Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. The death of Lafayette freshman goalie McCrae Williams remained under investigation Tuesday.
Williams suffered a “major head injury” stemming from a fall before he died Monday, according to a letter from the headmaster of Noble and Greenough School, where he graduated in June. Police said they are trying to determine if alcohol played a role in Williams’ death. Authorities believe Williams was involved in a “chain of events” that began Saturday and ended with his death Monday afternoon.
“Obviously when you have a death like this, a kid this age, something’s going on, so nothing is out of play here,” Northampton County First Deputy District Attorney Terence Houck told The Morning Call.
Hundreds of Lafayette students, faculty and staff members gathered Tuesday night for a vigil on campus to mourn Williams’ death. Members of the lacrosse community took to social media to express their condolences for Williams’ family, as well as support for the teams at Lafayette and Noble and Greenough.
Rivals on the field, Brothers in life. Today we wore maroon & black in support of @LafayetteMLAX
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) September 12, 2017
RIP McRae Williams. pic.twitter.com/ejPuuaRTPU
Condolences to the family and friends of McCrae Williams, @LafayetteMLAX freshman who passed away Monday. pic.twitter.com/bXGsfGNZlm
— Lax Sports Network (@LaxSportsNet) September 12, 2017
Sad to hear about the loss of McCrae Williams. Love & prayers to his family & @LafayetteMLAX. Life is precious. I will play in your honor.
— Adam Ghitelman (@adam8taylor) September 12, 2017
Our thoughts & prayers to McCrae Williams' family, friends & @NoblesBVL community. Until we meet again #3 @FightingClams @LafayetteMLAX pic.twitter.com/zFQFx1dJ2R
— Governor's Lacrosse (@GovernorsLax) September 12, 2017
Our thoughts and prayers are with the @LafayetteMLAX @FightingClams @NoblesBVL and the Williams' family on their loss. We stand with you.
— Navy MLax (@navymlax) September 12, 2017
We are saddened to hear of the passing of McCrae Williams. Our thoughts & prayers go out to McCrae's family and friends...
— Harvard Lacrosse (@HarvardLacrosse) September 13, 2017
2. The National Lacrosse League is returning to Philadelphia after a three-year hiatus, the league confirmed Tuesday.
The former Philadelphia Wings operated from 1986-2014 before being relocated to New England and rebranded as the Black Wolves, leaving a rabid fan base bereft of professional indoor lacrosse. Commissioner Nick Sakiewicz moved the NLL’s front office to the Philadelphia area and was forthright in his intention to bring a franchise back to the city. The rumors will become reality Thursday with the formal announcement of the team, its name and its home arena — expected to be the Wings and Wells Fargo Center, respectively.
Comcast, which owns Wells Fargo Center, reportedly bought the franchise for $5 million, matching what Joe Tsai paid to finalize a team in San Diego last month. Both expansion teams will begin play in 2018-19.
Brodie Merrill, the last player to wear the captain’s C for the Wings, revealed that he had hoped to finish his NLL career in Philadelphia. And while the reigning NLL Transition Player of the Year is happy he landed with his hometown Toronto Rock, he joined others in welcoming Tuesday’s news. “We all hoped in the back of our minds this might happen,” Merrill said. “It’s really exciting to see it come to fruition.”
The @NLL just wasn't the same without a franchise in Philly!!#Welcomeback pic.twitter.com/5SvUP18NxS
— brandon miller (@Bmill35) September 12, 2017
BREAKING: The Philadelphia Wings are officially coming back to the @NLL. https://t.co/D6sd0gisv9 pic.twitter.com/a6xwlTjVBe
— The Crease Dive (@thecreasedive) September 12, 2017
3. The Peterborough Lakers defeated the New Westminster Salmonbellies 9-7 to even the Mann Cup best-of-seven series for Canada’s national Senior A box lacrosse championship at two games apiece Tuesday night. Turner Evans (Toronto Rock), Thomas Hogarth (Georgia Swarm) and Curtis Dickson (Calgary Roughnecks) scored two goals apiece, and Adam Jones (Toronto Rock) doled out four assists for the Lakers.
Peterborough goalie Evan Kirk (Saskatchewan Rush) made 49 saves and New Westminster goalie Alex Buque (Buffalo Bandits) made 40 saves in a defensive struggle. Kirk, who was yanked earlier in the series, has been a big reason why the Lakers have battled back from a 2-0 hole.
4. Major League Lacrosse player movement continued Tuesday, as the Atlanta Blaze signed attackman Tommy Palasek, who spent his first six MLL seasons with the New York Lizards. The Lizards will receive a compensatory fourth-round pick from Atlanta in the 2018 MLL Collegiate Draft. Palasek had 14 goals and eight assists in 11 games this season.
As a senior @TomPalasek was basically a coach to me as a freshman at Cuse, pumped to have the chance to play together with @AtlantaBlaze
— Kevin Rice (@kevinrice_2) September 12, 2017
Palasek might not be the only player New York loses to player movement. Defenseman Ryan Flanagan and attackman Matt Gibson filed with the league office Tuesday, as did Rochester Rattlers attackman Ned Crotty. As part of the policy, players with at least five straight seasons in MLL and an expiring contract can declare their intent to seek opportunities with other MLL teams.
5. Nick Myers, who in a 10-month span led the U.S. U19 men’s team to a gold medal and Ohio State to the NCAA championship game, signed a five-year contract extension that will keep him in Columbus through the 2022 season.
NEWS: Ohio State head coach @MyersJMZ has signed a contract extension with the #Buckeyes. More info at https://t.co/KaiSZFNuDp #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/JrT6UHAeYJ
— Ohio State Men's LAX (@OhioState_MLAX) September 12, 2017
6. Casey Powell will be inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame alongside eight others Sept. 23 in Hunt Valley, Md. From the September/October edition, Corey McLaughlin profiles a lacrosse life unlike any other.
7. The Team USA Fall Classic will pit the U.S. men’s training team against reigning NCAA champion Maryland and NCAA semifinalist Towson the weekend of Oct. 7-8. The Israeli national team also will participate in the event, which additionally includes a 9/11 Memorial Game featuring first responders from Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Virginia.
8. Jim Brown, the lacrosse and football legend, will be honored by Harlem Lacrosse with its inaugural Trailblazer Award at its annual benefit Sept. 28 in New York City.
WHAT WE’RE READING
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A Strawberry Mansion (Pa.) girls’ lacrosse player filed a federal class action lawsuit Tuesday accusing the School District of Philadelphia of racial discrimination.
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Ashland University in Ohio is adding women’s lacrosse as a varsity intercollegiate sport beginning in 2018-19. The Eagles compete in NCAA Division II as a member of the GLIAC.
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Richmond commit Jack Erwin probably could have played college football.
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING
Few lacrosse players — men or women — can wield a stick like Team USA’s Michelle Tumolo.
@MTumolo35 getting in on the #LowToHighChallenge from the GLE! #rip #LaunchII #Crux600 #PlayHuge pic.twitter.com/Jd6ogYfLyR
— STX Women's Lacrosse (@STXwlax) September 12, 2017
WHAT’S ON TAP
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A look at the state of the NLL with the success of its digital content and expansion strategies.
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A profile on incoming Hall of Famer Robyn Nye Wood, one of just three players in Virginia women’s lacrosse history to have her number retired.
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Our “Myth Busters” series resumes by examining the benefits of US Lacrosse membership extending well beyond simply insurance and a magazine.
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Game 5 of the Mann Cup at 10:30 p.m. ET.