Lax For Leukemia Tournament This Saturday
Many of nation's elite programs and national team in action
Sept. 27, 2005

There will be no scores posted or any official stats kept, but this Saturday's lacrosse action at the St. Paul's School in Maryland will be important to a lot of teams and countless individuals. In between the lines, teams of varying strengths will find out where they stand for the coming season. Some of the youngsters on hand will find out what big-time lacrosse is all about and, with the money raised by sponsorships and fans, hopefully find a cure for their life-threatening illness.

Twelve teams - 10 Division I programs, one Division III squad and the U.S. National team - will take part in the Price Modern Lacrosse for Leukemia event, a fall-ball tournament with a philanthropic angle. For the $5 admission charge, fans will not only be able to watch a selection of the top players and programs in the nation, but also contribute to finding a cure for childhood leukemia.

Lacrosse for Leukemia will celebrate its seventh anniversary this Saturday after beginning its run in 1998 (last year's schedule was canceled due to poor field conditions). The tournament started when Lois Brooks, a former development member for the Maryland Chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and former Loyola head coach (and current Maryland skipper) Dave Cottle came together and organized the first event.

"We asked, `How do we get something together to help some people,' and the coaches took it one step further," said Vince Fiduccia of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. "We try and put together a high quality field with some local teams. It raises much-needed funds while giving coaches a chance to evaluate while playing in game situations."

One of the teams taking part is Washington College, the only Division III entrant, and a program trying to rebound from their 2004 season. Well, rebound for them, anyway. Despite a solid 10-5 record against a challenging schedule, the Shoremen did not make the NCAA tournament for just the fifth time in the last 26 years. Head coach J.B. Clarke hopes to use Saturday's games against a pair of Division I teams to ascertain the development of up-and-coming players and figure out what needs to be tinkered with as the spring approaches.

"You get better by playing better teams," said Clarke, who starts his eighth season with Washington College. "Villanova and UMBC will be a real challenge for us and expose any weaknesses we may have. We'll see how some of our freshmen and sophomores are doing and we'll have a lot of evaluation to see what we'll need to recruit."

The brief fall ball window in Division III is a key way for teams like Washington College to gauge its status. Because they are not allowed to have training programs or contact with their players over the winter - which is actually a longer hiatus than the gap between the last game of the spring and fall-ball - this short non-traditional season is of great importance to DIIIs, and playing some stiff competition can pay dividends down the stretch.

"We've done well in the past and I've never felt like we were beat up or shouldn't come back," said Clarke. "This a tremendous learning experience for our team. It's good for our school and our lacrosse program and anytime you can do something for childhood leukemia, it's a good thing."

Evaluation will not be limited to Washington College, as national powers such as Loyola, Johns Hopkins, Towson and Penn State among others will all be in action. But the busiest evaluator at the event is sure to be John Desko.

Not only will Desko have to keep an eye on his regular team, a Syracuse squad hoping to return to its final four ways, but he will also be expected to fine-tune the U.S. National team, which he is also coaching this year.

As if this workload wasn't enough, Desko is also the coach of the only two teams playing three games on the day. Syracuse and TeamUSA play an unscheduled scrimmage at 8 a.m. before the Orange battle Towson at 10 a.m. and Penn State at noon. The National team will take on Loyola and Hopkins in the other sessions.

You won't find any of the coaches or players grumbling about the competition or the work that needs to be done on the field, however. Not with their honorary captains walking or riding along the same sidelines.

As a way to brighten a sick child's day while reminding everyone of the less fortunate youngsters out there, a member of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society youth ambassadors program will be paired with each of the teams as a captain. "They are just finishing treatment or are still under treatment and the teams will play in honor of these children," said Fidducia.

There is no other place in the country than Baltimore where lacrosse could be a vehicle to raise money for a good cause, according to Fidducia, who compared the unique passion for the sport to hockey's Beanpot in Boston. Lacrosse's popularity in the city, combined with the fact that many lacrosse alums settle and work in the city, makes it an ideal place for sponsorships and fan support.

"Both sides get something out of this," said Fidducia. "This is the only place in the country where this could happen."

2005 Price Modern Lacrosse for Leukemia St. Paul's School, Baltimore, Md. Saturday, October 1, 2005

10:00 a.m.
Field 1: Loyola vs. Team U.S.A (Stadium)
Field 2: Air Force vs. John Hopkins
Field 3: Villanova vs. Washington College
Field 4: Syracuse vs. Towson
Field 5: Penn State vs. UMBC
Field 6: Albany vs. St. John's

12:00 p.m.
Field 1: Team U.S.A vs. John Hopkins (Stadium)
Field 2: Albany vs. Loyola
Field 3: Penn State vs. Syracuse
Field 4: UMBC vs. Washington College
Field 5: St. John's vs. Villanova
Field 6: Air Force vs. Towson