(Photo Courtesy of Harvard Athletics)

Welcome to the Fall Snapshot series. Throughout the fall I will be taking an early look at all 76 DI men’s college lacrosse teams and giving a snapshot of where each is heading into the 2024 season.

Head Coach: Gerry Byrne (Third Year, 2020-Present)

Harvard 2023 Record: 5-8 (2-4 Ivy League)

Key Departures: Hayden Cheek (A), Chase Yager (SSDM)

Key Returners: Sam King (A), Teddy Malone (A), Collin Bergstrom (D), Greg Campsi (D/LSM), Christian Barnard (G)

Transfer Additions: N/A

Staff Changes: Hires – Nick Grill (DC) | Losses – Ted Bergman (DC), Will Corrigan (VA) to Air Force

If an entire team can have a ‘sophomore slump’ than that is the perfect analogy to describe what Harvard was in 2023. Following an incredible 2022 campaign in which the Crimson reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2014, this squad took a step backwards to have a season where they missed the postseason entirely.

Harvard went 5-8 overall and 2-4 in Ivy League play. And while a 10-8 upset of Cornell was the highlight of the season for the Crimson, it came in the middle of a season-ending 2-5 stretch that saw them fall to Dartmouth for the first time since 2015. That stretch ended with losses to Penn, Princeton, and Yale in which the Crimson gave up an average of 15.3 goals.

After taking a step back instead of a step forward after its surprise 2022 run, the Crimson will be looking to get back on track in 2024. And with as much youth as was on this team last season, progress is certainly attainable.

Burning Questions

Can The Harvard D Stop Elite Offenses?

Harvard had its fair share of dominant defense performances this past spring. The Crimson held Bucknell and Vermont to eight and five goals, respectively, in their first two wins of the year and would later upset Cornell in a 10-8 win. Only two of Harvard’s wins (16-15 at Brown and 14-10 at Colgate) saw their opposition reach double digits. Those performances, however, were few and far between as the Crimson gave up an average of 13.42 goals per game. They gave up 15.3 in their final three games alone (vs Penn, at Princeton, vs Yale). In their five games versus top 20 scoring offenses (Virginia, Yale, Cornell, Princeton, Michigan) the Crimson gave up 16.6 goals per game.

A lot returns from last year’s defense. Collin Bergstrom (16GB/15CT) was a second team All-Ivy selection, Greg Campsi (33GB/14CT) regularly served as the team’s top cover man, and Charlie Muller (24GB/11CT) showed a lot as a freshman. Christian Barnard (125 saves, 46%) was a first year starter in cage as a junior. Additionally, Martin Nelson and Tommy Martinson saw multiple starts at close.

With as much youth and inexperience as this defense had last season at spots, there is ample opportunity for growth and improvement. That is exactly what Harvard needs on this back end under new defensive coordinator Nick Grill, who comes in after a strong year at Vermont. He guided a good defense at Binghamton the year prior.

Does The Success In Between The Boxes Continue?

While Harvard took a step back in many statistical categories from 2022 to 2023, the Crimson were still one of the better teams in between the boxes in college lacrosse. Harvard finished the season ranked 18th nationally in clearing percentage, going 89.1% in that realm. They also were a good riding team as they held their opponents to a 78.9% clip.

SSDM Chase Yager (3G/2A/27GB/14CT) was a major threat in transition for this Crimson team. He has graduated and will be playing a fifth season at Virginia. The architect of the Harvard ride, Will Corrigan, has moved on as well as he is now the OC at Air Force.

Two-way midfielder Ray Dearth (2G/15GB/10CT) and LSM Greg Campsi (33GB/14CT) both return as part of that Harvard rope unit. Harvard also returns nearly all its top offensive weapons. The Crimson starting attack unit combined for 16 caused turnovers last season with many coming on the ride. It will be interesting to watch if the Crimson stay as tough in between the boxes on both ends as they have been in 2024.

Can The Faceoff Situation Improve?

Heading into last season, the faceoff dot was one of the biggest concerns with Harvard. That ended up being very true as the Crimson went 44% as a team at the dot, which placed them firmly in the bottom half of DI in that category. Against Ivy League competition, the Crimson went 41% as a team.

Andrew DeGennaro went 98-for-233 (42%) as the Crimson’s primary faceoff man in 2023 while Matt Barraco went 57-for-119 (47.9%) as the backup. Both return in 2024 and will be looking to improve after last season’s performance.

Potential Breakout Player

Logan Ip, Midfield, Sophomore

Seeing time on both ends of the field last season, the athletic midfielder had a solid freshman campaign with five goals, six assists, nine ground balls, and three caused turnovers being credited to his name. When looking for a guy who could have a big 2024 for Harvard, Ip is at the top of the list.

Freshman Class

Harvard brings in a 10-man class in the 2023 recruiting cycle. Midfielder Jackson Greene (St. Anthony’s, N.Y.) was a New Balance All-American selection. Attackman Jack Speidell (St. Anthony’s, N.Y.) and midfielder Jack Peterson (Manhasset, N.Y.) were both top 50 recruits, per Inside Lacrosse.