CLEVELAND, Ohio – Troy Loper, a senior on the 2020 Cleveland State University lacrosse team, was selected in the National Lacrosse League Entry Draft Thursday evening. 

Loper, a forward in the box lacrosse game, was taken with the fourth pick of the sixth round by the San Diego Seals. He becomes the first-ever Viking graduate to be drafted into a professional lacrosse league. In keeping with the times, the NLL Draft was held virtually for the first time with coverage provided by B/R Live.

A California native, Loper spent his final two collegiate seasons with CSU after transferring into the program following the 2018 season. He played in nine career games, including six of seven in his curtailed senior campaign, while helping Cleveland State register its first winning season in program history in 2019.

Loper, along with dozens of his CSU teammates, has played multiple seasons in the National Collegiate Box Series during recent summers. In 2018, he was named the Most Valuable Player of the Colorado Collegiate Box Lacrosse League after leading the NCBS in assists (17) and finishing second in faceoff percentage (.596). He led the CCBLL in loose balls (33) and was fourth in points (35) while helping the Gold Miners to a 7-3 mark in the league. Loper duplicated his offensive output the following season, again notching 35 points in 10 games to be the top Viking scorer in the league.

Loper will have some familiarity with his new teammates as Cleveland State played against each of the Seals' top three selections during the past two seasons, as San Diego picked players out of Ohio State, Penn State and Denver in rounds 1-3.

The NLL is the longest-running professional lacrosse league and currently consists of 13 franchises across the United States and Canada with a 14th set to begin play in the 2021-22 season.