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The University of Utah Athletics
Photo by: Liv Medivitz/Utah Athletics
Utes Top ASUN Preseason Poll, Sweep Major Awards
1/22/2026 12:00 PM | Lacrosse
Stines, DiPonio and Kloeckl take home preseason player of the year honors
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The University of Utah lacrosse team has been picked as the favorite to win the 2026 Atlantic Sun title, according to the preseason coaches poll released by the league office on Thursday.
In its fifth year as a member of the ASUN Conference, Utah has yet to be picked lower than first by the league's coaches. Utah received three first place votes and topped the poll with 33 points, two more than second-place Air Force and eight more than third-place Jacksonville.
Utah also swept the three major preseason awards voted on by the league's coaches. Ryan Stines was unanimously named the Preseason Player of the Year, Nikko DiPonio was also a unanimous selection for Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, and Tyler Kloeckl was chosen as the conference's Preseason Specialist of the Year. That trio, along with midfielder Cade Faulkner, nabbed four of the 13 spots on the Preseason All-ASUN Team.
A two-time All-ASUN first team selection, DiPonio was selected as a USILA, Inside Lacrosse and USA Lacrosse All-America Honorable Mention in 2025 and was named a USA Lacrosse Preseason All-America Honorable Mention earlier this week. He started all 15 games for the Utes a season ago, recording 96 ground balls and 20 caused turnovers to go with four points thanks to a pair of goals and assists. He led the ASUN and ranked 12th nationally with 6.85 ground balls per game, while his 96 total ground balls rank third in single-season program history.
Stines, the 2024 ASUN Player of the Year and 2023 ASUN Freshman of the Year, will look to once again pace the Utah offensive attack. Stines enters the season ranked third in career points (162) and goals (103) and holds the program records for assists in a single season (40) and points (67). The Cary, N.C., native has led the Utes in points each of the last two seasons and has started all 49 games during his three seasons in Salt Lake City. This also marks the second season in a row that the redshirt senior has been dubbed the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.
Kloeckl earned All-ASUN First Team honors a season ago after setting career-highs in assists, points, ground balls, caused turnovers, faceoff wins and faceoff win percentage. His .561 faceoff win percentage last year was the second best in a single season in program history, while his 134 faceoff wins were the third most. His 269 career faceoff wins are also the second most by any Ute in school history, while his 111 ground balls rank sixth all-time.
Faulkner put together a breakout sophomore campaign in 2025, recording 35 points on 27 goals and eight assists to go with six ground balls and a caused turnover while starting all 15 games en route to an All-ASUN Second Team selection. He led the Utes with four hat tricks, scoring three goals against Delaware, Denver, Syracuse and Virginia. Faulkner found the back of the net multiple times in 10 of his 15 games last season, including five of seven games against ASUN opponents.
Utah is looking to capture its third ASUN title in the last four years in 2026. Utah finished 6-9 last season, going 4-1 in conference play and reaching the conference championship game for the third season in a row. In its seventh season as a Division I program, Utah sports a 52-42 record, with 40 of those wins coming under head coach Andrew McMinn. In his fifth year at the helm of the Utes, McMinn sports a 40-23 mark and has led Utah to three 10-win seasons, earning a pair of ASUN Coach of the Year titles along the way.
The Utes open the 2026 schedule on Friday, Jan. 23, with an exhibition against Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. The regular season gets underway on Saturday, Jan. 31, when Utah travels to Delaware for a 10 a.m. MT faceoff.
Fans can follow along on social media (X: @UTAHLacrosse | Instagram: @utahlacrosse), and the official mobile app of Utah Athletics, Utah360 -- download here.
Preseason All-ASUN Team
^ - denotes a unanimous selection
Preseason Coaches Poll
In its fifth year as a member of the ASUN Conference, Utah has yet to be picked lower than first by the league's coaches. Utah received three first place votes and topped the poll with 33 points, two more than second-place Air Force and eight more than third-place Jacksonville.
Utah also swept the three major preseason awards voted on by the league's coaches. Ryan Stines was unanimously named the Preseason Player of the Year, Nikko DiPonio was also a unanimous selection for Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, and Tyler Kloeckl was chosen as the conference's Preseason Specialist of the Year. That trio, along with midfielder Cade Faulkner, nabbed four of the 13 spots on the Preseason All-ASUN Team.
A two-time All-ASUN first team selection, DiPonio was selected as a USILA, Inside Lacrosse and USA Lacrosse All-America Honorable Mention in 2025 and was named a USA Lacrosse Preseason All-America Honorable Mention earlier this week. He started all 15 games for the Utes a season ago, recording 96 ground balls and 20 caused turnovers to go with four points thanks to a pair of goals and assists. He led the ASUN and ranked 12th nationally with 6.85 ground balls per game, while his 96 total ground balls rank third in single-season program history.
Stines, the 2024 ASUN Player of the Year and 2023 ASUN Freshman of the Year, will look to once again pace the Utah offensive attack. Stines enters the season ranked third in career points (162) and goals (103) and holds the program records for assists in a single season (40) and points (67). The Cary, N.C., native has led the Utes in points each of the last two seasons and has started all 49 games during his three seasons in Salt Lake City. This also marks the second season in a row that the redshirt senior has been dubbed the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.
Kloeckl earned All-ASUN First Team honors a season ago after setting career-highs in assists, points, ground balls, caused turnovers, faceoff wins and faceoff win percentage. His .561 faceoff win percentage last year was the second best in a single season in program history, while his 134 faceoff wins were the third most. His 269 career faceoff wins are also the second most by any Ute in school history, while his 111 ground balls rank sixth all-time.
Faulkner put together a breakout sophomore campaign in 2025, recording 35 points on 27 goals and eight assists to go with six ground balls and a caused turnover while starting all 15 games en route to an All-ASUN Second Team selection. He led the Utes with four hat tricks, scoring three goals against Delaware, Denver, Syracuse and Virginia. Faulkner found the back of the net multiple times in 10 of his 15 games last season, including five of seven games against ASUN opponents.
Utah is looking to capture its third ASUN title in the last four years in 2026. Utah finished 6-9 last season, going 4-1 in conference play and reaching the conference championship game for the third season in a row. In its seventh season as a Division I program, Utah sports a 52-42 record, with 40 of those wins coming under head coach Andrew McMinn. In his fifth year at the helm of the Utes, McMinn sports a 40-23 mark and has led Utah to three 10-win seasons, earning a pair of ASUN Coach of the Year titles along the way.
The Utes open the 2026 schedule on Friday, Jan. 23, with an exhibition against Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. The regular season gets underway on Saturday, Jan. 31, when Utah travels to Delaware for a 10 a.m. MT faceoff.
Fans can follow along on social media (X: @UTAHLacrosse | Instagram: @utahlacrosse), and the official mobile app of Utah Athletics, Utah360 -- download here.
Preseason All-ASUN Team
| Name | Pos. | School |
| Ryan Stines^ | A | Utah |
| Caelan Driggs | A | Air Force |
| Jack Taylor | A | Air Force |
| Cade Faulkner | M | Utah |
| Cole Rassas | M | Air Force |
| Mana Wilhelm | M | Air Force |
| Cole Cunningham^ | LS | Air Force |
| Breydan Harrison | SS | Jacksonville |
| Nikko DiPonio^ | D | Utah |
| Aaron Toguri | D | Jacksonville |
| Christopher Reynolds | D | Bellarmine |
| Tyler Kloeckl | FO | Utah |
| Nicky West | GK | Queens |
^ - denotes a unanimous selection
Preseason Coaches Poll
| Place | Team (1st Place Votes) | Points |
| 1. | Utah (3) | 33 |
| 2. | Air Force (3) | 31 |
| 3. | Jacksonville | 25 |
| 4. | Bellarmine | 18 |
| 5. | Mercer | 11 |
| 6. | Queens | 8 |
Players Mentioned
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