Breaking Down Landon’s Underclassmen and Sleepers vs. Culver

While Culver (Ind.) topped Landon (Md.) 12-9 last week, it wasn't just the DI-bound stars who stood out—the Bears' depth of under-the-radar seniors and promising underclassmen really popped, even in a loss. In this piece, we highlight six names you might not have heard much about on Prep Lacrosse. For more on Culver, <a href="https://preplacrosse.com/2026/03/culver-outlasts-top-ranked-st-anthonys-in-season-opener/">check out Michael Campanile's story on the Eagles' standouts</a> in their statement win over St. Anthony's (N.Y.) earlier this month.    An absolute steal of a recruit for Bowdoin, DeSanto had the most impressive defensive performance of the day on a backline that seems to be the Bears' strength in 2026. He has an excellent stick, tossing some gorgeous long clearing passes and picking up first-time GBs on a regular basis. On another occasion, he helped retain possession when a ball trickled up to the midline, and he smoothly batted it to a teammate, which ultimately led to a goal. He was strong on-ball, forcing shots off the mark and generally making Culver's dodgers uncomfortable. Even when his man gained a step, he did a terrific job of recovering to make an impact. Part of a really strong group of NESCAC-bound defenders in the region, DeSanto looks the part of a prospect who could make his presence felt early for the Polar Bears.     A big and athletic lefty who scored his first goal of the season against Culver, Dockx had a bit of a hot/cold performance last Thursday. However, he showed just what he's capable of once he lets the game come to him. With his size, he's a bull in a china shop who can win his matchups and score from range. The raw talent and offseason body of work are there, with Dockx having proven himself at the end of the summer by being named MVP of the Command Division at New Balance. Against Culver, he scored a timely fourth-quarter goal when he went through two defenders to start a late three-goal run for the Bears. With a few tweaks, film sessions, and a burst of confidence from a big game down the road, I would think his production will increase, as he's a bit gun-shy through the early goings. I'll be intrigued to follow his progress between now and the end of the season.     Through five games—including matchups against a pair of Top 5 teams—Green and a terrific Landon defense have allowed just 8.6 goals per game. While the Culver game may not stand out statistically as Green's best performance, the numbers don't fully capture how well he played. At 6'5, the Mercyhurst commit takes up a ton of cage and makes shooters work to find an opening, and he's constantly throwing a leg in the way of shots to make saves by any means necessary. In most cases, goalies with Green's kind of size struggle to get to shots below their knees, but that's far from the case here. I felt like he was at his best on low shots, a result of strong positioning and sound footwork. He was particularly brilliant during a flurry in the third quarter, helping Landon stay in the game with four outstanding stops.     With Navy-bound senior Makana Nevorosky out for the season with a torn ACL, the Bears' offense needed someone to step up and provide some pop. Thus far, Paik has done just that, thriving in a role as a starting attackman and excelling on man-up. Hung up behind the cage, he got on the stat sheet in the first quarter on an assist to [player_tooltip player_id='121035' first='Tripp' last='Silva'], then had a nasty quick-stick tally while taking a beating on EMO to make it 4-3 in the second quarter. He's opportunistic and sneaky without the ball, tough on the ride, and dangerous with the ball in his stick, often operating from behind. I was impressed with his decision-making and poise, as he seldom played like a sophomore. Landon has proven to be an attack factory over the years, and Paik looks to be next in line.     I was rather impressed with the play of the Bears' shortsticks, particularly in the first half, and Pedraza was a big reason why. Uncommitted at this point, he could absolutely play at the Division III level if he so chooses, as he has considerable upside. Off to the races after picking up GBs, he was rock-solid in coverage early on, strong off the ground, and showed off his athleticism in open space. Blessed with superb footwork, Pedraza played angles and picks well, too. On a few occasions, he held up well against an ACC commit who went after him before passing the ball elsewhere. Pedraza did get beaten on two instances, but that was against one of the freakier athletes in the Class of 2028, and not many shortsticks would win those reps. Having heard rave reviews about his play through the first few weeks of March, Pedraza backed that up and showed some flashes of brilliance.     During the last few seasons, the Bears had the luxury of having two top-tier face-off specialists who have since graduated, which limited Smith's reps as an underclassman. In the non-conference portion of the schedule so far this spring, Smith's still finding his way, but his performance against Culver's young but dangerous 1-2 punch was certainly encouraging and something he could build off of. The Mt. St. Mary's commit lost his first attempt, but then bounced back to win his next seven face-offs, with two coming on Culver's violations. Overall, he did a really nice job with his counters and getting the ball to his wings. Smith even drew a flag that led to an EMO goal, and then won another that led to a longpole goal by Hopkins-bound JT Mathura. If Smith can keep up that kind of success to feed a young Bears' offense, look out.

While Culver (Ind.) topped Landon (Md.) 12-9 last week, it wasn't just the DI-bound stars who stood out—the Bears' depth of under-the-radar seniors and promising underclassmen really popped, even in a loss.

In this piece, we highlight six names you might not have heard much about on Prep Lacrosse. For more on Culver, check out Michael Campanile's story on the Eagles' standouts in their statement win over St. Anthony's (N.Y.) earlier this month.