ROSEMONT, IL – Johns Hopkins graduate student Beaudan Szuluk has been named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week it was announced by the league today.  Szuluk helped the Blue Jays to a 16-14 win at second-ranked Virginia last Saturday in their only game of the week.
 
This is the first time in his career that Szuluk has been honored as the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and the 11th time a Hopkins player has earned the award since the league added men's lacrosse in 2015. This is also the second time this season a Blue Jay has been honored with the award.
 
Szuluk collected five ground balls and had four caused turnovers in the win at Virginia.  The four caused turnovers tied his career high and the five ground balls were one shy of his personal best of six, which he had a week earlier in a 13-9 win at North Carolina.
 
Szuluk and the Blue Jay defense held Virginia to just four goals after halftime as Johns Hopkins rallied from a 10-8 halftime deficit for the 16-14 victory.  At one point during the second half, the Blue Jays held the Cavaliers scoreless for more than 13 minutes and turned a 12-10 deficit into a 14-12 lead that they never surrendered during that time.
 
A starter in all six games on close defense this season, Szuluk has 18 ground balls and eight caused turnovers to his credit; he leads the team in caused turnovers and ranks third in ground balls.  In his career, he has played in 48 games with 35 starts and has 72 ground balls and 56 caused turnovers to his credit – he ranks third in school history with his 56 caused turnovers.
 
Johns Hopkins (5-1) will return to action on Saturday, March 9 when the Blue Jays travel to Charlotte, North Carolina to take on Syracuse (5-2) in the Crown Lacrosse Classic (6:30 pm / ESPN+).