News

For the first time ever, the Women`s Professional Lacrosse League (WPLL) will be shown across ESPN networks this season. The 10-game regular season, which kicks off Sunday, June 2, will air on ESPN3 and the ESPN App. Postseason play will include the semifinals on ESPN3, with the championship game on Sunday, July 28, on ESPNU. This season, the WPLL will travel to five states and play at five of top lacrosse venues in the United States. [ESPN has always been a strong proponent of women`s athletics and this agreement will help us showcase the best female lacrosse players across ESPN platforms", said Michele DeJuliis, WPLL Founder and CEO. [In addition to working together to distribute our games, we will also be working with the espnW team to provide deeper editorial coverage of the league and the players. With top athletes like Taylor Cummings, Kylie Ohlmiller, Marie McCool and the addition of new players from the upcoming 2019 College Draft, we are thrilled to bring the fans the most competitive women`s lacrosse games that the world has ever seen", added DeJuliis. The 2019 WPLL Season kicks off on June 2, with a doubleheader - Pride vs. Fight and Command vs. Fire – at Gillette Stadium. Action continues on June 22, in Baltimore, followed by stops in Richmond, Va. (June 14 and 15), Philadelphia (July 6), and Long Island (July 20). [ESPN`s commitment and coverage of women`s sports is unprecedented, with more than 240 lacrosse matchups this season alone," said Dan Margulis, ESPN senior director of programming and acquisitions. [We are thrilled to be able to showcase the WPLL this season across ESPNU, ESPN3 and the ESPN App." Featuring the top post-collegiate women`s lacrosse players in the world, the Women`s Professional Lacrosse League gives players an opportunity to continue their playing careers well after graduation while also working to empower the next generation of talent through the WPLL Futures Program.

Editor`s Note: Everyone please welcome Michael Hazy, founder of Phantom Lacrosse and the Phantom Pocket, to Lacrosse All Stars. Michael raises some great points about learning the game in this article titled `Lacrosse: Does The Way We Teach It Work? Check out the Phantom Pocket so new players learn good form and improve. Everyone has beginner form when they start playing lacrosse. It`s natural. Think of the way everyone throws a baseball the first time. Starting with bad form is guaranteed, but what`s the big deal? Well if your first throw is bad, that`s ok, but if your thousandth throw is bad, you want to quit. Player demonstrating natural beginner form: a [bottom-hand pivot." Boys` youth programs commonly teach good form at the first practice and then tell players to improve on their own with wall ball. Players still throw, catch and shoot in practice, but without much focus on changing each player`s natural form to good form. Every other sport helps each player learn good form in practice because good form is not intuitive. Imagine the success rate if new golfers were expected to teach themselves how to swing after one lesson. Only a few players would succeed. Beginners can`t see the difference between natural form and good form when using a short pass. The difference between passing with a [bottom-hand pivot" and a [top-hand pivot" is too subtle.Player demonstrating [advanced bad" form. A [bottom-hand pivot" will never become good form without help. Good form is a completely different motion. WHY IS LACROSSE DIFFERENT? Lacrosse has a unique problem: we can`t teach good form in practice if everyone`s pocket throws differently. It`s like if hockey players all learned with sticks warped in different directions. For decades no solution existed other than fixing (and re-fixing) every pocket, which also meant someone had to be a competent stringer and spot when each player`s pocket went bad. Traditional lacrosse communities have parents, siblings and older teammates to fix pockets and teach good form outside of practice. This model still produces the strongest players today, but only a small number of youth coaches can maintain everyone`s pocket and teach good form by themselves. As lacrosse grew, this extra help didn`t grow with it. Also, new programs often had coaches who were inexperienced, didn`t string or who never even played lacrosse. Because teaching good form and fixing pockets require experience, one simple idea took over: [wall ball, wall ball, wall ball." We started expecting beginners to teach themselves good form on their own. (Maybe not your program, but lots of programs.) Unfortunately, players can`t learn good form by playing wall ball with their natural form. That just reinforces bad form until it`s almost impossible to change. Good form is a completely different motion. Add a bad pocket, and these players don`t have a chance. No amount of wall ball can make a bad pocket become good. Today we see more focus on good pockets, but still almost zero focus on the importance of teaching good form. It`s like if baseball emphasized using a round ball but never taught beginners how to throw one. Beginners need equipment that works, but without help they still throw and catch like beginners. Self-taught players go from natural form to [advanced bad." Players who learn good form become stars. Players demonstrating [advanced bad" form using a good pocket. LACROSSE ISN`T BROKEN SO WHY FIX IT? For a long time lacrosse had incredible growth. Today boys` youth lacrosse isn`t growing – it`s shrinking. 2017 was the first year ever that boys` youth participation was negative (-3.2%). (2018 data due in June.) More players quit than joined, and boys` youth is the biggest demographic. Girls` youth, HS and boys` HS still showed modest growth (+1.2%, +4.0% & +1.9%, respectively). Something different is happening in the boys` youth game. US Lacrosse asked players why they quit, and the top answer was that [it wasn`t fun anymore." That`s interesting because we often hear it`s because of single-sport specialization, pressure from parents or general declines in youth sports overall. Those are important considerations, but it might be most important to listen to what players are actually saying. What makes lacrosse fun? Think about what players (of every age) do before practice. We`re all ripping shots. Sometimes we throw a huge fake or a behind-the-back pass. I still remember how cool it was the first time I saw someone do an inverted one-handed cradle. These are the things that made us [practice" on our own because they`re fun. Banging a sidearm ripper off the crossbar is awesome even if you`re the only person who sees it. Player demonstrating the top-hand pivot that every advanced player uses. What`s not fun? Playing for a few years and never being able to do that. If you`re working hard but not improving, lacrosse isn`t fun – it`s frustrating. Especially if you have teammates who become stars because they`re getting extra help outside of practice. Players who have to teach themselves with wall ball (and whatever pocket they have) are most likely to quit after a few years because they think they`re bad at lacrosse. Instead of being bad at lacrosse, most of them just got bad advice. Today we`re seeing more of them quit than ever. The difference isn`t skill – it`s information. Players succeed if we give them the tools to succeed. WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT? This problem has been unaddressed for so long, that it`s hard to know where to start. We`ve all seen a player with form that made us think, [No one has enough time to fix that." The few resources that exist give conflicting advice that`s often incomplete. Plus most coaches don`t know how to string. How can we do it? It`s actually pretty simple. FIRST. Start watching your players` follow-through instead of watching the ball. Their follow-through tells us who has beginner form. If we watch the ball, we often conclude that a player`s form is good if their pass is caught or if their shot goes in. Once we start looking at follow-through, we can see that many (maybe all!) of our youth players still throw and shoot like beginners. Without help, they`re going to keep doing it until they quit. SECOND. Test players with an overhand shot from 5-10 yards. Ask them to follow through until their stick head touches the ground. Watch their form instead of the ball. Players with beginner form won`t get near the ground. They`ll bend and struggle to get close (maybe cheating by sliding their top hand down). Players with good form can easily touch the ground when they`re standing almost straight up. A slow motion video on your phone makes the difference even easier to see. The difference is where their stick pivots: beginners use a [bottom-hand pivot" and advanced players use a [top-hand pivot." Players using a bottom-hand pivot need help. Learning a top-hand pivot is the key to success in lacrosse. Once you can spot it, you`ll see every college and pro player does this. Players can only do it if all three things work: hand grip, hand spacing and bottom hand motion. All three have to be right or they physically can`t do it. It takes a little help to learn, but the first time a player throws with a top-hand pivot it`s like a light goes off in their head. They feel the added power they get for free by using a long motion that matches their body`s throwing mechanics. A top-hand pivot makes lacrosse fun, and the more a player practices with a top-hand pivot, the more fun it becomes. THIRD. I made a new type of pocket that only works with good form, so it`s much easier for players to break their natural bad habits and start improving. I did this to give every player the same opportunity to enjoy the game over a long career that I had. If I never learned good form, I would have quit after a few years, as most young players do today. Instead, learning good form let me overcome a physical disability, and I`m about to hit my 35th anniversary playing. Most adult players would say that lacrosse has made a positive impact on their lives. There`s something special about lacrosse. Every young player taking the field this spring deserves the chance to reach their goals. The more we teach good form early, the more players who will understand what makes our sport so great. I`ve made free videos that make teaching good form easy. The videos show the hand grip, hand spacing and bottom hand mistakes that prevent beginners from throwing correctly and how to help players transition to throwing like a pro. Combined with the Phantom Pocket, learning good form is even easier. The Phantom Pocket doesn`t let players use their natural beginner form (throwing or catching). The more a player`s form improves, the better the pocket works, because of its unique, patented design. It teaches good form - even when they`re practicing on their own. It`s game legal and it never changes. That`s why the Ohio Machine uses the Phantom Pocket at their youth clinics and why coaches and players are starting to use it around the world. Other pockets let a player throw like a beginner forever, and bad pockets guarantee it. The negative growth in the boys` youth game should be concerning to everyone. Maybe it`s time to reevaluate how we`re teaching them. We all want players who enjoy the game and improve, but they can`t teach themselves. The first time a player rips a shot with good form, they`ll never look back. Good form is what makes lacrosse fun, and when our players are having fun and improving, everyone wins. Phantom is partnering with a select number of teams in the US and Canada who want to stop throwing with natural form and start winning. Contact us atinfo@phantomlacrosse.com to learn more.

PHILADELPHIA, October 10, 2018 – Along with the recent relocation of NLL Productions from Oakville, Ontario to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the National Lacrosse League announced today the addition of three new members of the team to complement the upgraded, new space. The NLL Productions studio is now on-site at the NLL League office in downtown Philadelphia, allowing the staff to provide more behind-the-scenes content to fans from the league office and teams. Joining the NLL Productions staff are Renee Washington, Devan Kaney, and Richard Owens. Renee Washington Renee Washington, an On-Air talent, Producer, and Editor is a Columbus, New Jersey native with degrees from both La Salle University and Lehigh University. At La Salle, Renee studied Public Relations with a double minor in Spanish and Psychology while playing soccer and running track. She then received a Masters of Business Administration in Educational Leadership from Lehigh University. Renee`s time working in sports dates back to her tenure at Lehigh where she was a Graduate Assistant for the Women`s Soccer team. After attaining her M.B.A., for two years Renee then worked as a sports multimedia journalist and news anchor for Gatehouse Media and covered The Intelligencer, the Bucks County Courier Times, and the Burlington County Times. Renee most recently was a journalist, anchor, and host with SNJ Today as well as the host of her own show: South Jersey Speed. Devan Kaney Devan Kaney, originally from Villanova, Pennsylvania, will be joining Renee as an On-Air Host. Devan comes to the NLL from Newsy in Chicago, where she served as Host and Producer of the national network`s first morning news program for the past year. She previously worked for Sinclair Broadcast Group, Lionsgate, and William Morris Endeavor. Kaney received a Bachelor`s Degree in Communications and Media Studies from the University of Pittsburgh in 2013 and a Master`s Degree in Broadcast Journalism from American University in 2016. Throughout her time in school, Devan held various positions in sports broadcasting; interning for CBS Sports Network, NBC Sports Washington, and Comcast-Spectacor. Rich Owens Richard Owens is the NLL Production`s new Producer and Editor, a new position added by NLL Productions this season. Rich graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2014 with a degree in Print Journalism. After graduating, Rich worked for three years as an Associate Producer at NFL Films where he contributed to NFL Blitz, Hard Knocks, and The NFL Films Podcast. In 2016, Rich also created and operated a business that focused on improving the online presence of local small businesses. [We are excited to have Renee, Devan, and Rich be a part of the NLL Productions team to even further enhance our fan experience for the 2018-2019 season by elevating content, offering a depth of experience, and producing more content," said NLL Chief Marketing Officer Ashley Dabb.

[This is the most challenging thing I`ve ever experienced," says Paul Rabil. Lacrosse`s most visible athlete, and the first one to reap more than $1 million in endorsements, didn`t set out to create a direct competitor to the existing pro league, Major League Lacrosse (MLL). But that`s exactly what he and his brother Mike -- along with a cadre of sports and media investors -- are doing with Premier League Lacrosse (PLL), with an inaugural season kicking off next summer. [Starting our own league was not our first choice," he admits. [Unifying the game by creating an elevated professional lacrosse league was our top objective. But as any entrepreneur knows, getting to your ultimate goal will often involve alternate or unforeseen paths. You have to be opportunistic." Related: 6 Critical Steps to Succeeding in an Untapped Industry What led Rabil, called [the Lebron James of lacrosse" by the New York Times, to defy the status quo and launch an entirely new league? Let`s go back 20 years to when he first became obsessed with the game. [When I was 12, my neighbor gave me his backup stick, and I fell in love with the game pretty quickly," he recalls. [I think it was the combination of playing for a team collectively competing for a championship matched with the individual stylistic component of the game. I often tell people, `No stick is the same.`" Rabil parlayed his passion for lacrosse into competing at the highest levels, winning two national championships at powerhouse Johns Hopkins, being a three-time pro MVP and playing in three different world championships for Team USA (they defeated Canada this past July). [I`ve been really fortunate to be fully immersed in the sport both as an amateur and a professional," he says, [and coinciding with that, I`ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit." Image Credit: Red Bull That entrepreneurial spirit, it seems, is a necessity for anyone interested in playing lacrosse professionally at the moment. [When I graduated college in 2008, the average wage was -- and has been for MLL's existence -- in the range of $8,000 to $10,000," he says, [so most guys have jobs in finance, real estate, legal or entertainment and moonlight playing professional lacrosse." Rabil himself was no exception: [I had a job as an investment sales analyst for a real estate company in D.C. right out of school. I lived at home with my brother, a serial entrepreneur and investor, and we would drive up and down 495, take the HOV lane, and that`s where we built our financial and analytical chops." Related: How to Become a Millionaire by Age 30 Pretty quickly, Rabil ditched the real estate game and found a way to make lacrosse his full-time vocation: [Nine months after my career started in real estate, I decided to take a leap of faith and join a very small group of full-time professional players. What that entailed was endorsements, plus a camp and clinic business that supported our pro salaries." While Rabil and his fellow players maintained the dream of playing professional-level lacrosse full time, the financial realities of the existing league made that impossible. Add to that MLL`s infrastructure and operations issues, which have led to declining attendance and the occasional absence of necessities like locker rooms and showers, and the situation became untenable for Rabil. In fact, it led directly to the creation of PLL, the first league of its kind to be formed and owned by the players themselves. [We fully believe that in order to bring lacrosse to the next level, we need a league that puts players first," says Rabil. This means full-time salaries, healthcare, performance-based bonuses and equity. [The equity is very attractive to them, and it`s something no sports team league has ever done." Though MLL recently announcedthat its owners voted to raise its team salary cap by 51 percent, it could be too little too late. Related: Taking on Risk, Embracing Rejection and Other Startup Lessons From the Trenches Rabil is also cognizant of how the nature of sports celebrity is evolving: [We`re living in a world where the players are being celebrated first, even in team sports -- look at LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, Steph Curry and Tom Brady. They all have growing fan bases that are more and more agnostic to geo-affiliation." To that end, PLL is embracing new media and building a blueprint for its players to become sports stars. Their goal is to create an [immersive fan experience" via state-of-the-art TV and digital broadcasts, social media, innovative camera angles and the latest tech. As someone with 320,000 Instagram followers, a YouTube channel that earns 4.5M minutes watched every month, and a popular sports/entertainment/business-focused podcast, Rabil understands the importance of connecting with fans. Image Credit: Rabil Companies Perhaps the most impact PLL will have on the growth of the league and the sport of lacrosse will be that all games -- from the regular season to the all-star game to the championship -- will be broadcast live on the NBC family of networks, including 19 network broadcast games on NBC Flagship and NBC Sports, and 19 broadcast games on NBC Gold. Another aspect of PLL that Rabil is particularly excited about is its revolutionary tour-based model. Unlike traditional geo-based teams (New York Yankees, Green Bay Packers, etc.) the six-team, player-focused league -- Rabil assures us the game`s most elite players from around the world are joining the new league -- will play at weekend events in cities around the U.S. [We know we aren't as big as the `Big 4` team sports that own premium sports venues, creating geographic relevance," says Rabil, sounding more like a CEO than a pro athlete, [and as such we're optimizing the business so we can solve for those inefficiencies." Rabil considers the NCAA`s Final Four weekend the gold standard: [Every year it falls on Memorial Day weekend, where you have top teams across three divisions descend upon a major market city to play at a major professional venue competing for a championship. So what we said is, `Hey, why don't we adopt the Final Four model, put it on wheels and create the PLL as tour-based.`" Related: 5 Keys to Inspiring Leadership, No Matter Your Style As for the timing of the league`s launch, Rabil believes it couldn`t be better: [Lacrosse is booming. It`s the oldest sport in the U.S. -- it was created by Native Americans -- and it`s the only team sport in the country that has continued to grow in participation numbers over the last 15 years." With the proliferation of sports networks like NBC Sports, nationally televised lacrosse has gone from a once-a-year event featuring the college Final Four to having close to 100 college games shown every season. Even though all the pieces are falling into place, this hasn`t been an easy journey for Rabil. [There's conflict," he admits, [but I think a core characteristic of an entrepreneur is the ability to remain resolute. My fellow players and I know that for our game to grow, we've got to take the opportunity that's in front of us. And we feel like there's no better time to do that than now."

Rochester, N.Y. -- Terry and Kim Pegula are continuing to expand to their Upstate New York sports empire with the addition of a new lacrosse team in Rochester. The National Lacrosse League announced Thursday that it awarded an expansion franchise to the Pegulas, according to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. Rochester already has an NLL team, the Knighthawks, but it's relocating to Halifax, Nova Scotia next season. The Pegulas' new team will retain the Knighthawks name. The Pegulas also own the NLL Buffalo Bandits, the NFL's Buffalo Bills, the Buffalo Sabres NHL team and the American Hockey League's Rochester Americans. The NLL, founded in 1986, is growing for the first time in 10 years, the D&C said. The league will also add franchises in Philadelphia and San Diego this season. The Knighthawks are the second oldest franchise in the NLL, behind only the Buffalo Bandits, according to The Buffalo News. "This is what we consider a good day in the city of Rochester," Terry Pegula said, according to the News. "It will have the Knighthawks legacy. We're very proud to contribute again to the Western New York and Rochester community by keeping the team here." Kim Pegula grew up in Fairport, outside Rochester. Pegula Sports and Entertainment took over management of Rochester's Blue Cross Arena on Aug. 1. It's home to both the Knighthawks and Americans. Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren announced $18 million in improvements to the aging facility at the news conference about the Knighthawks' future, according to the D&C. Upgrades will include a new video scoreboard, improved locker rooms, better concession areas and new lighting and other technology. The Pegulas are contributing to the overhaul. PSE will spend $1.5 million, according to WHAM in Rochester. Another $16 million will come from state and local sources. The War Memorial in Syracuse, home of the AHL's Syracuse Crunch, is currently in the midst of an $8.5 million renovation project. The county approved $4.5 million in bonds for the project with the rest of the money coming from the state and new surcharges on tickets. Upgrades include a new scoreboard, marquees, video screens and suites.

There was plenty of hard-hitting, taunting and questionable play-calling on the first Sunday of the NFL regular season, and that doesn`t even include what happened on the field. Not only did the NFL fail in the offseason to resolve a festering 2-year-old problem with pregame protests, but the league has now reportedly given up entirely on requiring players to stand for the national anthem this year. The result was a game day that looked like a replay from 2017. Two Miami players took a knee for the national anthem, President Trump tweeted anti-NFL remarks and former quarterback Colin Kaepernick dominated the discussion. [Wow, NFL first game ratings are way down over an already really bad last year comparison," the president tweeted Sunday. He was referring to Thursday night`s NFL opener featuring the Philadelphia Eagles and the Atlanta Falcons. [Viewership declined 13%, the lowest in over a decade. If the players stood proudly for our Flag and Anthem, and it is all shown on broadcast, maybe ratings could come back? Otherwise worse!" Thursday Night Football`s contest on Fox suffered a 13 percent drop from the first game of the 2017 season, a decline attributed in part to a one-hour weather delay. Meanwhile, Kaepernick refused to yield the spotlight, first by starring in a Nike ad released last week, then by cheering Miami Dolphins wide receivers Kenny Stills and Alfred Wilson for kneeling during the anthem before Sunday`s game. [My Brothers continue to show their unwavering strength by fighting for the oppressed! They have not backed down, even when attacked and intimidated," Kaepernick tweeted. [Their courage will move the world forward!" Efforts to resolve the protest issue bogged down after the NFL Players Association balked at the policy overhaul released May 23 that required players to [stand and show respect for the flag and anthem" or face fines. In July, the NFL announced that it had placed the policy on hold in order to discuss the issue with the NFLPA, but ESPN`s Adam Schefter cited league sources Sunday who said that no policy change would be made for the season. The only silver lining Sunday for the NFL was that there were far fewer kneelers in Week 1 than at any time in 2017. Aside from the two Dolphins, it appeared that no other players had taken a knee as of Sunday afternoon. Why fewer players took knees is unclear, but it could be the payoff for the NFL`s $89 million social justice package adopted by team owners in March, a deal negotiated with Players Coalition leaders Malcolm Jenkins and Anquan Boldin. The drop-off could also be a reaction to the cautionary tale of Eric Reid, the free-agent safety who has yet to be signed after his kneeling and vocal support in 2017 for Kaepernick, who has not played since the 2016 regular season. Like Kaepernick, Reid has filed a grievance with the NFL. At the same time, Reid has yet to draw the kudos, honors and Nike deal that have followed Kaepernick, who played in a Super Bowl and enjoyed a far higher profile than most other players. Kaepernick`s image on the left as a civil rights icon grew as the star of Nike`s two-minute ad released Monday, which put the protest controversy back in the spotlight days before the start of the regular season. Reaction to the ad has been mixed. Advertising research firm Edison Trends said the sportswear giant`s online sales grew 31 percent over Labor Day weekend despite bashing on social media, including shots of customers destroying their Nike gear. [Both this year and last year, online sales of Nike products across the web hit a low point on Sunday of Labor Day weekend, rising again on Monday and Tuesday. But this year, they climbed 31% between Sunday and Tuesday, besting 2017`s 17%" increase over the same two-day period, Edison wrote. On the other hand, Nike stock plummeted from $82 to $79 a share after the ad was released, resulting in a loss of over $5 billion in market capitalization. It has yet to rebound to its pre-Labor Day levels. In addition, a Morning Consult brand analysis released Thursday found that Nike`s favorability dropped by double digits after the Kaepernick ad was released, declining across every demographic, including Nike customers, black consumers and millennials. [Before Kaepernick was revealed as the face of Nike`s campaign, only 2 percent of Americans reported hearing something negative about Nike," said Morning Consult. [After the launch, that jumped to 33 percent. As the negative buzz set in, consumer sentiment followed, with favorability and purchasing consideration dropping." A plurality of 38 percent said they saw the ad as a publicity stunt, compared with 32 percent who said it was to recognize Kaepernick, but only 26 percent said the ad campaign would cause them to watch fewer NFL games. At least one university, the College of the Ozarks, dropped its Nike uniforms last week in response to the ad campaign, which features a photo of Kaepernick with the caption [Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything." [In their new ad campaign, we believe Nike executives are promoting an attitude of division and disrespect toward America," college President Jerry C. Davis said in a statement. [If Nike is ashamed of America, we are ashamed of them. We also believe that those who know what sacrifice is all about are more likely to be wearing a military uniform than an athletic uniform." The mayor of Kenner, Louisiana, last week banned the purchase of Nike products for use in the city`s parks facilities.