 During his final two years, he was a First-team All-American, and won the Schmeisser Award in his senior year for defensive player of the year.Merrill was the first player taken overall in the 2005 National Lacrosse League Draft by the Portland LumberJax, and in 2006 was named both the NLL's Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.During the 2009 NLL season, he was named a starter to the All-Star Game.