Jack Vander Kooi celebrating his first goal back from injury April 4, 2026

Audrey Peterson

Men’s Lacrosse Makes Trek to Carroll for Weekend Clash

Titans take on Pioneers at 4 p.m.

4/10/2026 2:00:00 PM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University men's lacrosse team will face College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin foe Carroll University Saturday, April 11. The second leg of a doubleheader with the women's lacrosse team taking on CU at 12 p.m., the Titans (8-4, 1-0 CCIW) will face the Pioneers (3-9, 0-1 CCIW) at 4 p.m. at Schneider Stadium.

The Green and White most recently escaped a battle with North Central College, winning 11-9 Saturday, April 4. Senior Noah Dretzka (Delafield, Wis.-Kettle Moraine) led the offense with six points, as he notched two goals and tied his career-best four assists. Junior Nate Pound (Theinsville, Wis.-Homestead) notched a team-leading three goals. Senior Karsten Nordlie (Roscoe, Ill.-Hononegah Community) scooped up a career-best eight ground balls, while the trio of Nordlie, senior Kaden Gammelgaard (Lake Zurich, Ill.-Lake Zurich), and sophomore Wyatt Hart (Littleton, Colo.-Valor Christian) each notched a team-best three caused turnovers. Sophomore Jaymeson Zackery (Saint Paul, Minn.-Eastview) logged the win in goal behind eight saves over 60 minutes.

Junior Timothy McHugh (Orland Park, Ill.-Mount Carmel) leads the team in goals (24), assists (18), and points (42). Fellow junior Jake Kahoun (Worthington, Ohio-Thomas Worthington) follows with 24 points, with his 21 goals only trailing Timothy McHugh's mark. Freshman Holden Webster (Centennial, Colo.-Arapahoe) closely trails with 23 points and 20 goals. Sophomore Charlie Burghardt (Milwaukee, Wis.-Brookfield Central) has helped facilitate the offense as his 14 assists are the second-most on the squad. Sophomore Owen Miller (Brookfield, Wis.-Brookfield Central) rounds out the top three helpers with seven.

Zackery tops the team in ground balls, having scooped up 52 on the season. Nordlie's 47 sit him at second, followed by 40 from senior Michael Rocco (Libertyville, Ill.-Libertyville). Together, the trio have helped the Titans rank 14th in ground balls (514), and 12th in ground balls per game, averaging 42.83. Rocco leads the team at the X, having gone 98-of-175, good for a .560 win percentage. Sophomore Matt Arnold (Arlington Heights, Ill.-Prospect) follows with a 65-of-122 showing, owning a .533 win rate.

Defensively, IWU ranks second in Division III in caused turnovers per game with an average of 15.67. Senior Billy McHugh (Orland Park, Ill.-Mount Carmel) leads the way with 26 caused turnovers, followed by 18 apiece from Zackery, Nordlie, and Gammelgaard. Zackery leads the team in goal, with 134 saves over 678:13 minutes between the pipes. The sophomore brings in a record of 8-4 and a .538 save percentage into the matchup.

The Titans will take on the Pios for the 11th time, having won all previous meetings. Most recently, IWU upended Carroll, 26-7, April 26, 2025, completing its seventh straight clean sweep of the CCIW to win the regular season championship again. Timothy McHugh totaled a team-best six points on two goals and four assists. Now-assistant coach Ike Eastburn net a team-high five goals, while Nick Schroeder led the home team with six ground balls behind a near perfect 10-of-11 showing at the X. Bobby Conroy paced the defense with three caused turnovers, and Colin Tervo notched the win in goal after making three saves in the first period. CU most recently dropped a contest with Elmhurst University, 25-2, Saturday, April 4.

Carroll will be providing a live stream of the game, which can be found here, while live stats can be followed by clicking here.

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