Last weekend I played in my first ever Lake Tahoe Lacrosse Tournament, and it was a blast! LaxAllStars didn’t send a team this year, so I played with Los Angeles-based Liv Lax while Krieg Shaw played with his Scallywags team, out of Idaho. I was able to catch up with Krieg a couple of times, including the first day, when we happened to be wearing matching hats, and I was able to meet a lot of new people as well as play a lot of lacrosse. Never a bad thing.
While my team went 2-2 on the weekend, Krieg’s team advanced to the quarterfinals, losing by one goal to eventual runner-up Dub C. Dub C was taken down by a score of 9-8 in the finals by the Adrenaline Tropics, who’s 2013 title gave the club three Tahoe championships in a row. Scores from the entire weekend can be found here.
Overall there was a wide range of talent and seriousness on the field. I spotted players from MCLA clubs like Sonoma State, Cal, UCLA, and UC Santa Cruz, as well as Division I players from Duke, Cornell, Denver, Penn State, and Michigan, plus plenty of DII and DIII guys.
While every team was playing to win, there was a distinct difference between squads that were there for fun and squads that were there for fun and to win. But in the end, that means everyone had fun, so that’s really all that counts.
The men’s tournament coincided with the women’s tournament, however we never played at the same field on the same day, so I wasn’t able to catch any of their games. The fields were down the street from each other, though, and guys and girls were watching friend’s games the entire weekend. Both fields were also complete with vendors, snack bars, and refreshments.
I also caught quite a few LAS sightings while I was there. It’s a little hard to see, but in the first photo below a player from the host team, the Tahoe Dawgs, is rocking old school grey LAS This Is Real socks. In the second photo, a player from Silver Bullet has an LAS-themed helmet.
In the end, it was a great experience for me, and I think it’s pretty safe to say for everyone else as well. Huge thanks to the Tahoe Truckee Lacrosse Association for putting on another great event. I can’t wait until next year!
Keep your eyes peeled for a Lake Tahoe Lacrosse highlight video!