SPARTANBURG, S.C. – High Point attackman Asher Nolting was named the Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight season and the Panthers’ Jon Torpey was selected coach of the year in voting of the league’s eight head men’s lacrosse coaches, who also tabbed Air Force defenseman Brandon Jones as the defensive player of the year and Bellarmine midfielder Riley Seay as the freshman of the year. The coaches also named two all-conference teams and an all-freshman squad.
Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own players or themselves. The all-conference first team features one additional defender due to a tie in the voting.
High Point’s Nolting has rewritten the SoCon record book again in his sophomore campaign. A year after setting SoCon records for total points and assists as well as for points and assists per game, the Greenwood Village, Colorado, native bested all of those marks. Nolting enters the SoCon Men’s Lacrosse Championship with 40 goals and 43 assists for 83 points, becoming the first 40-40 man in league history a year after becoming the first 30-30 performer. The Tewaaraton Award nominee is averaging 5.93 points per game this season, more than a point per game above his record set last year and good for fifth in NCAA Division I this season, and 3.07 assists per game, also well above his own record and fifth in DI. Nolting has scored at least four points in all 14 of High Point’s games this season and was named the league’s offensive player of the week four times this season and the offensive player of the month for February. He earned the maximum number of points in voting for offensive player of the year honors.
Jones has anchored an Air Force defense that ranks first nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 8.07 goals per game. The senior from Upper Arlington, Ohio, has registered 73 ground balls on the season, averaging 5.21 per game, and has caused a team-best 29 turnovers, good for second in the league. His. 2.07 caused turnovers per game are good for 13th in NCAA Division I. Jones and the Falcon defense have held their opponents to single-digit goals in 11 of 14 contest this year, forcing at least 10 turnovers in seven contests, including a season-best 14 against then-No. 14 High Point on April 6. Jones had three caused turnovers and five ground balls in Air Force’s 14-7 win over Richmond on April 13, helping hand the Spiders their first league loss as UR matched its season low for goals scored. Against Jacksonville on March 30, Jones had eight ground balls and a season-high five caused turnovers.
Seay ranks sixth in the SoCon in goals per game with 2.31 and 10th in the league in scoring this season with 3.00 points per game. The rookie from Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, has scored 30 goals and added nine assists this season, totaling 39 points. He leads the league in shots per game with 9.38. Seay scored at least one point in every game and at least two in 11 of his 13 contests. He had a career day against Detroit Mercy on March 2, scoring five goals and adding two assists for seven points on the afternoon. The week prior, he scored four goals and added an assist in a contest at Robert Morris. Seay had 10 multi-goal games on the year.
High Point’s Torpey earned his first career SoCon Coach of the Year honor after leading his Panthers to a 12-2 overall record, a share of the regular-season league title, the No. 1 seed in the upcoming SoCon tournament and a spot in the national rankings. High Point opened the season 4-0, claiming wins road over No. 2 Duke and No. 9 Virginia to stake its claim as one of the elite programs in the nation this season. The Panthers have been ranked in each of the last 12 weeks, with their two losses on the season coming by a combined three goals. Torpey’s squad is fourth nationally in scoring offense at 14.86 goals per game and ranks 10th in Division I caused turnovers per game (10.00) and fifth in ground balls per game (38.00). With the second-best winning percentage in Division I (.857), Torpey’s squad trails only No. 1 Penn State (12-1, .923) for the best record.
Air Force and Jacksonville had six all-conference selections apiece and Richmond had five, putting all five of them on the first team, a league best. The Falcons put three each on the first and second teams, while JU had a league-high four second-team selections.
Jacksonville defender Jordan Young was the lone freshman on the all-conference first team, while Seay was joined by classmates Quentin Carlile (Air Force, defender), Ashton Wood (Mercer, faceoff) and Zack Deaken (Jacksonville, short stick midfielder) on the second team.
Carlile, Seay, Young and Wood were joined on the all-freshman team by High Point’s Hunter Vines and Mercer’s Sean Goldsmith.
The Southern Conference Men’s Lacrosse Championship begins Thursday at Vert Stadium in High Point, North Carolina. No. 1 seed and tournament host High Point will face No. 4 seed Jacksonville at 5:30 p.m. Eastern, followed by No. 2 seed Air Force vs. No. 3 seed Richmond at 8 p.m. The title game will be Saturday at 12 p.m. All three contests will air live on ESPN+, with Jason Patterson and Phil Cox on the call.
Offensive Player of the Year
Asher Nolting, High Point, So., A
Defensive Player of the Year
Brandon Jones, Air Force, Sr., D
Freshman of the Year
Riley Seay, Bellarmine, M
Coach of the Year
Jon Torpey, High Point
All-Southern Conference
First team
A Asher Nolting, High Point, So.
A Teddy Hatfield, Richmond, Sr.
A Ryan Lanchbury, Richmond, So.
M William Holcomb, Furman, Sr.
M Jack Dolan, Jacksonville, So.
M Mitch Savoca, Richmond, So.
D Brandon Jones, Air Force, Sr.
D Jordan Young, Jacksonville, Fr.
D Jason Reynolds, Richmond, So.
D Kyle Walsh, VMI, Sr.
GK Tim Troutner Jr., High Point, Sr.
FO Trent Harper, Air Force, Sr.
SSM Roland Wheeler IV, Air Force, Sr.
LSM Sean Menges, Richmond, Jr.
Second team
A Trey Lervick, Air Force, Jr.
A Chris Young, High Point, R-Sr.
A Eric Applegate, Jacksonville, Sr.
M Jack Flynn, Air Force, Jr.
M Riley Seay, Bellarmine, Fr.
M Evan Tyler, Jacksonville, Jr.
D Quentin Carlile, Air Force, Fr.
D Josh Wehn, Bellarmine, Sr.
D Dixon Smith, Jacksonville, So.
GK Alec Van de Bovenkamp, Furman, Jr.
FO Ashton Wood, Mercer, Fr.
SSM Zack Deaken, Jacksonville, Fr.
LSM Michael O'Brien, Mercer, Jr.
All-freshman
Quentin Carlile, Air Force, D
Riley Seay, Bellarmine, M
Hunter Vines, High Point, M
Jordan Young, Jacksonville, D
Sean Goldsmith, Mercer, A
Ashton Wood, Mercer, FO
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