TD Ierlan was selected by Redwoods LC at No. 4 overall in the first round of the 2021 PLL College Draft, beginning the professional career of the illustrious college player. He has been producing very well throughout his first pro campaign, keeping up with what was expected from him after his performances at Denver, Yale, and Albany in college.
This is TD Ierlan’s player profile.
TD Ierlan Player Profile
TD Ierlan grew up in Victor, New York, which is about 18 miles southeast of Rochester. He first started playing lacrosse in first grade with the Victor Youth Lacrosse Program before becoming a standout for the Victor High School squad years later. In high school, Ierlan was a four-year letter winner and helped Victor claim New York State championships in 2015 and 2016, as well as three Section V titles. He was a US Lacrosse All-American in 2015 and 2016, plus won the All-Greater Rochester Player of the Year honors in both years, too. He concluded his high school career with an 83 percent faceoff win percentage, 661 ground balls, 1,135 total faceoff wins, 35 goals, and 15 assists.
After college, TD Ierlan remained in-state to play for and attend Albany. He was dominant at the X there, too, instantly becoming one of the best faceoff specialists in Division I as a freshman in 2017. He continued to improve as a sophomore, setting single-season NCAA DI records for faceoff percentage (.791), faceoff wins (359), and ground balls (254).
Ierlan transferred to Yale before his junior season and became even more effective for the Bulldogs. As a junior in 2019, he was a Tewaaraton Award Finalist, named to multiple First Team All-American teams, earned Ivy League Player of the Year honors, and more. Ierlan set a single-game NCAA record for most wins without a loss after going 26-of-26 from the X at Harvard in a 22-11 Yale victory April 27, 2019.
He then achieved another milestone against Georgetown in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, winning 31 faceoffs to set the bar for the most-ever faceoff victories in an NCAA Tournament contest. Ierlan’s efforts were instrumental in Yale’s run to the 2019 national championship game.
As it was for everyone, the faceoff specialist’s 2020 season was cut short because of the pandemic. However, Ierlan did get to set the NCAA career record for faceoff wins in a 17-11 triumph over Michigan in Costa Mesa, California, on March 7, 2020, which was the last game Yale played that year. Needing 24 faceoff wins heading into the game to surpass Trevor Baptiste in the record books, Ierlan went 25-of-27 to push his collegiate career total to a never-before-seen 1,159 wins.
When it became clear that the Ivy League would not return to the field in 2021, TD Ierlan transferred again to conclude his college career, this time to Denver. He featured in nine games for the Pios in 2021, going 86-of-118 (72.9 percent) from the X and reaching double-figure faceoff wins in four contests. He left college with 10 different NCAA records to his name.
The Redwoods made TD Ierlan their first-round pick for 2021, and he has lived up to expectations in the PLL so far. With his first professional regular season now behind him, Ierlan has cemented his place among the best faceoff takers in the sport. As a rookie, he is tied atop the league in faceoff win percentage (65 percent), second in total faceoff wins (132), and second in ground balls (79).
His work helped Redwoods secure the No. 4 seed in the 2021 PLL Playoffs, which earned it a date against the No. 5 seeded Whipsnakes on Saturday, Aug. 21 at 6 p.m. EST in Salt Lake City.
