Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. Lyle Thompson of the Georgia Swarm was the target of insensitive remarks at a Philadelphia Wings game Saturday.
The Wings’ PA announcer Shawny Hill said, “Let’s snip the ponytail right there,” to which Thompson responded after the game alleging fans would “scalp” him.
The lacrosse community came to Thompson’s support, denouncing the actions, including the NLL, Wings, US Lacrosse and Tewaaraton Foundation.
Hill apologized on Twitter as national outlets also picked up the story. Stay tuned as more develops.
League scores for Week 5 were as follows:
Georgia Swarm 13, Philadelphia Wings 11
Toronto Rock 11, Colorado Mammoth 10
New England Black Wolves 16, Calgary Roughnecks 10
Saskatchewan Rush 14, Vancouver Warriors 10
San Diego Seals 12, Rochester Knighthawks 10
2. LaxCon was a hit this weekend in Philly, offering something for everyone in the lacrosse community. The event drew 7,385 participants, including a record 2,915 for Saturday’s Fan Fest at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
One of the biggest highlights was a keynote address from two-time Olympic gold medalist Briana Scurry of the U.S. women’s soccer team, who shared her story of wanting to be an Olympian since she was a little girl watching the “Miracle on Ice” hockey game in 1980.
To LaxCon, Scurry brought her gold medals from the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Her journey also included the memorable 1999 FIFA World Cup, with the U.S. playing against China in the final game before more than 90,000 fans at the Rose Bowl in California.
In her speech, she noted the impact of all the key “sculptors” in her life who helped her dream come true, specifically identifying her high school coach David Tank, college coach Jim Rudy and U.S. soccer team’s goalie coach Tony DiCicco.
“It’s all about your attitude,” she told the audience. “Everyone who coaches and teaches is a sculptor, so ask yourself, are you sculpting for greatness? You are the steward of their dreams. Be the one that they remember.”
Check out more highlights below:
3. The U.S. men’s national team received their World Championship rings Friday night at #LaxCon2019 for its thrilling 9-8 win over Canada in the 2018 FIL Men’s World Championship in Netanya, Israel. Check them out!
4. The Tewaaraton Foundation announced Friday that Feffie Barnhill is the 2019 Spirit of Tewaaraton award winner.
After earning 15 letters at Ursinus, she’s had her hand in all levels of the game, leading high school, college and national teams while also serving on the US Lacrosse Board of Directors and as the first vice president of the USWLA.
Plus, former Delaware star Karen Emas Borbee and former North Carolina standout Tom Sears are the 2019 Tewaaraton Legends.
Emas Borbee still holds the NCAA record for goals per game while winning three national titles, and Sears was a two-time national champion while twice earning goalie of the year honors.
5. The MLL announced Friday an extension of its partnership with Krossover, which provides high-level analytics, including team and player performance insights.
“We are thrilled to be extending our relationship with Major League Lacrosse,” said John Mathew, General Manager of Stack Sports. “MLL has long been a leader in the industry, driving growth in the sport. Krossover is excited to continue to be a part of that growth and to leverage our video technology to benefit of all of the MLL’s member teams.”