Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:

1. The University of Utah soon begins its first varsity men’s lacrosse season; historic as the Utes represent a rare western expansion at the NCAA Division I level. US Lacrosse Magazine captured an all-access look at Utah.

2. Team-by-team previews of the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Preseason Top 20 began rolling out this week.

On the men’s side, coach Joe Amplo literally has reached into his bag of motivational tricks for No. 20 Marquette. Attackman Michael Sowers could fuel a breakout for No. 19 Princeton. Meanwhile at Notre Dame, could the Irish be suffering a personnel loss?

On the women’s side, a strong returning roster may give No. 20 Denver a tougher time selling its role as an underdog. No. 19 Notre Dame likewise boasts returning talent, including All-ACC goalie Samantha Giacolone, as it seeks a return to the NCAA tournament after a rare miss last season.

3. Lacrosse has been replete with small crease attackmen, but common perception has defensive units stocked with big lumbering-types. U.S. men’s team defenseman Joe Fletcher explained how ignoring the optics represents good fundamental strategery for those that carry the long stick.

4. U.S. men’s indoor team coach Regy Thorpe has been named general manager and head coach of the National Lacrosse League’s expansion franchise in New York.

More from the NLL in this week’s notebook.

Georgia Swarm forward Lyle Thompson last night posted additional comments about the comments he endured during his team’s Saturday night game against the Philadelphia Wings at Wells Fargo Center. He tallied six points in Georgia’s 13-11 win, which kept Philadelphia winless on the season.

pic.twitter.com/jiNsD47yyQ

— LYLE THOMPSON (@lyle4thompson) January 16, 2019

The Wings have fired Shawny Hill as PA announcer for their games.

5. Major League Lacrosse announced a partnership with the inaugural Crown Lacrosse Classic, a four-team college event set for March in Charlotte.

WHAT WE’RE READING

• Syracuse.com outlined an interesting change to the ACC men’s lacrosse tournament format.

• Off Tackle Empire previewed Big Ten men’s lacrosse.

• Deutsche Welle, a German media outlet, reported on efforts by Uganda players to inspire kids in that country to play lacrosse.

• Philly.com visited the US Lacrosse Sports Medicine Symposium during the Friday of LaxCon and reported on the important topic of mental health care for players.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

Georgia Swarm forward Lyle Thompson joined Lax Sports Network to talk about the Wells Fargo Center public address announcer’s comments and those of a few fans during Saturday night’s game against the Philadelphia Wings.

.@lyle4thompson speaks with class, grace, and an important message in interview with LSN about the events in Philadelphia over the weekend. Watch free on the LSN app or here: https://t.co/QnskLBOuan pic.twitter.com/uvyrMtJZ6U

— Lax Sports Network (@LaxSportsNet) January 15, 2019

WHAT’S ON TAP

• Our all-access feature on the Utah varsity men’s team continues today.

• We’ll have detailed previews of the No. 18 Georgetown men and No. 18 Colorado women as part of the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Preseason Top 20 profiles.

• Subscribe today to our weekly email newsletter and stay connected to each week’s top lacrosse stories. The newsletter goes out every Thursday, usually.

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