Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. The lacrosse world is coming together for PLL attackman Chris Bocklet.
Bocklet, 31, has been hospitalized after suffering a severe head injury sustained in a longboarding accident. He was moved from an intensive care unit to a trauma unit Sunday and is under 24-hour supervision. He is in stable condition, according to his sister, Casey, who has been posting updates on Instagram.
Casey Powell organized a GoFundMe campaign in support of the Bocklet family, which has more than 700 donors as of Sunday night. They’ve raised more than $73,000.
2. The community is also coming together to support college assistants in need.
Organized by Inside Lacrosse CEO Terry Foy, the Assistants’ Assistance Fund was created to assist low and unpaid college coaches, “especially DI men’s and women’s assistants who typically rely on working camps, clinics, tournaments and prospect days to earn thousands of dollars in the summer and fall.” The pandemic has made that either difficult or impossible.
An initial fundraising goal of $5,000 was met within 59 minutes on Jan. 1. As of Sunday night, the GoFundMe is approaching $45,000.
3. It’s a fresh start in 2021. But let’s reflect on the top lacrosse moments of 2020.
With a special thanks to Nelson Rice for digging back into the archives and putting together a timeline of the year’s best lax moments, we closed 2020 by celebrating the positives. From Charlotte North’s jaw-dropping trick shot on Jan. 22 to the PLL-MLL merger on Dec. 16, we break it all down.
Check it out here.
4. We honored the best of the best in Division III lacrosse.
Last week, we named the US Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Division III Men’s and Women’s All-Americans. The thirteen student-athletes on each list represent some of the best from Division III, which we all hope plays a full season in the spring.
Check out the men here and the women here.
5. To go hand in hand with the All-Americans, we named Preseason Players of the Year.
Mac Bredahl from Tufts has the potential to be one of the Jumbos’ all-time greats, according to coach Casey D’Annolfo. He was on pace for a 101-point regular season before COVID hit, and Tufts is expecting big things from him in the spring.
Jane Earley from Middlebury burst onto the scene as a freshman and netted 14 goals during the Panthers’ NCAA title run in 2019. She had 12 goals in three games last year, and like Bredahl, the sky is the limit for her in 2021.
WHAT WE’RE READING
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Let’s celebrate the US Lacrosse Impact Athletes from 2020 who helped make the lacrosse world — and the world at large — a better place.
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In the final Behind the Whistle blog post from the IWLCA in 2020, the organization looks back at six of the best things ever written for the site.
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LaxCon is going fully virtual on Jan. 15-16. It’s going to be a completely immersive experience. Be sure to register before it’s too late.
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Bob Chavez of Inside Lacrosse catches up with Jake Steinfeld as he reflects on how he founded Major League Lacrosse.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING
The latest “State of the League” is here from Paul Rabil and the PLL with more information on the big merger.
ALL NEW STATE OF THE LEAGUE IS HERE. @PaulRabil talks
— Premier Lacrosse League (@PremierLacrosse) December 31, 2020
2020 Bubble
MLL Merger
PLL in 2021 pic.twitter.com/DYHTLO9FLG
WHAT’S ON TAP
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More on Chris Bocklet's injury.