PLL Draft Pick Arden Cohen ‘Excited’ to Join Fellow Notre Dame Defensemen on Redwoods LC

“[Arden Cohen] is from a system at Notre Dame where they speak the same defensive language as the Redwoods,” Paul Carcaterra said on the 2022 Premier Lacrosse League College Draft broadcast. “He’s pro-ready.”

The Redwoods Lacrosse Club selected defenseman Arden Cohen with the third overall pick in the 2022 PLL College Draft, adding the former Fighting Irish defender to an already Notre Dame-heavy roster. The selection occurred just six years after another former Notre Dame defenseman and Schmeisser Award winner Matt Landis was drafted third overall. Landis, along with other former Fighting Irish defensemen Eddy Glazener and Garrett Epple, was a pivotal piece in the Redwoods’ 2019 PLL playoff run that established the Redwoods as one of the top defenses in the PLL.

“I was so excited to be picked by the Redwoods,” Cohen said. “Obviously there’s a long lineage of Notre Dame defensemen there and I really can’t wait to have the chance to play with them during preseason.”

Before he became a four-year starter and two-time All-American at Notre Dame, Cohen was a standout at the Frederick Gunnery Boarding School before finishing his high school career at Darien High School, one of the best programs in Connecticut. 

“At Darien, you have the opportunity to play with some amazing players,” Cohen said. “You get to battle against some amazing players every day, like Kevin Lindley who also got drafted.”

Darien head coach Jeff Brameier remembered the impact that adding Cohen had on his team when he arrived as a senior.

“He was just one of those very physical, very demanding players who matched against the best guys in our game and gave us a lift,” Brameier said. 

Cohen’s successful high school career made him one of the top recruits in the class of 2017, ranking third in Inside Lacrosse’s Power 100 Incoming Freshman Rankings that year. The unique culture of Notre Dame, combined with playing for a coaching staff led by Kevin Corrigan and Gerry Byrne, led Cohen to South Bend for his college career.

“No college can compete with Notre Dame’s culture and community,” Cohen said, “I couldn’t have asked for better support from the coaching staff as well.”

He immediately became a key contributor for the Fighting Irish, starting every game of his college career and playing alongside other PLL defenders like John Sexton and Jack Kielty. 

“I definitely had a lot to learn from some of the older players,” Cohen said.

Ryan Wellner, who took over for Byrne in 2019, raved about Cohen’s development over his college career.

“I think that the one thing about Arden is he changed his game as he got older,” Wellner said. “He wasn’t solely an on-ball guy; the off-ball communication and understanding of what the offense was trying to do helped him on the ball. All those things kind of came to a head this year.”

While a well-rounded defender, Cohen is primarily a top cover defenseman, capable of guarding the other team’s best offensive player one-on-one. He notably turned heads around the country with an elite display against North Carolina grad and second overall pick in the 2022 PLL Draft, Chris Gray. He held the all-time leading scorer in NCAA men’s lacrosse division I history to just one goal and one assist in a dominant 12-5 victory.

“I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t a little bit nervous before the game,” Cohen said. “[But] by the start of the game, you’re just ready to go and fired up, it’s really exciting going against those guys and having a chance to prove yourself every game.”

In his senior season, Cohen led the best scoring defense in the ACC and was named a first-team All-American by USA Lacrosse Magazine. He anchored a unit that led the Fighting Irish to a six-game winning streak and ACC co-championship.

On draft night, Cohen celebrated being picked in the first round alongside his teammates, who watched the draft alongside him. 

“I was so thankful just to have my teammates there,” Cohen said. “I definitely couldn’t have done it without their support.”

With the Redwoods, Cohen enters a defensive system very similar to what he ran at Notre Dame, led by former Fighting Irish poles Glazener and Epple. 

“I think it is a slight advantage, having a chance to kind of like learn their language beforehand,” Cohen said. “I’m super excited to hopefully slip right in.”

The PLL is a whole other animal in terms of competition and intensity, both between the lines and for playing time. With just 200 roster spots in the league, battles at training camp and throughout the season are relentless.

“I expect [training camp] to be really intense,” Cohen said. “[You] have to be ready to compete at all times because you’re no longer there just for fun. This is a real job. And I’m excited for that.”

Redwoods head coach Nat St. Laurent said the Redwoods staff had been looking at Cohen dating back to last season, talking with coaches at Notre Dame, and that he’ll add immediate competition to the defensive unit alongside Finn Sullivan and Kyle Thornton.

“We feel like he’s going to be hungry. He’s going to be motivated, but he’s got a quick learning curve,” St. Laurent said. “Our job and my job as the GM is to make decisions in player transactions that make [our team] as competitive as possible.”

Cohen’s already been welcomed with open arms by his Redwood teammates, receiving congratulatory calls on draft night from the likes of Glazener and Matt Kavanagh. Coach Wellner believes Cohen’s more than capable of being a long-time pro like those players.

“Arden is a pro’s pro. He does everything you ask of him. He does it on the field, he does it off the field,” Wellner said. “As he gets his feet wet in the PLL with the players he’s going to be going against, [we’ll see that] the league is built for him.”

_{Feature photo courtesy of Notre Dame athletics}