Lacrosse players recognized on Tewaaraton Award Watch List

Four Lehigh lacrosse players were named to the final Tewaaraton Award watch list for the 2020 season, despite its premature end.

The Tewaaraton Award recognizes the best male and female lacrosse player in the NCAA at the end of the season.

The watch list is selective, and many programs do not have any players featured. There were 70 male players and 56 female players named to the watch list. This year, fifth-year Andrew Pettit, seniors Conor Gaffney and Sondra Dickey, and sophomore Tommy Schelling were all listed as nominees. 

The men’s team, which had three players featured on the watch list, compiled a 5-1 record before the season’s cancellation – falling only to the nation’s defending champion, No. 2 University of Virginia. All three players said the team was poised for a highly successful season. 

“I think the lacrosse world was taking notice, and that’s a reflection of why we had three guys on that list,” Gaffney said. “I think the lacrosse community realized we had something good going on, and it’s a shame we couldn’t finish it out.”

Gaffney, a midfielder and faceoff specialist, said the Tewaaraton Award is like the Heisman Trophy of lacrosse and, despite a disappointing end to the season, he is humbled to have his name considered for an award he dreamt of winning as a child.

This was Pettit’s second nomination for the Tewaaraton Award, after first being nominated during his junior season. An ACL injury just before his senior season derailed his 2019 campaign, and Pettit decided he would return for a fifth year.

The senior attackman had endured a long road in his return to the playing field, having spent a full year recovering and adapting to changes in coaching and players during that time. 

Assistant coach John Crawley said Pettit epitomized a leader this season.

“I think he handled it like a pro, honestly,” Crawley said. “He did an unbelievable job, not only taking to the new coaching pieces of the new offense and of the new pieces of the offense in the players, but absolutely led our offense in terms of making sure guys were doing the right things off the field, doing the right things on the field, doing the right things in our training (and) doing the right things in film.”

Pettit said he was disappointed with the season’s cancellation, considering his purpose of returning for a fifth year was to play out his final season in full, but he said he does not regret the decision.

Pettit has been with the team longer than any active player. He said he’s seen the program develop over his years, and even encouraged a few of the seniors to consider a fifth year like he did.

“It’s definitely really cool,” Pettit said. “All the work we put in day in and day out to try to be a successful team, I think having a few guys on that watch list is an extreme honor, and I think it goes to show how good of a program we’ve become.”

While Pettit was already one of the Mountain Hawks’ most notable players, attacker Tommy Schelling took a major leap into stardom with his performance in 2020, scoring 22 goals and notching 11 assists in just six games. Crawley said he was extremely impressed with the way Schelling played, and that he “took a massive step into a quarterback role” this year. 

Of the 70 men nominated for the Tewaaraton Award watch list, Schelling was just one of 10 sophomores on the list.

“I was very excited, for sure,” Schelling said. “Then again, it’s just a list, but it’s the Tewaaraton Award. Just to be nominated or put on that list really meant a lot. Especially looking at the other kids that were on that list, it was pretty cool to think that my name’s out there with other great players in the country.”

Though all three players on the men’s team expressed excitement upon hearing they had made the list, one sentiment remained consistent between them all.

Being nominated for a watch list does not soften the blow of losing the season.

“No award is going to bring back our season,” Schelling said. “Realistically, I care a lot more about winning a Patriot League Championship than winning any type of individual award.”

Midfielder Sondra Dickey was the only Lehigh player nominated for the Tewaaraton watch list from the women’s program. Dickey could not be reached for comment, but head coach Jill Redfern praised her for her dedication to the team on and off the field.

“Sondra (Dickey) is an integral piece of our team,” Redfern said. “She contributes in all ways on the field on game day as far as the jobs she has. She’s involved in all aspects – offense, defense and on the draw circle. Off the field, she’s a terrific teammate, a very humble person and someone that we’ve come to rely on as being highly invested in our lacrosse program.”

While many spring student-athletes are still pondering the idea of a fifth year to play out the season that was lost this year, it is unclear at this time whether Dickey or Gaffney will be in  Lehigh uniforms again. 

Regardless, all of these players have left a considerable imprint on their programs, their coaches said.