he has won 239 of his 327 draws for a .734 winning percentage, currently the seventh highest in Division III and the top single-season mark in St. John Fisher history. His 168 ground ball recoveries lead the Cardinals and mark the third most by a Fisher player in a season. Vormwald has recorded more than 15 faceoff wins in seven games and picked up 15 or more ground balls in four contests.
Bovard, Donaldson and Edinger have each produced the best seasons of their collegiate careers. Bovard stands second on the team with 61 points on 41 goals and 20 assists, while Edinger paces Fisher with 64 points and 21 assists and is tied with Donaldson atop the team with 43 goals. Donaldson, a three-time All-Empire 8 selection, is third on the team with 57 total points.
Gray and Vernieri have been integral parts of the Cardinals' defense in their first collegiate seasons. Gray has caused 21 turnovers and picked up 25 ground balls while playing and starting in all 19 games, and Vernieri has caused 22 turnovers and recovered 40 ground balls. He's also scored a goal and tallied two assists for three points.
Swidersky has piled up a team-leading 37 assists – tied for the fifth most by a Cardinal in a season – on his way to 55 points this season. He's tallied three or more assists in six games, with his season high of seven coming in a victory over Hartwick on April 25.
Hodge leads the Cardinals with 29 caused turnovers and has picked up 41 ground balls, both career highs. He's caused multiple turnovers in seven games, including a career-best five in a win over Brockport on April 15.
Another offensive player who has broken out this season, Sutton has set career highs with his 36 goals, 13 assists and 49 total points. He had a career single-game high seven points on six goals and an assist in Fisher's 18-9 victory over Geneseo in the E8 semifinals.
Lauer has netted 26 goals and tallied 15 assists for 41 total points over 18 games. He had a season-best five points against Brockport, scoring three goals and adding two helpers.
Slowinski has been a key part of the nation's eighth-ranked scoring defense. He has caused three turnovers along with 20 ground ball recoveries.
The Cardinals (17-2) took down No. 3-seeded Geneseo and top-seeded Nazareth last week in the E8 Tournament en route to their seventh consecutive conference title. They face Williams College at 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
