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Brendan Millon is at No. 1 in the NLF class of 2025 rankings for the second straight time. He leads a contingent of 19 five-star recruits. Here’s a breakdown of the rest of the top 10, which features one of his Team 91 Maryland teammates. Team 91 Long Island and Big 4 HHH also boast a pair of top-10 recruits.
2. Gary Merrill, midfield, St. Anthony’s (N.Y.) / Team 91 Long Island Shock
Merrill was consistently excellent throughout the summer, earning All-Star nods at Maverik Showtime, One Percent and Main Stage and racking up a hat trick in the NLF title game to lead Team 91 Shock to the national title. A 6-1, 175-pounder, Merrill is an elite alley shooter and had a ton of picturesque rockets that found the back of the cage this summer. His best asset, though, might be his competitiveness and assassin’s mentality.
“His best asset is that he’s such a fierce competitor,” one assistant coach at a top-10 program said. “He likes to compete.”
Merrill worked his way onto St. Anthony’s’ second midfield line as a sophomore, no small task for a team that was in the national top 3 all year. He projects to potentially be the Friars’ best offensive player next spring, and he’ll likely have an ACC commitment to his name way before then.
3. Jackson Maher, attack, Bullis (Md.) / DC Express
Maher racked up 50 goals and 15 assists as a sophomore for Bullis after posting a 27-goal, 10-assist freshman campaign. The 6-4, 190-pounder is an imposing mismatch who uses his size and superb body control to keep defenders off-balance. Maher’s remarkably two-handed for his young age, and he bounces around different spots to exploit matchups. Some coaches think he could also play midfield in college, especially with how many goals he scored from above the cage this summer.
“At the NLF National Championships, he kind of showed me a different level of what he could be,” an offensive coordinator from a 2023 NCAA tournament team said. “He was really imposing.”
Maher’s reported to be an excellent student, so he’ll have no shortage of options from high-academic powerhouses.
4. Robby Hopper, LSM, Archbishop Spalding (Md.) / Annapolis Hawks
Hopper is an absolute game-wrecker from the longstick midfield spot. At 6-5, 190 pounds, he very much looks the part of an ACC LSM and he impacts the game like one, too. Hopper is excellent off the ground and his length allows him to alter passes and make offensive players think twice about going near him.
“He’s a freak,” said one assistant coach from a team that won its conference this spring.
“I think he’ll be an All-American,” said another assistant coach from a team that won its conference this spring.
Hopper was Spalding’s best defensive player as a close defenseman this spring, but everyone thinks he’s ticketed for LSM in college. He helped the Hawks to a championship at NAL to close out the summer with his goal and two assists in the title game.
5. Michael Ortlieb, attack, Malvern Prep (Pa.) / Big 4 HHH
Ortlieb is as smart and cerebral as it gets. Nearly every coach asked about him said he was the top X attackman in the class, and it’s a reputation that he more than backed up with his play. Ortlieb potted 49 goals and handed out 25 assists for the Friars this spring, including a four-goal effort in the title game as Malvern won the Inter-Ac tournament.
That play carried over to the summer, too. He’s an elite passer, often showing off his chemistry with four-star Malvern and HHH teammate Owen Mears, and he controls the pace of play at an elite level. The only knock on him seems to be that he’s not an elite athlete, but he’s no slouch, and his incredibly-high IQ means that he can run any offense.
Ortlieb is very creative and often throws underhand or sidearm passes, showing off his ability to keep defenses guessing at all times. He’s got a nice touch around the cage, too, and he will have a long line of suitors.
6. Aidan Seibel, goalie, McDonogh (Md.) / Team 91 Maryland
Seibel seized the title of the No. 1 goalie in the class by going on an absolute heater ever since he took over the starting job at McDonogh midway through the season. He helped the Eagles to their second straight MIAA title and never looked back. Seibel snagged All-Star honors at Maverik Showtime, One Percent and Main Stage and was lights-out in helping Maryland win the Nike Nationals championship.
“He’s the best goalie in the class and I don’t think it’s close,” one ACC assistant said. “He’s far and away the No. 1.”
A tall, athletic and rangy goalie, Seibel just has a knack for making saves that others can’t. A 6-2, 185-pounder, he has great reflexes, excellent rebound control and makes terrific outlet passes. Will he get out of the state?
7. Parker McDonald, LSM/defense, St. Anthony’s (N.Y.) / Team 91 Long Island Shock
McDonald vaults into the top 10 after a summer where he dominated everywhere he went. He collected All-Star honors at Maverik Showtime and Main Stage and earned Defensive MVP honors at One Percent. He’s the best cover LSM in the class by a wide margin. McDonald can bounce back and forth between both positions rather effortlessly, but his speed and athleticism make him a perfect fit to get up and down the field in college.
McDonald doesn’t have elite size at 5-11, 160 pounds, yet his versatility, footwork, tenacity, accurate checks and exceptional stick skills make him a unique prospect. He was absolutely lights-out at the NLF National Championships, scoring in both the semifinals and title game.
“He’s a guy where you could put him on the wing and then have him come down to cover the smaller, quicker guys,” said a defensive coordinator from a top-10 school.
Earlier this summer, McDonald dropped a top four, though that’s always subject to change.
8. Gavin Cooper, defense/LSM, Haverford School (Pa.) / Big 4 HHH
Cooper looks different and plays differently than just about any other defensive player in the class. He’s 6-1, 210 pounds of pure muscle, so posting him up is a waste of a time and an invitation to get yourself hurt. A Main Stage All-Star, Cooper earned All-State honors as an LSM at Haverford this spring, but everyone projects him to be a rock-solid close defenseman at the next level.
“He’s really high on my board,” a coach from a perennial powerhouse said. “The level of intensity that he brings is different. He’s got a ton of energy and he plays really hard all the time.”
“He could play LSM, but I think he’s going to cover the opposing team’s best player,” Big 4 HHH director Billy McKinney said. “He’s the best defensive prospect I’ve ever seen.”
9. Chris Iuliano, defense, Rye (N.Y.) / Prime Time
Prime Time is absolutely loaded in the 2025 class, and it’s Iuliano that projects as the team’s top college prospect. A big, strong, powerful defenseman, he simply engulfs opponents and has the footwork to match up with the smaller, shiftier types, too.
“Iuliano’s the top close defenseman,” one ACC assistant said. “He covers well, he picks off a ton of passes and he has great length.
Iuliano relishes the challenge of taking on opponents’ top attackman. He can erase top-end guys and also take the ball away from them.
10. Josh Marcus, goalie, Staples (Conn.) / Eclipse
Staples had zero state championships before Marcus took over in the cage midway through his freshman year. The Wreckers have since gone two for two in grabbing state hardware, and it sure wasn’t in spite of Marcus. The Maverik Showtime and One Percent All-Star and Main Stage All-Star Game Goalie MVP, Marcus just exudes calm and poise in the cage.
He battled through an injury this spring that carried over into the summer, yet it never seems like anything fazes him. He has an advanced understanding of the position, plays his angles very well and is an outstanding passer. Marcus also just turned 16, easily making him the youngest of all of the elite goalies and lending credence that there’s still lots of untapped potential to his game.
His recruitment is purported to be wide open and he’ll likely land somewhere in the ACC or the Big Ten.
