Local Lax Players Win National Championship

More than 40 teams from 15 states and Canada faced off for the second annual IMG Nationals year-end lacrosse national championship at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., Nov. 21-23. After two intense days of competition, four teams earned national championships in the U13, U15, U17 and U19 divisions.

The U13 division featured an all-Long Island, N.Y. matchup between Lax Army and Team Long Island. The two teams met previously at the qualifying tournament back in August at Randall’s Island, NY. Team Long Island won decisively in Battle in the Big Apple finals 8-2. Their appearance in the finals earned both teams an invitation to the IMG Nationals.

This past weekend, both Long Island clubs were the highest scoring in the U13 division throughout the weekend, with Team Long Island recording an impressive 61 goals through six games, with Lax Army right on their heels with 45 goals of their own on the weekend. The two met in pool play on Saturday, with Long Island coming out on top by a narrow 5-4 margin, and when the two met again in the final, it would be Long Island coming out on top once more by a score of 9-5.

For all the participating teams, it was an opportunity to play in front of college coaches from many of the top programs in the nation like Albany, Georgetown, Rutgers, Loyola and many others seeking out the next generation of collegiate lacrosse stars. Team Long Island, in addition to earning a national championship, were awarded a free week of camp at IMG Academy which should provide another invaluable experience for this team.

This wasn’t Team Long Island’s only national championship; they own multi-championships at the U17 level, however this is their first at U13. Congratulations Team Long Island U13, well deserved and well done.