Wissahickon’s Jackson Intrieri committed to continue his lacrosse career at Jacksonville University. (JU & Inside Lacrosse photos courtesy of Jacksonville men’s lacrosse. SuburbanOneSports.com photos courtesy of John Gleeson & Kim Supko Photography.)
Jackson Intrieri had himself quite a spring.
The recent Wissahickon grad was the offensive catalyst of a Trojans’ squad that secured its spot in program history with its undefeated SOL American Conference championship and a trip to the PIAA 3A state quarterfinals.
“With our senior year, we had a great group of guys – we had seven seniors, me being one of them,” Intrieri said. “We all played a pivotal role on our team. We also had a lot of younger guys step up on our defense that really never played varsity, and they also did a really great job.”
Individually, Intrieri scored 63 goals – second only on the all-time list to sophomore Kyle Lehman’s 65 this spring – and also had 79 assists for 142 points, the top point total in program history and best in the PIAA 3A this spring.
Although the career records are not documented – it’s a safe bet that Intrieri is among the program’s top point scorers despite the cancellation of his junior season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“That’s how talented he is,” Wissahickon coach Matt Conway said. “He definitely had a couple of Division 1 opportunities heading into the spring, obviously after not having a junior season – who knows if that hadn’t happened what would have been the case.”
As a result of Intrieri’s remarkable senior season, the recruiting landscape for the SOL American Conference’s MVP – who had committed to Ursinus College in mid-October of 2020 - began to change.
“At the time with the COVID year, we obviously didn’t have a season with our school team, so I felt like I would have made some pretty big strides last year in terms of my game and coming into my own in a way,” Intrieri said. “I kind of came into my game as the season progressed this spring.
“When the season was coming to an end, that’s when a lot of schools started to reach out to me. I guess they started to realize how good I was getting and how good I could be in the future.”
A three-sport athlete, Intrieri – who also played football and basketball - earned all-state honors and caught the eye of Jacksonville University assistant Chris Perzinski who saw the Wissahickon attackman in action at a game.
“They first reached out to me after the La Salle game,” said Intrieri of the Trojans’ 10-9 upset of the state powerhouse Explorers in the opening round of states. “There was a handful of schools that reached out around that time, and they were one of them.
“Coach (John) Galloway recruited me really aggressively. They were really genuine guys when I went down there to visit. I honestly loved it. They were all really cool guys, especially coach (Tyler) Granelli. He took me around on my visit, and it was just a great time.”
Shortly after his visit, Intrieri – who also visited UMBC - committed to Jacksonville.
“I just had to weigh my options,” Intrieri said. “Obviously, it’s always a goal to play at the highest level, especially in college. It’s what me and my friends have always strived for – just to be the best at what we do.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I felt like I kind of would be doing myself a disservice considering how great a season I had. Jacksonville felt like it was a good fit for me, and I’m ready to get down there.”
JU - which dropped its football program and is investing instead in its men’s and women’s lacrosse programs - built a state of the art building exclusively for lacrosse, and the program’s Duval Mission (Jacksonville is located in Duval County) is best represented by the acronym FERP: Fearless, Earned, Respected, Prepared.
“After having a senior season playing as well as he played, I don’t think there was ever much doubt that he could play at the Division 1 level, but maybe a part of it was proving it to himself,” Conway said. “He’s always been really talented since way back. Playing as well as he did against a lot of really good teams gave him the confidence to test out the Division 1 level.”
Jackson Intrieri – Jacksonville University (Lacrosse)
Major: Business
Final list of colleges: Jacksonville, Ursinus, Marquette, High Point, Salisbury, Cabrini, UMBC
Reasons for choosing Jacksonville: “I took a lot of time to process things. As my dad would say, it was my decision in the end. I thought it was a great fit, and I’m ready for the challenge.”
What was the progression that led you to competing in lacrosse at the collegiate level: “As weird as it sounds, going into my senior year, honestly, I didn’t really know how much I loved lacrosse, considering I didn’t have a junior year. It was crazy not being able to play a sport for three-four months. Obviously, it picked up with HHH Lacrosse Club in the summer.
“As the season progressed this spring, I was making really big strides in terms of my game and coming into my own as a player. I feel like I’m only going to get better.”
Coach Matt Conway says: “Jackson has been a starter since his freshman year. His growth on the field has been awesome to watch. His vision of the field is one of the things (that sets him apart). He has scoring ability, but he’s more of a pass-first player. He’s always dodging with his head up looking for others, but probably the biggest area he improved on was being able to dodge and score. This season – when the opportunity was there – he was able to take advantage of it.”
About Jackson:
Favorite food: Pizza
Favorite movie: Cars
Favorite artist: Jack Harlow
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