By: Alex Scott
From Bellarmine lacrosse’s first All-American to 2018 Goalie of the Year, Dillon Ward is no stranger to success.
Ward became the program’s first All- American and led the nation in save percentage in 2013. Ward holds the program record in saves at 576, with next closest being JC Hutchins at 315. And Ward’s achievements at Bellarmine quickly carried over to his professional lacrosse career.
He was the third pick overall in the 2013 National Lacrosse League (NLL) draft. His save percentage average sits at .781 after this season..
As a member of the Colorado Mammoth indoor lacrosse team, Ward was voted as 2018 Goalie of the Year.
Ward is a part of multiple professional lacrosse leagues including the NLL and the Major Lacrosse League (MLL). The NLL is an indoor league while the MLL is an outdoor league.
In the MLL, Ward plays for the Denver Outlaws. The Outlaws won their third Major League Lacrosse Championship this summer. Ward has also represented team Canada in the Lacrosse Olympics.
Bellarmine coaches always expected these accomplishments. Current head coach Jim Mitchell was the defensive and goalie coach while Ward was at Bellarmine.
“Hasn’t really surprised me to see him have the success he has at the professional level,” Mitchell said. “He is one of a few {BU} guys that have gone on to have success in the indoor league.”
The coaches saw his potential, and Ward had professional goals in mind before joining Bellarmine’s team.
“Playing professionally was definitely a goal of mine from a young age. I ultimately wanted to make it professionally, but I didn’t really start focusing on it until after I was done playing at Bellarmine,” Ward said.
Ward’s former teammate Stephen Soriano, is now a coach for Bellarmine. Soriano describes Ward as the face of the Colorado Mammoth’s program as well as Bellarmine’s program.
“He was a huge part of our success when we were at Bellarmine,” Soriano said.
Both Mitchell and Soriano said Ward had the potential as a professional player while playing at Bellarmine.
“Dillion was really gifted, and as we started to prepare more professionally, he had more of an impact on the whole team,” Mitchell said. “As he started to find his voice and learned how to use his lacrosse intelligence, that’s when the program had its best years.”
Ward proved to be a significant part of the lacrosse program at Bellarmine, but Bellarmine played a role in his success, too.
“Athletically Bellarmine helped me be in great shape to take my game to the next level, as well, hone in my skills that made me successful in the pro,” Ward said.
Among the list of Ward’s recent successes are:
- top three in the indoor league in save percentage for the past three years;
- career highs this indoor season in minutes played, saves and wins;
- first double-digit win total