PRINCETON, N.J. – Eight Ivy League men’s lacrosse players are among the 50 student-athletes named to the 2020 Tewaaraton Award Watch List. The eight candidates rank third among all conferences, trailing only the ACC (14) and Big Ten (9).

The Tewaaraton Award annually honors the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. Between men’s and women’s lacrosse, the Ivy League has produced nine finalists over the past seven seasons, including multiple finalists in four of the last six years. 
 
This year’s watch list features four of last season’s five Tewaaraton finalists, including Princeton senior attackman Michael Sowers and Yale senior faceoff specialist TD Ierlan. Yale placed four student-athletes on the watch list, while Brown, Cornell, Penn and Princeton each had one on this year’s initial list.
 
Junior defender Chris Fake, senior attackman Matt Gaudet and senior attackman Jackson Morrill along with Ierlan formed the Yale contingent. Brown senior goalie Phil Goss, Cornell senior attackman Jeff Teat, Penn sophomore midfielder Sam Handley joined Sowers to round out the Ivy League representatives.
 
Ivy League men’s lacrosse boasts nine finalists over the past seven years including two winners – Brown’s Dylan Molloy (2016) and Yale’s Ben Reeves (2018) – in the previous four years.
Familiar faces opened the 2020 season as the League returns eight of its top-10 scorers from a season ago, including 26-of-37 All-Ivy selections from 2019. Three Ivy League men’s lacrosse squads are nationally-ranked and 14 Ivies were named Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-Americans.

Players not named to the initial lists have opportunities to play their way into a spot as the season progresses with additions set to be announced on March 21 and April 4. On April 25, the field will be narrowed to 25 men's and 25 women's nominees. Nominees can be players on the watch lists or players not on the watch lists, effectively allowing for a third round of additions. Five men's and five women's finalists will be announced on May 9 and invited to the ceremony. The 19th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony will be held in Washington, D.C., on May 30.
 
IVY LEAGUE MEN’S LACROSSE PLAYER ON THE TEWAARATON WATCH LIST
Phil Goss, Brown (Sr., G – San Francisco, California)
Jeff Teat, Cornell (Sr., A – Brampton, Ontario)
Sam Handley, Penn (Sr., M – Portland, Ore.)
TD Ierlan, Yale (Sr., FO – Victor, N.Y.)
Chris Fake, Yale (Jr., D – Allentown, N.J.)
Matt Gaudet, Yale (Sr., A – Hamilton, Ont.)
Jackson Morrill, Yale (Sr., A – Baltimore, Md.)