Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. Happy anniversary, Title IX.
Title IX turns 50 today. The landmark legislation, enacted on June 23, 1972, sought to end gender discrimination in educational activities or any activity that received federal aid, including sports.
This month, USA Lacrosse Magazine has highlighted how Title IX has helped grow the game of lacrosse, though it hasn’t always been easy and there’s still work to do.
Former UMass women’s lacrosse player Rachel Rollins fought to reinstate the program in 1990, using Title IX as a basis. The Minutewomen won, and Rollins is now the first Black women to serve as the U.S. attorney for Massachusetts. Emma Healy spoke with Rollins for the May/June issue. You can read the interview here.
Legendary coaches, including Cindy Timchal (Navy) and Chris Sailer (retired from Princeton), played before Title IX. They reflected on the past, present and future with Charlotte Varnes.
Though girls’ and women’s sports have grown under Title IX, teams are often coached by men. One notable exception? Women’s lacrosse. Coaches say that’s important.
2. The NLL has announced finalists for end-of-season awards.
The Colorado Mammoth has already taken the ultimate prize: the league championship. But there’s still hardware to hand out. The league revealed its top three finalists for all end-of-season awards, including the three biggest: Most Valuable Player, Rookie of the Year and Goaltender of the Year They are:
Most Valuable Player
Joe Resetarits – Forward, Albany FireWolves
Dhane Smith – Forward, Buffalo Bandits
Matt Vinc – Goaltender, Buffalo Bandits
Rookie of the Year
Reid Bowering – Transition, Vancouver Warriors
Patrick Dodds – Forward, Panther City Lacrosse Club
Jeff Teat – Forward, New York Riptide
Goaltender of the Year
Nick Rose – Toronto Rock
Matt Vinc – Buffalo Bandits
Dillon Ward – Colorado Mammoth
The winners will be announced next week. You can see the full list of award finalists here.
3. Take a look inside U.S. women’s training camp.
Sam Swart will suit up again for the Orange this fall — but in field hockey. The two-sport star showed off her versatility in training camp. Paige Petty is also ready to shine after leading Pitt to a successful first season in Division I, and Stony Brook star Ellie Masera also entered the fold. Read the full report here.
4. Lax For the Cure reaches a milestone fundraising goal.
This summer, more than 400 teams will compete in the 15th annual Lax For The Cure tournament. The biggest winner? Susan G. Komen For the Cure. The initiative will surpass $4 million raised since friendly rivals began teaming up to fight breast cancer in 2007. Justin Feil has more.
WHAT WE’RE READING
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Not all strides have happened equally under Title IX. Former Temple women’s lacrosse coach Tina Sloan Green was one of several voices who spoke about racial disparities in sports to the Associated Press.
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Lucas Newton of Corona del Mar (Calif.) went out on top, leading his team to its first-ever CIF Southern Section crown. He’s also the USA Lacrosse Magazine’s West Boys’ Player of the Year.
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Elena Torres of Foothill-Santa Ana (Calif.) scored 71 goals and led the Knights to a 21-1 record and a CIF Southern Section title. She can officially add USA Lacrosse Magazine West Girls’ Player of the Year to her resume, too.
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Guadalupe Oliva Escudero started playing lacrosse four years ago. This summer, she’ll star for the Argentinian national team at the world championship.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING
Adam Ghitelman is a two-way wizard. A brief look at his highlight-reel plays during Sixes camp.
And that shot?
— U.S. Men's National Team (@USAMLax) June 22, 2022
An absolutely missile from @adam8taylor. pic.twitter.com/GVUuuM6AhV
WHAT’S ON TAP
Gear up for the World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship, which begins next week, with a preview of an Australian team hoping to challenge the U.S. Also, Welsh standout and former Maryland women’s lacrosse player Laura Warren is readying for her sixth world championship. The journey back to Maryland included a torn ACL that the lacrosse community rallied to help her recover from.
Tickets are available for purchase here.