Last fall, three Wilmington University student-athletes displayed their skills while representing their countries on the world stage.
Ella Royer, a junior on the Wildcat women’s lacrosse team, played for Canada in the Women’s World Box (Indoor) Lacrosse Championship in Utica, New York, during the Sept. 20 – 29 competition.
Toby Templeton, a first-year student on the Wildcat men’s lacrosse squad, also traveled to Utica as a member of the Australian team in the Men’s World Box (Indoor) Lacrosse Championship.
Meanwhile, Tung Lam “Stanley” Ho, a freshman forward on the soccer squad, represented Hong Kong, China, as a member of the U20 National Team at the AFC U20 Asian Cup 2025 Qualifiers from Sept. 23 – 30 in Doha, Qatar.
For all three student-athletes, it was an honor to be chosen to their national teams and an opportunity to measure their game against and learn from top-flight international competition.
WilmU junior Ella Royer looks to set up Canada’s offense in a game against Germany at the World Lacrosse Women’s Box Championship.
Royer, from Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada, helped her squad finish as the runner-up in the tournament, losing 10-7 to the United States in the championship game.
She says it was “a surreal feeling” to be chosen to represent her country in the first women’s World Box Lacrosse Championships. She calls her experience in Utica “life-changing.”
“Meeting and playing with people I have looked up to was an incredible thing,” she says. “Throughout the entire competition, the coaching staff was outstanding. The other women on my team taught me a lot as well. For two weeks, I was surrounded by the top Canadian players, and I made an effort to learn a few things from each of them.”
One of four captains on Coach Kevin Day’s squad, Royer has had a stellar career so far at WilmU. Last year, she was named the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Women’s Lacrosse Player of the Year after leading the conference and ranking fifth in all of NCAA Division II with 86 goals. She tacked on 22 assists for 108 points, ranking 11th in DII. A Behavioral Science major, she has a 3.70 grade point average.
Royer’s success on the field and in the classroom can be attributed mainly to a work ethic that “is second to none,” according to Day. “She is full speed all the time,” he says. “She’s been able to apply her years of box lacrosse experience to the outdoor game very well. She’s a true midfielder who is able to be very effective on both ends of the field while also excelling at draw controls on the center circle.”
For Templeton, the phone call that would send him to Utica was preceded by perhaps the longest 20 minutes of his life.
“Me and my best buddy were both trying out for the team,” he explains, “and we knew when the phone calls would be going out. We went to lunch and then went to a park and waited for the calls. He got his call that he had made the team, and I had to wait for what was a very long 20 minutes before the coach called me.”
The two of them then hurried home to celebrate with their families.
At 19, Templeton was one of the youngest Aussie box lacrosse roster members. A defender and face-off specialist, he has earned numerous accolades throughout his levels of play in his home country. He helped lead the Victorian Men’s Box U18 and National Team to the National Championships in 2023, as well as a runner-up finish in 2024.
In Utica, Templeton tallied three goals and an assist as the Australian squad finished 11th among 28 teams. Calling the eight-day experience “a blast,” he adds, “The competition was the best I’ve ever played against, and I had to adapt quickly.”
A Biology major, Templeton made an immediate impression on Wildcat Men’s Lacrosse Coach Christian Zwickert. “He’s a quick learner,” Zwickert says. “He missed two weeks of the fall season while he was with Team Australia, but he came in and learned everything on the fly in about a week. He’s got a great mindset, and he loves everything about Wilmington.”
“It was a big move,” Templeton says about coming to the US, “but I had the idea for quite a while that I wanted to play here.” He says he gets homesick sometimes, resulting in frequent calls to friends and family back in Elgin, Victoria. Meanwhile, his teammates have welcomed him into their social circles. “He’s soaking up everything he possibly can,” says Zwickert.
Ho, a Business Management major, took a leave of absence from the Wildcat soccer squad last fall to join the other 22 young men representing Hong Kong in Qatar. His squad finished third with a 1-2 record, and the 19-year-old forward scored a goal and an assist during a 2-0 win over Singapore.
Ho says the tournament was an “unreal experience,” marked by top-level players and facilities. “It was very hot,” he says, “but one stadium was air-conditioned, and all of them had world-class grass. Everything was very professional.”
Wildcat Coach Nick Papanicolas recruited Ho out of Rush Premier Sports Academy in Port St. Lucie, Florida, where he spent the last three academic years. He goes home to Chung, Hong Kong, during the summers. He has played soccer since he was 7 and hopes to enter the professional ranks eventually.
Ho returned to Wilmington and joined the Wildcat squad a day after the Qatar tournament ended. He played significant minutes in four games last season before taking his leave of absence and is continuing to adjust to a new system.
Says Papanicolas: “Stanley is a very talented player with the potential to be a great player.”
Like Royer and Templeton, he brought back memories of a unique experience that allowed all three to test their skills against some of the best athletes in the world.
– Bob Yearick
Want to read more in-depth stories? Explore our latest magazine articles.
