Shea Keethler earned nearly a dozen lacrosse awards when he played at Upper Arlington High School. But the honor that meant the most to him wasn’t for his athletic success.
The faceoff specialist’s high school team uses the numbers 31 and 32 to honor two Upper Arlington lacrosse alumni who were diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer. Kyle Vesper, one of the people the team honors, attended some lacrosse games during Keethler’s sophomore year before Vesper died during the playoffs.
Keethler won an award dedicated to Vesper during his senior season because of his community commitment. He ran camps to give back, something Keethler said helped form his love for lacrosse as a kid.
“I haven’t had any of the kids be as emotional,” said Richard Vesper, Kyle’s father who gives the award. “He walked out that night with a bunch of awards and he grabbed me after the entire program and said, ‘This one meant the world to me.’”
Keethler was voted lacrosse team captain in his final two years at Upper Arlington, something rarely seen in the town. His first three seasons as part of Maryland men’s lacrosse weren’t easy, though.
Keethler played sparingly during the Terps’ championship run in 2022. The then-freshman was ready to take on a larger role in the next two seasons, but never got the chance. He was stuck behind All-American Luke Wierman and played just one game with more than two faceoffs.
Keethler never wavered. He now leads Maryland at the X and ranks top-25 nationally in faceoff percentage. His climb up the Terps’ depth chart mirrors the obstacles he overcame as a kid.
“He always was coming from a battling situation,” Keethler’s father, Bill, said. “That’s just all he knows.”
Taking initiative from a young age
The Ohio native was frequently teased about his reading in school. Marco Landolfi, Keethler’s lifelong friend, said their classmates picked on the pair when teachers sounded out words to them.
“You’re just learning in a different way, and you think a different way than them,” Keethler said. “Once I figured out, ‘Oh, this is how I think,’ then I was able to excel.”
Keethler and Landolfi both have a learning disability. In middle school, Keethler, who has dyslexia, was part of a Wilson’s Language Training program — a structured plan to help dyslexic students build reading skills. He wanted to take new classes the upcoming academic year, but couldn’t since his group didn’t complete all the requirements.
The middle schooler then asked his school’s administration to let him attend summer school to stay on track.
He had a new instructor over the summer, one he had to grow to become comfortable with again. The faceoff specialist pored over his lessons and tests, and soon earned his program certification.
“He has his moments where he breaks down, but he literally just puts his head down and just keeps working,” said Kim, Keethler’s mother. “He just works and he never gives up.”
Keethler was honored at middle school graduation as one of three students who earned an A each semester.
“People were like, ‘Oh, I didn’t know you were really successful in school. I thought you just played sports,’” Keethler said. “It was kind of a weird moment for my parents, too, to be like, ‘No, he really tries in school, too.’”
“A never-ending engine”
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and living in the Midwest, not a lacrosse hotbed, Keethler lagged in college recruiting.
Determined, he made a notebook with Division I coaches’ emails and reached out weekly. The former Midwest Player of the Year sought large schools that didn’t have a clear faceoff specialist.
Maryland — which he admired for its “be the best” mentality — didn’t reach out until a bit later than the rest of his graduating class, Maryland coach John Tillman said.
“[Upper Arlington] would play teams and some of those guys were good, but we were trying to see him against the very, very best,” Tillman said.
That summer, Keethler went to faceoff clinics in Cleveland and New Jersey on consecutive weekends. He knew a professional lacrosse player connected with the Terps’ faceoff coach was running sessions.
“With not really any practice after football season that kind of was my make or break,” Keethler said. “My dad kind of sat me down before and he goes, ‘If you do bad, it’s over. If you do well, probably have a chance.’”
Keethler impressed in the workouts. Tillman called him months later to offer a roster spot after Keethler won nearly every faceoff and scored goals against a strong opponent at the start of his senior season.
Tillman quickly set up a call with an academic advisor after first speaking with Keethler. The advisor gave Keethler information about accommodations and how he could transfer his Individualized Education Program to Maryland.
He committed to the Terps in March of his senior year of high school.
Keethler is set to graduate from Maryland with a finance degree and a near 4.0 GPA. He won the NCAA men’s lacrosse Elite90 last season for exceptional achievements of student athletes.
Landolfi called Keethler the hardest worker he’s ever met.
“Everyone’s got hard days. Shea had just as many — if not more — than everybody else with all the other stuff going on in his life,” Landolfi said. “But the kid’s just got a never-ending engine.”
