Every single day of the season, twice a day, the Adelphi men’s lacrosse team had to punch in a four-digit code to enter their Garden City locker room.

“0526” was what the Panthers agreed should be this year’s digit combo. Why?

Because May 26 was the date on the NCAA Division II schedule for the national championship game. And Adelphi’s players wanted the daily reminder that that’s where they expected to be. Where they needed to be.

“We manifested it to happen, because we’ve been so close for a few years now,” junior Nick O’Shea said. “So it was something that every day, we worked hard with that day in mind.”

And now, that date is going on some championship rings.

Thanks in part to two former local stars, the Panthers were indeed still playing on May 26. Competing at the mammoth Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, the home of the Eagles, Adelphi rallied from a four-goal second half deficit and beat Lenoir-Rhyne, 12-10.

Dylan Renner, the senior goalie for Adelphi who graduated from Mineola High School, was once again a star, making 15 saves in keeping the Panthers in the game, until the offense kicked into gear.

And junior O’Shea, who grew up in New Hyde Park, continued his solid season, taking nine faceoffs and playing all-around solid midfield for Adelphi, as it won its first national title since 2001.

“You talk about those two guys, and those are absolutely two of our biggest leaders on the team,” said Adelphi head coach Gordon Purdie.

“It’s so crazy to think that all the work we put in, it finally all paid off,” Renner said. “Eleven years before that day, almost to the day, I was in Philly, at that stadium watching the lacrosse championship game as a fan. So then to be there, with my team, and win it, it was just surreal. Totally surreal.”

Renner’s journey to becoming the best goalie in Division II began in Mineola, where he learned to love lacrosse at an early age. He had always been an attack, scoring goals, but a travel coach named Pat Welsh suggested to him when Renner was 9 that he switch to goalie.

“My Mom (Joy) was definitely against it; she said, ‘There’s no way he’s playing goalie; it’s too dangerous,'” Renner recalled with a laugh. “But Pat said to us, look, he’s going to be great; this is the best decision you’ll ever make in your life.

“I saw him last week at a Mineola alumni game, and he comes up to me and says “I was right, right?” Renner said. “And I said ‘absolutely you were!'”

After one varsity season at Mineola (his senior year in 2020 was wiped out by Covid), Renner went to LIU-Brookville and redshirted his freshman season.

Looking for a different challenge, he transferred to Adelphi and had the best defensive save percentage in the country in 2022. This year, Renner allowed only 7.70 goals per game.

“You don’t meet too many people like Renner, on or off the field,” O’Shea said. “He’s one of a kind. Such a great leader for us, always being positive, always being encouraging.
“When he talks, everyone on the team listens.”

Purdie cited Renner’s accountability as a big part of his leadership.

“Players at all positions make mistakes over the course of a game, and no one notices, but when a goalie makes a mistake, it stands out,” Purdie said. “Dylan always is the first player to take responsibility, and he inspires the other kids to be their best.”

O’Shea was born and raised in New Hyde Park but played varsity for five seasons at Sewanhaka, where he was zoned to go to school.

He was familiar with Adelphi from going to basketball camps there as a kid, and he was recommended to Purdie and Adelphi by legendary NYIT coach Jack Kaley, who passed away in 2021.

“I knew that the standards were really high at Adelphi, and I loved that everyone knew we could win a championship,” O’Shea said. “And since I’ve gotten here, everybody was committed to that goal.”

O’Shea has played a variety of positions for the Panthers, including faceoff man and offensive middie, before becoming a defensive middie this season. He scored six goals and added three assists in 2024.

Purdie reached for a chess analogy to describe his importance.

“In lacrosse sometimes you need a rook, or a knight, to do one specific thing, but Nick  became a Queen for us, doing everything we needed him to do, and multiple positions for us and all very well.”

The championship game was full of drama for Adelphi; having lost to the North Carolina school earlier in the year, the Panthers knew they’d have a tough battle. Trailing by two at the half, then by four, 8-4 in the third, Adelphi rallied to pull away.

Now, their rings, with the inscription “0526” on them, will be presented to the players at a ceremony in late September.

For Renner, who will return for one more year as a super senior, and O’Shea, the moments after the game are unforgettable.

“Those 30 minutes after the game were the best moments of my life,” O’Shea said. “Everyone was so emotional, so tired, but so happy.”