Powerball Lacrosse

By Quint Kessenich

When Inside Lacrosse announced its ComLax.com Powerball Lacrosse Tournament, I rolled my eyes and shook my head saying, "Teams playing for $25,000 will bring out the worst in lacrosse."

In actuality, it brought out the best.

Team Reebok Blacks Out Cancer capturing the inaugural Powerball event was an unforgettable moment.

I dislike the characterization of the Lax Bro culture. What I saw at Powerball was the lacrosse brotherhood — friends of Chris Sanderson and Kyle Miller playing for Team Reebok to make a difference. To win and make a $25,000 donation. They did that, and more.

Team Reebok stood for the right principles. (read MORE)

An intense weekend of lacrosse was capped by Team Reebok Blacks Out Cancer outlasting seven other elite men’s teams in the Money Division to capture the $25,000 prize at Inside Lacrosse’s inaugural COMLAX.com Powerball Lacrosse Tournament this past Saturday and Sunday at Richard Stockton College near Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Twenty-two teams challenged for Powerball championships across three competitive divisions. Baltimore-based Fruit Loops won the High Rollers Division (men’s open) title by defeating Twisted Fate of Maryland. The Fruit Loops featured a host of former MIAA players currently playing DI, including Deemer Class (Duke), Pat Powderly (Syracuse), Andrew Barton (Providence) and TJ Neubauer (Fairfield).
Lightning Wear (Maryland), featuring Tee Ladouceur (Syracuse), Ana Heneberry (Loyola), Abby Rehfuss (Loyola) and Kellye Gallagher (Loyola), scored two goals in the last 26 seconds to score a comeback victory over Cap City (Ohio) to win the Lady Luck Division (women’s open) championship.

In the Money Division, the talented Reebok team, composed of former teammates of Kyle Miller and the recently deceased Chris Sanderson, played inspired lacrosse on its way to going undefeated in five games. Sparked by National Lacrosse League stars Dan Dawson, Mark Steenhuis, Matt Vinc, Zack Greer Billy Dee Smith and Pat Merrill and coached Sunday by Brodie Merrill, Reebok pulled away from a young and speedy Flow Society team in second half of the finals to secure a 9-5 victory. Reebok will donate all of its prize money toward treatments for Miller and to Sanderson’s widow and children.

“Inside Lacrosse put on an amazing weekend for all of us representing Reebok, and we were fortunate to win the $25,000,” said Jen Scavone, the Associate Product Manager for Reebok Lacrosse who helped organize the team. “Having Kyle Miller and Chris Sanderson’s father-in-law present for the whole weekend brought such an emotional connection to the guys playing. They fought hard each and every game, knowing how much this money will mean to Kyle and Chris’ family. We are looking forward to putting it all on the line again next year.”

Sunday morning’s semifinals of the Money Division began with Reebok defeating HEADstrong 10-2. The second semifinal was perhaps the best game of the weekend, as Flow Society edged Motive Pure 7-6 in overtime to set the stage for the championship game. Unquestionably, the most incredible play of the weekend was the goal that sent the game to overtime.

Trailing Flow Society 6-5 with less than 25 seconds remaining, Michael Watson scooped up a looseball at goal line extended and retreated to the top of the box. In what most observers were calling one of the best plays they’d ever seen, Watson patiently waited for his old Virginia teammate Doug Knight to back-cut toward the goal, before firing an alley oop that Knight leapt and snatched high out of the air and deposited into the back of the net with 7.6 seconds left to force the extra period. (Find this and all the highlights on ILTelevision.com.)

Reebok wasn’t the only team motivated by a worthy cause. Each of the eight teams in the Money Division had designated a charity for their winnings; the runner-up Flow Society team was comprised mostly of Chaminade players from schools like Notre Dame, Bucknell, Yale, UMass and Lafayette, who were playing to honor Chaminade and Duke grad Jimmy Regan and the Lead the Way Fund benefiting families of Army Rangers.

HEADstrong was playing to benefit the families of cancer patients through their HEADstrong Foundation, and other charitable causes included the Chris Sanderson Memorial Fund (Motive Pure), Sailing Heals (Liquid Flow) and the Greater Philadelphia Cancer Foundation (Beerwolves).

“Only those of us in the lacrosse world know why guys come from all over to play hard for someone else and ask nothing in return,” commented Sam McCleery, Sanderson’s father-in-law. “They go back to being firemen in Canada and coaches in the U.S., and they would do it all again next weekend for the friends they have lost and those still standing.”

In addition to scintillating lacrosse from past and future stars of the sport, participants seemed to enjoy the excellent facilities at Richard Stockton and the nightlife and entertainment that Atlantic City provides. Save the date for Powerball II, which will take place July 12-14 in 2013.

“It’s always gratifying to see something that you created take on a life of its own,” said Inside Lacrosse’s Dan Flynn, who served as the tournament director. “In addition to a fun weekend of lacrosse, we’re so proud of the way the Money Division teams stepped up to turn our Powerball tournament into a charitable vehicle. We can’t wait to see how Powerball will continue to evolve and the good it can do in the future.”

2012 COMLAX.com Powerball Lacrosse Tournament All-Tournament Team

Attack: Rob Forster, HEADstrong, Penn State
Attack: Zack Greer, Reebok, Duke/Bryant
Attack: Doug Knight, Motive Pure, Virginia
Attack: Brendan Gibson, Flow Society, Yale
Attack: Tom Perini, Flow Society, Lafayette
Attack: Mike Watson, Motive Pure, Virginia

Midfield: Ryan Cranston, HEADstrong, Lynchburg
Midfield: Dan Deckelbaum, Reebok, Delaware
Midfield: Will Harrington, Reebok, Towson
Midfield: Mark Steenhuis, Reebok, Buffalo Bandits
Midfield: Drew Thompson, Motive Pure, Virginia
Face-Off: Andrew Hennessey, Reebok, Bryant

Defense: Regis McDermott, Flow Society, Notre Dame
Defense: Shawn Nadelen, Reebok, Johns Hopkins
Defense: Billy Dee Smith, Reebok, Buffalo Bandits
Defense: Julian Watts, HEADstrong, Hofstra
Defense: Trey Whitty, Motive Pure, Virginia

Goal: Rich D’Andrea, Reebok, Georgetown
Goal: Tim McCormack, Flow Society, UMass

MVP: Dan Dawson, Reebok Blacks Out Cancer

The perennial NLL all-pro and Team Canada member not only ran attack for Reebok, scoring four goals in the tournament, but he also was one of the main guys putting the team together and organizing the players all weekend. His leadership was invaluable to Reebok’s championship.

2012 COMLAX.com Powerball Lacrosse Tournament Champions

Money Division: Reebok Blacks Out Cancer
High Rollers Division: Fruit Loops
Lady Luck Division: Lightning Wear

FULL PLAYOFF RESULTS

Money Division
9:30 a.m.: Reebok 10, HEADstrong 2?
11 a.m.: Flow Society 7, Motive Pure 6 (OT)?
1 p.m. Championship: Reebok 9, Flow Society 5

High Rollers
9:30 a.m.: No. 1 Twisted Fate 13, No. 8 Centaurs 1?
9:30 a.m.: No. 2 Fruit Loops 13, No. 7 Ruff Lax 5?
11 a.m.: No. 4 Ruff Lax Two 7, No. 5 Market Basket 6?
11 a.m.: No. 3 SS Vikings 9, No. 6 CNY Roadhawks 7?
12:30 p.m. Semifinal: No. 1 Twisted Fate 8, No. 4 Ruff Lax Two 6?
12:30 p.m. Semifinal: No. 2 Fruit Loops 10, No. 3 SS Vikings 5?
2 p.m. Championship: No. 2 Fruit Loops 11, No. 1 Twisted Fate 7

Lady Luck
9:30 a.m.: No. 2 Lightning Wear 15, No. 3 Re-Lax 5?
11 a.m.: No. 1 Cap City 15, No. 4 SINS 1?
12:30 p.m. Third-Place Game: No. 3 Re-Lax 13, No. 4 SINS 5?2 p.m.
Final: No. 3 Lightning Wear 13, No. 1 Cap City 11

Be sure to mark your calendars for next year's Powerball Tournament: July 12-14 at Richard Stockton College near Atlantic City, N.J.