Tristan David "TD" Ierlan is an American professional

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

player who plays as a faceoff specialist for

Redwoods Lacrosse Club The Redwoods Lacrosse Club is a professional men's field lacrosse team in Premier Lacrosse League (PLL). The Redwoods are one of the six founding members of the PLL for the 2019 season. Notable players include Matt Kavanagh, Myles Jones, Sergio P ...

of the Premier Lacrosse League and the

Toronto Rock The Toronto Rock are a professional box lacrosse franchise based in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the North Division of the National Lacrosse League (NLL). The team was the first Canadian franchise in the NLL. ...

of the

National Lacrosse League The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United Stat ...

. Regarded as one of the best faceoff specialists of all time, Ierlan holds numerous

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

records, having played at Albany, Yale, and Denver before turning professional. Additionally, he is a volunteer assistant lacrosse coach at Syracuse.

Early life and career

Ierlan is the son of Mike and Karen Ierlan. He has a brother, Chayse, who plays lacrosse as a goaltender for Cornell, and a sister, Doyle. He attended

Victor Senior High School Victor Senior High School is a public high school located in Victor, New York, and is part of the encompassing Victor Central School District. It is a four year high school covering grades 9-12, which regularly receives both national and state rec ...

Victor, New York Victor is an incorporated town in Ontario County, New York. The population was 15,969 at the time of the 2020 census. The town is named after Claudius Victor Boughton, an American hero of the War of 1812. The Town of Victor contains a village, ...

, where he earned four varsity letters in football, wrestling, and lacrosse. On the wrestling mat, Ierlan set a school record with 161 wins. In lacrosse, he won 1,135 faceoffs at an 83% win rate, as well as collecting 661 ground balls and recording 50 points over his career. He helped lead Victor to state championships in lacrosse during his final two years, being named an All-American and New York Player of the Year both times.

College career

Albany

In his freshman year at Albany, he played for Albany Great Danes and won 70.8% of his faceoffs, with 323 total wins, which was second in NCAA history, and 202 ground balls, which was fourth in NCAA history, while also adding 10 points. He was named America East Rookie of the Year, as well as being named a first team All-America East, All-America East Rookie, and All-Tournament teams, and a second team All-American by Inside Lacrosse and third team USILA All-American. The following season, Ierlan set single-season records in faceoff percentage (79.1%), faceoff wins (359), and ground balls (254). He was named the America East Defensive Player of the Year, as well as all-Conference first team, all-Academic team, and second team an All-American by Inside Lacrosse and the USILA, as well as being a nominee for the

Tewaaraton Award The Tewaaraton Award is an annual award for the most outstanding American college lacrosse men's and women's players, since 2001. It is the lacrosse equivalent of football's Heisman Trophy. The award is presented by The Tewaaraton Foundation and t ...

as Albany reached the Final Four for the first time in program history.

Yale

Ierlan transferred to Yale following his sophomore year, as he felt he didn't fit with the Albany program. During his first season with

Yale Bulldogs The Yale Bulldogs are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Yale University, located in New Haven, Connecticut. The school sponsors 35 varsity sports. The school has won two NCAA national championships in women's fencing, four in ...

, Ierlan broke his own records for faceoff wins and ground balls with 393 and 293 respectively. He set the record for the best faceoff percentage in NCAA history by going 26-26 against Harvard, as well as NCAA records for faceoff wins in an NCAA tournament game (31) and ground balls in a game (29) against Georgetown. Ierlan was named a First Team All-American and was a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award, as well as Ivy League Player of the Year. During his senior season in 2020, Ierlan set the career record for faceoff wins in a game against Michigan.

Denver

As Yale did not play in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ierlan transferred to Denver for his final college season. He played in nine games for the Pioneers, being named an honorable mention All-American.

Statistics

Professional career

PLL

Ierlan was selected first overall in the 2020

Major League Lacrosse draft The Major League Lacrosse draft was the annual draft of outstanding amateur lacrosse players from American colleges and universities into the professional ranks of Major League Lacrosse (MLL). The North American league, made up of 9 teams, began con ...

by the

New York Lizards The New York Lizards, originally the Long Island Lizards, were a Major League Lacrosse (MLL) team based in Hempstead, New York, located on Long Island. They are original members of the MLL. They lost the league's inaugural game on June 7, 2001 to ...

, though he decided to return to college instead. The following year, he was taken fourth overall by

in the Premier Lacrosse League college draft. Ierlan was an All-Star as a rookie.

Statistics

NLL

Ierlan was selected 30th overall in the 2020 NLL Draft by the

despite having no experience in the box game. He made his debut in the 2022 season, playing as a defenseman and faceoff specialist.

Statistics

Playoffs

External links

Premier Lacrosse League bio

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ierland, T. D. 1998 births Living people Albany Great Danes men's lacrosse players Yale Bulldogs men's lacrosse players Denver Pioneers men's lacrosse players Premier Lacrosse League players Toronto Rock players People from Victor, New York Lacrosse players from New York (state) Syracuse Orange men's lacrosse coaches American expatriate sportspeople in Canada