(Photo Courtesy of Georgetown Athletics)

The summer is winding down, players will be returning to campus shortly, and fall ball is on the horizon. With this, the transfer portal is slowing down as most have found homes.

This past summer wasn’t nearly as exciting or crazy as previous years, but there were still plenty of big names who made moves and teams that went out and added pieces they believe will drastically improve their roster.

Here’s a look at some of the programs that have been the winners of the NCAA Transfer Portal thus far:

Georgetown

• Nicky Solomon (A, North Carolina)
• Jacob Kelly (A, North Carolina)
• Brian Minicus (A, Colgate)
• Tucker Dordevic (M, Syracuse)
• Daniel Hincks (G, Dartmouth)

No team did better in the portal this summer than the Georgetown Hoyas. Following a first-round exit in the NCAA Tournament via upset loss to Delaware, the Hoyas have added five grad transfers whom, along with the number of key returnees, look to only make the best program in the Big East that much more dangerous and possibly give them the edge they need to go further than ever before in 2023.

Nicky Solomon, Jacob Kelly, and Tucker Dordevic are the headliners of this transfer haul. Solomon (20G/17A) and Kelly (20G/15A) were the second and third-leading scorers for the North Carolina Tar Heels last season. The former Tar Heels, along with Brian Minicus who was the leader of the Colgate offense with 36 goals and 23 assists this past season, provide immediate answers to fill some of the holes the Hoyas have on offense and keep the same firepower they had last season. Tucker Dordevic also very much fits into that equation. A natural midfielder, he played attack for Syracuse last season and was the Orange’s leading point-getter (59) with 47 goals and 12 assists. Georgetown had one of the best offenses last season, averaging 15 goals per game, and could very well do similar damage in 2023 with the influx of talent on that end via the portal. Daniel Hincks is the lone addition on the defensive end, arriving in D.C. after proving himself at Dartmouth the past four years. He made 168 saves with a 52% save percentage last spring while helping lead the Big Green to their best season during his time with the program. Hincks will likely be in the mix to replace Owen McElroy as the starting goalie, along with sophomore Michael Scharfenberger.

Syracuse

• Alex Simmons (A, Denver)
• Cole Kirst (A, Lehigh)
• Jake Murphy (SSDM, LIU)
• Joe Bolea (SSDM, Kenyon)
• Will Mark (G, LIU)
• Johnny Richiusa (FO, Canisius)

Last season was one Syracuse fans don’t want to remember. A 4-10 record and no NCAA Tournament berth is not what anyone expects from the Orange. But after that season that was, Gary Gait has gone out and utilized the transfer portal to add talent to his program that will hopefully help the historic program get back to its winning ways this coming spring during the season year of the Gary Gait era.

The highlight of the Orange’s transfer haul is the pair of grad transfer attackmen in Alex Simmons and Cole Kirst, who come from Denver and Lehigh. Simmons played both attack and midfield during his time at Denver and is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he put up 45 points (30G/15A) as the Pioneers’ third-leading scorer. Kirst missed some time last spring due to injury, but still put up 30 points off 18 goals and 12 assists. The pair add to an offenses that loses some firepower last season, but will get Owen Hiltz back from injury and has the top-ranked recruit, Joey Spallina, coming in. Will Mark and Johnny Richiusa could also be plug-and-play additions next season for the Orange. Mark made 193 saves with a 54.5% save percentage this past season while Richiusa went 149-for-286 (52%) as a freshman at Canisius. Both come to Syracuse with not much proven competition at their positions. Jake Muephy and Joe Bolea, who makes the jump from DIII, were two of the best d-middies in their respective leagues and should provide some serious depth and talent to that rope unit, which returns LSM Sam Olexo and SSDM Brandon Aviles.

Notre Dame

• Chris Conlin (D, Holy Cross)
• Chris Fake (D, Yale)
• Brian Teviln (M, Yale)
• Jack Simmons (M, Virginia)

Kevin Corrigan and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish dove into the transfer portal once again this summer and came out with a number of key grad transfer additions. And just like in year’s past, the majority of their big gets lie on the defensive end. Notre Dame, for a third season, will look to have a close defense that is bolstered, if not dominated, by grad transfers. It worked out each of the past two seasons and we’ll see if it works again in 2023.

Chris Conlin and Chris Fake are the biggest catches Notre Dame was able to reel in this summer. The pair of grad transfer defensemen come to South Bend after successful careers at Holy Cross and Yale where they each set themselves apart as some of the best poles in their respective conferences and college lacrosse as a whole. Conlin caused a program-record 40 caused turnovers while also scooping up 40 ground balls for the Crusaders this past spring. Fake, a four-year starter for the Bulldogs, caused 20 turnovers and collected 34 ground balls in 2022. The pair should slide right in as starters for the Irish. Tevlin and Simmons will also have plenty of opportunity to play right away with midfielders Wheaton Jackoboice and Morrison Mirer gone. Tevil served as a team captain and starter for the Elis this past season, tallying 26 points off 13 goals and 13 assists. Simmons started six games for Virginia this past season and had nine goals and two assists. He started all 20 games of the Cavaliers’ national championship season in 2019.

Ohio State

• Marcus Hudgins (D, Army West Point)
• Richie LaCalandra (A, LIU)
• Kyle Lewis (A, Lynchburg)
• Kyle Borda (M, Fairfield)
• Justin Sherrer (LSM, Maryland)

For the second year in a row, the Ohio State Buckeyes may have done the best job of using the portal to address their immediate needs with guys who will fit. The Buckeyes leaned on the portal last season and the influx of guys, mixed with their returners, helped them to exceed expectations as they started off the season hot and earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament. This summer, the Buckeyes have done an even better job in the portal and it should certainly pay off come February.

Ohio State got one of the biggest players on the market this summer with the addition of Marcus Hudgins. The 2021 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year, he 36 ground balls and caused 23 turnovers as the leader of a top-five Black Knights’ defense that season. After not playing due to personal reasons last spring, he heads to Columbus with high expectations as he joins forces with Bobby Van Buren and Jacob Snyder at close. Richie LaCalandra is another big fish the Buckeyes grabbed as he was the NEC Offensive Player of The Year in both 2021 and 2022. He had 70 points (32G/38A) and looks to bring more firepower to that Jack Myers-led Buckeyes offense. Kyle Lewis and Kyle Borda should also be expected to make an impact on offense. Lewis led DIII Lynchburg with 94 points (31g,63a) this past spring while Borda led Fairfield in assists with 21 while also scoring 16 goals. Justin Sherrer provides another solid pole. He was a backup LSM for three seasons at Maryland.

Rutgers

• Anthony Palma (G, Stony Brook)
• Kyle Mullin (G, Harvard)
• LaJhon Jones (D/LSM,Bryant)
• Zak Conley (D, Binghamton)
• Jon Miller (M, Bryant)
• Ryan Decker (SSDM, Colgate)
• Noah Daniels (SSDM, Mount St. Mary’s)
• Joe Neuman (FO, Yale)

For the third consecutive summer, Brian Brecht and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights have been one of the more aggressive teams in the transfer portal. Last spring, the additions of Brian Cameron, Mitch Bartolo, and Ronan Jacoby helped Rutgers to its best season ever as they made Championship Weekend for the first time. A year prior, they made an NCAA Quarterfinals run with transfers such as Connor Kirst leading the way. This time around, Rutgers didn’t land as many big fish as usual, but were able to address immediate needs while also grabbing talent and depth. All but two of their seven additions (LaJohn Jones, Jon Miller) are grad transfers.

A pair of goalies headline this year’s transfer haul for Rutgers as they grabbed Anthony Palma from Stony Brook and Kyle Mullin from Harvard. Both multi-year starters, Palma is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he made 128 saves with 51% save percentage while Mullin recorded  153 saves with a 50% save percentage this past spring. The pair should be in a battle for the starting job with the graduation of Colin Kirst. LaJhon Jones, Jon Miller, Ryan Decker, and Noah Daniels not only provide more talent on the back end but also give Rutgers a good deal of pieces that should fit very well into their NASCAR system. Joe Neuman was a high school star and despite not seeing much action at Yale, adds to a faceoff room that hasn’t been exactly stellar.

North Carolina

• Sean Goldsmith (A, Mercer)
• Logan McGovern (A, Bryant)
• Harry Wellford (M, Bucknell)
• Griffin Gallagher (M, Gettysburg)
• JT Roselle (LSM, Marist)
• Andrew Geppert (D, Brown)

The transfer portal giveth and the transfer portal taketh. Joe Breschi and the North Carolina Tar Heels know that all too well as some of the best players to step on the field in Chapel Hill over the past few seasons have headed elsewhere to use their final year of eligibility. However, the Tar Heels have also benefited greatly from the transfer market in recent years and pulled in a good haul this cycle.

Sean Goldsmith and Logan McGovern have been standouts at the mid-major level each of the pas few seasons and will have an opportunity to be immediate impact players upon arrival in Chapel Hill with the Tar Heels losing their entire starting attack line. Goldsmith, a grad transfer, had 35 goals and 16 assists for 51 points last season while McGovern tallied 54 points off 19 goals and 35 assists as a junior this past spring. Harry Wellford (20G/10A) and Griffin Gallagher (30G/5A), who makes the jump from DIII, each had 30-plus points last season. They bring depth and talent to a midfield unit that was very youthful a season ago. The 2022 MAAC LSM of The Year, JT Roselle caused a team-high 30 turnovers while also grabbing 47 ground balls last spring for Marist and should be a good addition to the Carolina defense, which was on the younger side and injury-impacted last season. The same can be said for Andrew Geppert who was a four-year starter at Brown. He led the Bears’ defense with 24 caused turnovers and 22 ground balls last season.

Jacksonville

• Dylan Watson (A, Georgetown)
• Brandon Galloway (M, UMBC)
• Cole Daninger (SSDM, Rutgers)

After being the darlings of the college lacrosse world this past spring, John Galloway and the Dolphins have utilized the transfer portal to grab three big grad transfers who improve what was already one of the best mid-major rosters in the game. Dylan Watson is the headliner of this transfer haul. The Canadian arrives in the Sunshine State after a season in which he put up 64 points off 58 goals and six assists and was named the Big East Attackman of The Year. With the addition of Watson, the Dolphins have a combined 202 points from last year on attack. Brandon Galloway also comes in as a grad transfer after only playing in one game last season. He was UMBC’s point leader in 2021 with 24 goals and three assists. Cole Daninger was apart of Rutgers’s rope unit for three seasons and had his best season in 2022, grabbing 20 ground balls, causing seven turnovers, and dishing out seven assists. He joins an already good Dolphins rope unit that is headlined by Tucker Garrity.

Virginia

• Thomas McConvey (M, Vermont)
• Griffin Kology (D, Richmond)

In the portal and extra year era, Virginia has been notable for not taking as many transfers as other ACC and Big Ten programs. They only had one on their 2021 national championship team (Charlie Bertrand) and took one ahead of last season (Evan Zinn). This cycle, the Cavaliers have grabbed two transfers in Thomas McConvey and Griffin Kology. McConvey arrives in Charlottesville as a grad transfer following a stellar career at Vermont where he helped lead the Catamounts to two consecutive America East titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. He put up program-record 60 goals while also dishing out14 assists in 2022. Kology comes to Virginia after a standout freshman season at Richmond, where he grabbed 21 ground balls and caused 21 caused turnovers while helping the Spiders to a SoCon Championship and NCAA Tournament berth.

Duke

• Tommy Schelling (A, Lehigh)
• Jamie Zusi (FO, Penn)
• Will Helm (G, St. Lawrence)

A much smaller transfer class, and one with less buzz, then Duke has taken in previous years. All three are grad transfers. Tommy Schelling is the biggest get for the Blue Devils and should slide into that attack line with the graduation of Joe Robertson and Sean Lulley. A four-year starter at Lehigh, he led the Mountain Hawks in points each of the past three seasons. He put up 27 goals and 42 assists in 2022. Jamie Zusi arrives in Durham after going 183-for-336 (54%) at the dot while also grabbing 92 ground balls last spring for Penn. He join a faceoff room that returns starters Jake Naso. Helm, who comes from DIII St. Lawrence, ade 194 saves with a 57.9% save percentage and was the Liberty League Co-Defensive Player of the Year  in 2022.

Penn State

• Chase Mullins (FO, North Carolina)
• Richie Hughson (FO, Providence)
• Kevin Winkoff, (A, Binghamton)
• Chris Jordan (A, St. Lawrence)

Penn State has had a rough two years. Consecutive losing seasons and an array of injuries helping to contribute to that, it hasn’t been a bright as it could be in Happy Valley recently. This summer, Jeff Tambroni and the Nittany Lions went out and grabbed a pretty good transfer haul. Former Under Armour All-American faceoff man Chase Mullins, who left North Carolina halfway through the season, is the biggest get. Seen as the top player at his position in the 2021 class, he could bring and immediate answer at the dot. Richie Hughson also comes in at the position after a freshman season in which he went 49-for-112 as the backup for Providence. Kevin Winkoff brings proven and experienced talent to the attack spot, coming off a senior season at Binghamton in which he put up 37 goals and 18 assists for 55 points. Chris Jordan made his mark at the DIII level and will now make the jump to DI, and should provide much of the same to this youthful squad. Jordan had 89 points off 40 goals and 49 assists last season.

(Updated 8/11 with Kevin Winkoff’s transfer announcement to Penn State)