A rangy and punishing defender who became one of Sebs’ most important players down the stretch last spring, Sullivan is heading to a program that is tailor-made for his talents. Georgetown defenders have to be skilled in more than just one-on-one defending and perpetual violence; they need to know how to slide, how to build in the clear, and kickstart the offense in transition. Sullivan is skilled in all of those things and will enter his junior season as a starter for the Arrows, where he will play multiple spots on the backline. Square hole, meet square peg.

I was surprised to see that we had yet to post an evaluation of Sullivan, who is viewed by many as a top-five defender in New England and yet another stud in a long line of top-notch Laxachusetts defensemen. In the spring, he was surrounded by defensive teammates headed to Harvard, Duke and Dartmouth, but he’s unquestionably ready to step into an increased role and likely take on No. 1 attackmen. Sullivan moves impeccably well for a 6-foot-3 defender, and his stick work is as good as it gets among close defensemen in the class. Even with two years to go, he’s remarkably polished, capable of playing cross-handed or giving dodgers fits with his V-holds. Off-ball, he’s a space-eater who’s always man-conscious and timely with his slides. Behind the cage, Sullivan flips his hips and matches feet with fleet-footed dodgers, while also playing physical against bigger attackmen and never budging at GLE. All of that is to say there’s a lot to like about what Sullivan brings to the table, and I’d imagine he’ll have just about his pick come 9/9.