WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - The Wilkes University men's lacrosse team begins their 2026 season this Saturday, looking to start a new era with a victory under new head coach Jordan Drumheller.

In 2025, the Colonels finished with a 4-13 record overall and 1-8 in Landmark Conference play.

"The excitement is getting up here," Drumheller said when asked about the energy surrounding the team. "The guys are feeling pretty excited and ready to roll, and I'm looking forward to seeing what these guys can do this year."

Wilkes field a roster of 27 players consisting of three seniors, six juniors, 10 sophomores, and eight first-year student athletes. 

The senior class features attacker Tim Hartka (Phoenix, MD/Calvert Hall), goalkeeper Caleb Miller (Mohrsville, PA/Schuylkill Valley), and defenseman Michael Rauch (Jackson, NJ/Jackson). Last season, Hartka was the team's second-leading goal scorer (22) and finished fourth on the team in points (30), while Miller started 16 games between the pipes as the primary goalkeeper.

The junior class includes attacker Austin Sosnovik (New Tripoli, PA/Northwestern Lehigh), midfielders/faceoff specialists Bradley Smith (Northampton, PA/Northampton Area) and Vinny Santoro (Massapequa, NY/Massapequa Park), and defensemen Mac Jackson (Long Valley, NJ/Seton Hall Prep), Owen Peters (Oreland, PA/Roman Catholic), and Nicholas McManus (Annandale, NJ/North Hunterdon). Sosnovik had a phenomenal season in 2025 as the team's leader in points (58) and assists (43).

The sophomore class consists of defensemen Brandon Cooke (Wappingers Falls, NY/Kent), Kyle Jurkuta (Richmond, VA/The Steward School), and Drue McLean (Bel Air, MD/Harford Technical), midfielders Stone Sosnovik (New Tripoli, PA/Northwestern Lehigh), Matthew Mosey (Ocean Township, NJ/Ocean Township), and Matthew Rotolo (Long Island, NY/St. John the Baptist), attacker Ben Byers (Harding, PA/Wyoming Area), and goalkeeper Brett Mooney (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill East). The younger Sosnovik was the team's leading goal scorer last season (29), and was second on the team in total points (35).

"I expect them to lead this team," Drumheller said. "Lead this team and compete. Continue to grow and that's something we've talked about since I've been here. Have a team that's disciplined and held accountable on both offense and defense. However, as much as I'm going to rely on those guys, I'm going to rely on all 27."

Lastly, the first-year class is made up of attacker Anthony DiFrancesco (Nazareth, PA/Nazareth), midfielders Freddy Hipple (Quakertown, PA/Quakertown Community), Colin Webb (Woodstown, NJ/Woodstown), and Lucas Ortenberg (Kings Park, NY/Kings Park), defensemen Jason Hennessey (Rockville, MD/Seneca Valley) and Christian Jordan (Rochester, NY/McQuaid Jesuit), and goalkeeper Logan Ryan (Cropseyville, NY/Tamarac).

"Expectations for them are to be ready to play. Young guys are expected to step up and take on roles that are important," Drumheller said. "The best time to get better is to learn on the field. We're going to make mistakes but it's about how we learn from them."

This is Wilkes' third year competing in the Landmark Conference Drumheller is ready for the challenge the competition has to offer. 

"I've played in and coached in some great conferences in my career, and the Landmark is no different," he said. "There's a lot of great teams in this conference from top to bottom, and everyday is going to be a challenge."

The first opponent on the schedule for the Colonels is the Delaware Valley University Aggies on the road. The game begins at 1 p.m. and Drumheller looks forward to seeing his team on the field for the first time in the regular season.

"The first game is always the fun one because you don't know what you're going to get," he said. "You don't know anything about the other team because there's no film on them. What I care about is how we handle ourselves as a team, how we execute, how we play, and the effort that we play with. I'm excited to get this season rolling."