UPCOMING SCHEDULE (All times Central)
Friday, April 18
7:00 p.m. | Carroll at Carthage
 
Saturday, April 19
12:00 p.m. | Illinois Wesleyan at Elmhurst
2:00 p.m. | Carthage at North Central
 
Wednesday, April 23
5:00 p.m. | Elmhurst at Carroll
 
Saturday, April 26
12:00 p.m. | Carroll at Illinois Wesleyan
1:00 p.m. | Elmhurst at North Central
 
NATIONAL NOTABLES
Elmhurst junior Eli Spence (Snoqualmie, Wash.) is the Division III leader with 7.45 points per game. Spence is also the national leader with 4.73 goals per game and ranks 22nd nationally with 2.73 assists per game.
 
North Central senior Aidan Murphy (Lindenhurst, Ill.) ranks fourth in Division III with a .640 save percentage.
 
Elmhurst sophomore Gabe Henry (Snoqualmie, Wash.) ranks seventh in Division III with 3.11 caused turnovers per game.
 
Illinois Wesleyan fifth-year Ike Eastburn (Colorado Springs, Colo.) ranks seventh in Division III with a .532 shot percentage. Eastburn also ranks 25th nationally with 3.42 goals per game.
 
Illinois Wesleyan sophomore Timothy McHugh (Orland Park, Ill.) ranks eighth in Division III with 3.25 assists per game.
 
Carthage graduate student Andrew Johnson (Lakeville, Minn.) ranks 13th in Division III with 5.54 points per game. Johnson also ranks 15th nationally with 2.92 assists per game.
 
Elmhurst junior Tony Vazquez (Cottage Grove, Minn.) ranks 21st in Division III with 8.82 ground balls per game.
 
CCIW AND THE NPI
New to Division III men’s lacrosse in 2025, the NCAA Power Index (NPI) is a system that houses the division’s statistical data and objectively applies the selection criteria to the data based on the sport committee’s established weighted criteria. The rankings are used to select at-large teams for NCAA Championships.
 
The latest NPI rankings, including games through April 13, were released by the NCAA this week.
 
15. Elmhurst
36. Illinois Wesleyan
68. North Central
82. Carthage
167. Carroll
 
AROUND THE CCIW
Carroll junior Jake Gehl (Huntley, Ill.) made 14 saves and led the Pioneers with five ground balls in their loss to North Central last Saturday. The performance elevated Gehl’s season average to 10.82 saves per game, fifth-most in the CCIW. He’s made 14 saves or more three times this spring. Carroll (5-6, 0-1 CCIW) will play its first road game since March 15 when the Pios travel to Kenosha on Friday for a 7 p.m. start at Carthage.
 
Carthage senior Ben Krok (Vernon Hills, Ill.) gave the Firebirds a goal, three assists and a season-high four ground balls in their 11-9 loss at Illinois Wesleyan last Saturday. Grok, who has started 63 games for the Firebirds since 2022, now has 188 career points and 142 ground balls. He’s tallied 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in his last four starts since March 22. Carthage (9-4, 0-2 CCIW) hosts Carroll Friday night at 7 p.m.
 
Elmhurst junior Eli Spence (Snoqualmie, Wash.) collected CCIW Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week honors on Tuesday after scoring five goals with two assists in EU’s loss to 15th-ranked Denison last Saturday. The reigning CCIW Offensive Student-Athlete of the Year has scored 52 goals in 11 starts this season, adding 30 assists to remain the national leader in scoring with 7.45 points per game. The Bluejays (10-1, 1-0 CCIW) will host Illinois Wesleyan Saturday at noon with sole possession of first place in the CCIW standings at stake.
 
Illinois Wesleyan senior Sam Weinberg (Highwood, Ill.) scored the game-tying and go-ahead goals for the Titans in the fourth quarter of their 11-9 come-from-behind win over Carthage last Saturday in Bloomington. Weinberg took a season-high eight shots in the victory, scoring four times to move into ninth place on the league leaderboard with 2.11 goals scored per game. IWU (10-2, 2-0 CCIW) has won four in a row and will have an opportunity to be the final unbeaten team in conference play this Saturday when the Titans travel to Elmhurst for a noon contest.
 
North Central freshman Josiah Karnehm (Byron Center, Mich.) made his second career appearance last Saturday, stopping all seven shots on goal from Carroll in a career-high 30 minutes played of NCC’s 14-2 win over Carroll. The decision marked the Cardinals’ largest margin of victory this season, as well as their fewest goals allowed in a game since a 12-2 victory over MSOE on March 8. North Central (7-3, 1-1 CCIW) will welcome Carthage on Saturday at 2 p.m.