Jonathan Alder Pioneer secures DI commitment

At a very young age, Jonathan Alder senior Mason Wolford made it a mission to play lacrosse at the Division I level.

“I’ve always said, since seventh grade, that I wanted to play Division I lacrosse,” he said.

Well, Pioneer Nation, mission accomplished.

Jonathan Alder’s Mason Wolford (30) pressures his way into the crease of Oakwood’s goal during a regular season game last year. The senior committed to Canisius in late September.

After helping the Pioneers claim its second-ever tournament win in program history, Wolford jumped right in to summer activity, playing for the Haymakers Lacrosse. Shortly after starting, the then-incoming senior started to receive multiple emails from college teams interested in his talents.

“It started probably around July,” Wolford told the Journal-Tribune.

During the same month, he was contacted by Canisius College, which is one of 27 Jesuit colleges and universities in the country, according to its official website.

Wolford went on to make visits to other schools such as Cleveland State and Lynchburg.

Based in Buffalo, New York, Wolford visited the home of the Canisuis Griffins in August. Shortly after observing the campus, he decided the Northeast would be his temporary home for the foreseeable future.

“After a couple phone calls and texts, I ultimately decided on Canisius,” he said.

Visiting the campus, the idea of being a student-athlete for the school grew stronger for the Plain City native.

“When I visited, I knew I wanted to go there,” Wolford said. “It was better than any other school I visited.”

Wolford plans on studying business or a major that involves the sporting world. With approximately 2,000 students, he wanted to maintain a “small school” mentality while also accomplishing his goals of playing D-I lacrosse.

“I also wanted to go to a school where I was going to play high level competition,” he said.

Canisius is a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) with its membership including Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan College, Marist College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University and Sienna College.

Last season, the Griffins went 2-12 in the MAAC with a conference record of 1-5.

The Griffins will be adding a fast-paced scorer to its arsenal in the 2024 spring season.

Wolford led the Pioneers in goals during the 2022 regular season with 62 in 18 games played. He also had a hand in many other goals, notching a team-high 28 assists.

His performance also boasted a 57% scoring percentage throughout the team’s 18 regular season games plus one tourney contest.

The senior also had the most shots on goal with 120.

Jonathan Alder finished with an 11-8 overall record last spring, with a 6-6 mark in Region 7 — the team’s conference.

In terms of his commitment to Canisius, Wolford said he received multiple academic scholarships from the university.

The Pioneers are now preparing for the 2023 spring season.

“With not many seniors leaving from last year, we will be even better,” Wolford said.