Wolverines, Hokies and Volunteers showcase talent, growth of College Club lacrosse in Blacksburg While most of the lacrosse fans in my area made short drives last weekend to see top 10 Division I programs compete, I traveled south to catch the other major college top 10 action, in the USLIA. The games I saw provided an interesting change of pace from the regular D-I game of the week and allowed me to see other teams and levels of the game. And overall, I was very impressed. In an exciting weekend of action involving USLIA teams #7 Michigan, #8 Virginia Tech, and #9 Tennessee, the Wolverines won the unofficial first place award by virtue of beating both the Hokies of Virginia Tech and the Vols of Tennessee (How often do you hear those three schools in a lacrosse article?). On each day from Friday through Sunday, two of the three would play each other while the other would play an unofficial game against the Roanoke Men's Club Team. The action started off with a bang on a cold Friday night between Virginia Tech and Tennessee. Much to the delight of the 200+ Tech fans in attendance, Hokie attackman Joel Houck scored 1:06 into overtime to win the game 12-11. When asked how he made the shot and his reaction to winning the game, he simply said, "I was a little jittery but I got the ball and shot it...I'm really too happy to say anything right now." The intense game was filled with streaks and lead changes. Tennessee opened up a 5-2 lead, but Tech came back and led 9-7. After a fourth-quarter comeback, the Vols were able to put the game into overtime before falling short. This game gave me a good first impression of top level college club lacrosse . The general talent level was not that of top Division I programs, but these were two teams stacked with excellent lacrosse players. The stick-skills and plays run by the offenses were top-notch. The defenses seemed a little slow on their slides at some points, but overall both teams were good defensively. Although they started out with a sloppy game late that night against Roanoke, I was even more impressed with the Michigan team. They only won 11-8, but in their sub par play I could see that they were a quality team. After that slow start the first night, the Wolverines went on to beat Tech 11-10 on Saturday and Tennessee 15-11 on Sunday. Michigan is an excellent team and one of the top five club teams in the country. One of their leading scorers is attackman Kevin Chan, who comes from the lacrosse factory of Manhasset, NY. This powerhouse has produced All-Americans such as Kevin Healy (G, Maryland), and Conor and Dan Denihan of Hopkins. The Wolverines have an experienced coach, John Paul, who shows an excellent commitment to the team and a desire to win. Coach Paul is a Michigan man, having competed for the Wolverines in the late 80's. In 1989, he and the Wolverines were two goals away from beating the Michigan State varsity team that reached the Division I NCAA tournament. The Spartans were led by Andy Mueller, All-American and later NLL All-Pro. Much has been said in recent years about the growth of lacrosse in the NCAA, or lack thereof. Division I Lacrosse games are rapidly attracting more and more TV exposure and attendance. However, we add fewer programs to Division I, than we lose each year. Due to Title IX and other constraints, some schools have been forced to cut their varsity lacrosse programs. Michigan State and New Hampshire are the most notable losses of great programs. The number of club lacrosse programs, however, is rapidly increasing. Club programs are not affiliated with the NCAA or supported by the school, so Title IX, NCAA regulations and the university's scholarship and athletic department economics are ever an issue. Competition and organization in Collegiate Club Lacrosse has also improved a great deal over the last few years. There used to be no real national championship tournament and no centralized governing body for club lacrosse. After the USLIA recently gained control over collegiate club competition, rankings, conferences, and the season-ending tournament have been ameliorated dramatically. Club programs are now taken seriously, and so they now have coaches that are serious about winning. The stereotype of a college club team drinking a lot of beer and playing every game on a hangover simply does not apply anymore. These are some excellent lacrosse teams. Brigham Young, by far the best team in the USLIA, could compete with any team in Division I outside the top 20. You have my word. And speaking of my word, let's forget what I said last week about Duke winning it all and basketball and losing to Georgetown in lacrosse. |
 Lund on Lacrosse By Peter Lund 3/31/99  Last week's column 
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