Colorado College's Sam DiMaio was voted the Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse Conference Defensive Player of the Year and was one of six Tigers who earned all-conference honors in a ballot of the league's head coaches.
 
DiMaio moved from long-stick midfielder to close defense this season and typically is assigned to cover the opponent's top offensive threat. He leads the team with 38 ground balls and a career-best 23 caused turnovers, which ties him for sixth on the program's single-season list.
 
The senior defender recorded a career-high five caused turnovers and a game-high seven ground balls to lead the Tigers to a 15-12 victory over Whittier College in the Locker-Stabler cup. The Westport, Conn., product has climbed to 10th in program history with 36 career caused turnovers.
 
Joining DiMaio as first-team all-HCLC selections are senior attacker Anders Erickson, sophomore attacker Dylan Brown and sophomore midfielder Declan Maguire. Junior defensive midfielder Luca Lietti and sophomore goaltender Ben Anastos scored second-team honors.

Erickson led CC with 36 points and 16 assists, and tied for second with 20 goals. With his second goal at Catholic University on Feb. 27, Erickson became the 35 player in program history to record 100 career points, accomplishing the feat in less than two full seasons. The Lone Tree, Colo., product now holds sole possession of 22nd place with 122 career points, is tied for 11th with 60 assists and tied for 34th with 62 goals. Erickson produced season highs of four goals and three assists against Grove City College in the second game of the season on Feb. 13.
 
Brown, a two-time HCLC Offensive Player of the Week, leads Colorado College with 26 goals, is second with 34 points and tied for second with eight assists, all of which are career highs. The Oakville, Ontario, native recorded a career-high eight points and matched his career-bests of five goals and three assists in the win over Whittier. He scored four goals during the third quarter, including a natural hat trick in a span of 31 seconds, to give the Tigers a commanding 14-6 lead with 2:45 remaining in the quarter.
 
Maguire is tied for second on the team with 20 goals, ranks third with 27 points and is tied for fourth with seven assists. The Hingham, Mass., product recorded seven goals and eight points as CC clinched the South Division's No. 1 seed for the HCLC Tournament with wins at Southwestern and Centenary. During the 19-14 victory over the Pirates, Maguire matched his career highs of four goals and five points, and struck for two scores during a 4-1 run that sealed the victory.
 
Since making the move to defensive midfielder early in the season, Lietti has become one of Colorado College's most valuable two-way players. In the midfield and defensive zone, Lietti set career highs with 23 goals, which ranks fifth on the team, and four caused turnovers. The San Marcos, Calif., native also has figured prominently in the Tigers' transition attack by contributing six goals and three assists.
 
Anastos made double-digit saves in seven of his nine appearances this season, including a career-high 19 at No. 13 Stevenson University on Feb. 26. A product of Concord, Mass., Anastos was named the HCLC Defensive Player of the Week after he recorded 15 saves and a .714 saves percentage in the 14-6 victory over Sewanee, then 15 more during the 18-8 loss at then-No. 1 Salisbury University.
 
CC faces Anderson University (8-6) in the first semifinal of the Heartland Collegiate Lacrosse Conference Championship on Friday, May 6, at 4 p.m. MT in Chicago. The winner plays either Hanover College (10-4) or Southwestern (10-4) on Sunday at noon MT.

The HCLC champion earns an automatic berth to the 2022 NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Championship.