July 23, 2005

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The University of North Carolina men's lacrosse team will welcome nine new team members in the Class of 2009, head coach John Haus announced Saturday. These prospective student-athletes have all either signed letters of intent or returned enrollment deposits and they will begin classes at North Carolina on August 30 when the fall semester starts.

The class includes defenseman Jason Arias (Lexington, Mass.), midfielder/defenseman Chris Cortina (Pennington, N.J.), attackman/midfielder Ben Hunt (Arnold, Md.), midfielder Bobby McAuley (Hicksville, N.Y.), attackman Matthias McCall (Yorktown, N.Y.), attackman Gavin Petracca (Manhasset, N.Y.), midfielder Jack Ryan (Darien, Conn.), attackman Bart Wagner (Glen Arm, Md.) and midfielder Shane Walterhoefer (Ellicott City, Md.).

Jason Arias (6-3, 205) recently completed a post-graduate year at the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey after graduating from Lexington Christian Academy in his hometown in 2004. In addition to playing four years of high school lacrosse, he also competed in basketball, wrestling, soccer and cross country. Arias was a starting defenseman and the captain for the Iroquois National Under-19 World Team in 2003. He earned first-team scholastic All-America honors in 2004 and was also All-New England. He was named All-League in high school three years and was the MVP of the league as a senior.

Chris Cortina (6-2, 225) finished his studies at the Lawrenceville School in May 2005. Very versatile on the lacrosse field, he played both midfield and defense and also excelled as a face-off specialist. Cortina also played tight end and linebacker on the football team. He was a four-year starter in lacrosse and a three-year starter in football. Cortina led Lawrenceville to a trio of New Jersey "A" prep state championships on the lacrosse field.

A four-year letterman in lacrosse at Severna Park High School, Ben Hunt (6-4, 185) played both on attack and in the midfield. He also played wide receiver on the football team for four years. Hunt was an All-Anne Arundel County selection while leading his team to the 4A/3A state title in 2004. He captained Severna Park as a senior and was also tapped for the Maryland Free State Team.

Bobby McAuley (5-11, 180) was a four-year starter in the midfield at Hicksville High School and he also played football for four years as a wide receiver, cornerback and linebacker. A Newsday All-Long Island selection in lacrosse, McAuley also earned honorable mention high school All-America honors as well as All-Conference and All-County accolades. He played on two Long Island Empire State Games teams which won silver medals.

A four-year lacrosse player at Yorktown High School, Matthias McCall (5-11, 175) follows two older brothers to play at Carolina. His brother Mike graduated in 2005 as the sixth-leading goal scorer in UNC history and brother Tim will be a sophomore at Carolina this coming year. Matthias McCall was named All-Section three times and first-team All-North County News twice. A two-time team captain at Yorktown, McCall played on the Hudson Valley Empire State Games team on two occasions. He was also named the MVP of the state championship game as a junior.

Gavin Petracca (5-11, 175) graduated from Manhasset High School in June after an outstanding high school lacrosse career. He led Manhasset to the New York state title as a junior and that same year LaxPower.com ranked Manhasset as the No. 1 high school lacrosse team in the nation. Petracca has been named as an All-Conference selection, an All-County honoree, a member of two Long Island Empire State Games lacrosse teams which won silver medals, offensive MVP of the state championship game and captain of the Manhasset team as a senior.

A 2005 graduate of Darien High School, Jack Ryan (6-4, 215) joins his brother David, a rising junior midfielder, on the Tar Heel squad this coming season. Jack Ryan was a three-sport star in high school in lacrosse, football and basketball, lettering all four years in each sport. Ryan started for three years in lacrosse and was named first-team All-State and All-Conference as a senior. He was also tapped for the Connecticut Super Juniors Team.

Bart Wagner (5-9, 160) was one of the top attackmen in Maryland, graduating from St. Paul's High School this past spring. In addition to lacrosse, Wagner also played soccer and basketball at St. Paul's, competing in each of the sports four years. Wagner was an All-America selection in lacrosse and a Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association choice in both lacrosse and soccer. A first-team All-State selection, Wagner was named second-team All-Metro and second-team All-City/County by the Baltimore Sun. He was also tapped for the All-Tewaaraton Team. Wagner captained his high school soccer team twice and the lacrosse team one year. He was the leading goal scorer on the St. Paul's lacrosse team his sophomore, junior and senior years.

Midfielder/face-off specialist Shane Walterhoefer (5-9, 185) graduated June 4 from Boys'Latin High School in Baltimore. He played three years of lacrosse at Boys' Latin and was a tailback and linebacker on the football team for three years. Walterhoefer will join older brother Ryan, who will be a red-shirt sophomore midfielder at Carolina in 2005-06. Shane Walterhoefer captained the Boys' Latin lacrosse team as a junior and senior. He was second-team All-Metro and second-team All-City/County as named by the Baltimore Sun his junior year. He played on the Maryland Free State Team as a junior and was invited to play in the Maryland Senior All-Star game this past year. He led his football team to three conference championships and rushed for over 1,300 yards as a junior.