Rachael (Becker) DeCecco, that only other defender, played for Princeton. Not as good as the NC, but it is special.

Congrats to Shawn.

He played at nearby Seton Hall Prep in northern New Jersey and is well known personally by a lot of local laxers.
Really happy for him and his family.

And, of course, his current teammates and coaches at ND.

I like his answers that he's honored but has greater goals in mind with his teammates .... a national championship.

I found this very enjoyable. I have rarely seen Shawn interviewed so had little idea of his personality.

after watching him go basically man on man against Spillina and #2 Nate something, he demonstrated he was a better player. Spillina was a non-factor in our Syracuse game and we didn't lose to Princeton because of #2 ... we lost because of #10 (among other reasons). Lyght, when it mattered most, took their best players out of the game.

He deserved it, and I would have been a little salty if he hadn't.

...when Lyght wasn't guarding him. I think there's little doubt he's the best player in college lax and his invitation to national team training camp underscores that. However, I'm still floored that they took the step of breaking the no defensive winners precedent.

I was also surprised they gave it to a Defender. I thought they might give it to Spallina (sponsored by Gait Lacrosse - Take Flight) as a lifetime achievement award for racking up points against the likes of Manhattan, Binghamton, and Vermont. All points sponsored by Gait Lacrosse. Take Flight.

Lyght is a transformational player. There have been shutdown defenders but he transforms the game.

On Kabiri, he was a great player on a phenomenal team. But he was the 3rd best player for Princeton on both Saturday and Monday.

was an pretty weak field this year on the offensive end. There was no Kirst type. Sort or surprised they didn't give it to Spallina as a lifetime achievement award but I'm not losing sleep over it.

I'm not sure I'd put Lyght in my top 5 top defenders of all time (or maybe top 10)

your man Dave Pietramala owns the honor of best Defenseman of all-time. Lyght plays differently. He's not going to have awesome highlight reel checks. But he plays within Wellner's system as good as anyone and has shut down key players.

I can't remember the last time someone blew by him or got their hands free on him one on one. Has he ever been late on a slide? Sure, but he is the quintisential cornerback that takes away a whole side of the field because no one throws at him.

Plus, I wish there was a stat for "Number of Guys Shawn Lyght Absolutely Destroys When They Try to Set Picks."

And the award mechanism is a bit weird. If Chad Palumbo had been a finalist, is there any doubt he would have won?

Paul Carcaterra has been beating the Lyght for Tewaraaton drum for six weeks, so we should always remember that. I think it certainly helped.

So he win that in the semis

What a player.

Thought he had basically no shot this year after the championship, but would’ve been in great position to be the first D to win it in 2027. Turns out he did in 2026!

Great for Shawn, great for ND, great for the award.

Fuckin fantastic!!!

Congrats Shawn!!!