Syracuse men’s lacrosse faces Notre Dame in the national semifinals on May 23 at 2:30 p.m. in Charlottesville, Va., with seven Maryland natives part of an Orange roster looking to win it all.
One of those is senior Billy Dwan III, a native of Lutherville and graduate of Loyola Blakefield. The 6-foot-4, 231-pound defenseman has been a staple of Syracuse since 2023, starting 63 games and appearing in seven others. Dwan has picked up 109 ground balls, caused 57 turnovers and scored 19 goals throughout his four-year career with the Orange.
Now, Dwan is looking to help Syracuse win its first national championship since 2009. The Orange have come a long way since Dwan arrived on campus. Syracuse went 4-10 in 2022, the year before Dwan got to Central New York, and 8-7 in 2023, Dwan’s freshman season.
Since then, the Orange have gone a combined 38-17. Syracuse reached the Final Four in last year’s tournament but fell to Maryland. The Orange will try to write a different script this time around.
“We were in kind of the same position last year and didn’t end it exactly how we wanted to end it,” Dwan said on Glenn Clark Radio May 19. “I think for us we knew it would take more to not only get back but hopefully change things up and be different this time. I think in the lacrosse world we get a lot of spotlight and sometimes negativity from the media, from the fans, from the lacrosse community. I think for us, we just stick together. We know what we have here and I think it’s super special. For us, I think when people are always against us we’re going to battle for each other, we’re going to stick it out for each other.”
Syracuse defeated North Carolina, 13-11, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on May 16 after losing to the Tar Heels in the regular season and ACC tournament. Dwan picked up two ground balls, caused a turnover and authored this nifty play to help the Orange move on to championship weekend:
Dwan said the play wasn’t anything special, just emblematic of how Syracuse plays the game.
“For us at least, knowing our culture that we’ve built over the last four years, going out the right way doesn’t necessarily mean wins, losses,” Dwan said. “[It’s] how you play the game and what the younger guys look at when they think of you in years in the future. For me, I’ll put my body on the line, throw it all out there, hopefully just have a chance to make a play for my team.”
Dwan has had the opportunity to learn from Syracuse legend Gary Gait since arriving on campus. Gait, 59, has been the head coach of the Orange since 2021 and is considered perhaps the best field lacrosse player of all time.
Dwan enjoys having Gait in his corner.
“I think sometimes I take it for granted,” Dwan said. “You can just walk into his office and start talking to him about lacrosse or life. You don’t sit back and realize he’s like the Michael Jordan of lacrosse. To have that guy to call as a coach and someone you can lean on and talk to [about] lacrosse, life or anything in between I think is super big.”
Once Syracuse’s season comes to an end, Dwan will move on to the Premier Lacrosse League. Five members of the Orange were taken in the 2026 PLL College Draft in April, with Dwan and Joey Spallina going to the Maryland Whipsnakes. The PLL season is already underway, so the Syracuse draftees will join their teams midseason.
But that’s not on Dwan’s mind at this point.
“I think for us, we’re just worried about trying to do everything we can to leave this place in the right spot,” Dwan said. “Looking into the future, I think it’s a super cool opportunity to be drafted by a great team like the Whipsnakes. Some great people are part of that team. To have a friend like Joey to be part of it, too, it makes myself more comfortable going in.”
For more from Dwan, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Syracuse Athletics