Major League Lacrosse (MLL), the premier professional outdoor lacrosse league, announced today the 2006 Major League Lacrosse All-Star game will take place on July 6, 2006 at 7:30PM ET at Boston University’s Nickerson Field according to MLL Commissioner David Gross. The MLL and US Lacrosse partnered to create the format for this season’s All-Star game, pitting the MLL All-Stars against the United States National Team. The game will be a final tune-up for the U.S. Team before they play in the 2006 International Lacrosse Federation World Championship.
The game will be played under MLL rules including the 60-second shot clock and two-point shot. The Bud Light Skills Competition takes place at halftime. Tickets are on sale NOW and are available by phone at 866-MLL-TIXX and online at www.majorleaguelacrosse.com. Tickets are affordably priced at $25 and $20 with group discounts available.
“This format will provide our fans with one of our most exciting and competitive all-star games to date,” said Gross. “The players on the U.S. Team will be gearing up to represent their country in the World Championships. I know the MLL All-Stars who are not part of that team will certainly be at their best. It will be an amazing lacrosse event. We are thrilled to partner with US Lacrosse to make this game a reality.”
The U.S. Team has 22 MLL players on its roster. On March 2, 2005 the MLL announced that all current MLL players and those drafted into the MLL in 2005 and 2006 are eligible to tryout, be selected and participate in the 2006 World Championship. See below for the complete U.S. Team roster.
“We’re extremely pleased with the partnership we’ve developed with Major League Lacrosse,” said Jody Martin, Men’s Division Director for US Lacrosse. “This game is yet another great example of us working together to help promote the game at the highest level. Playing the MLL All-Stars will be a tremendous opportunity to help our team prepare to defend the world championship.”
For those players selected to play on the U.S. Team, the MLL made several accommodations to ensure they can keep their commitment both to US Lacrosse and the MLL. The bulk of that commitment will be from July 9, 2006 through July 22, 2006. During that time period, all US Team members will participate solely in US Team practices, games, etc. In an effort to continue to provide MLL fans with the best lacrosse in the world, the league has agreed that each team will play just once during that time period, meaning US Team members will only be absent from their MLL teams for one regular season game.
The roster for the MLL All-Star Team will be announced during the 2006 season. The game will be aired on ESPN 2, time to be determined.
Last season’s MLL Wild West All-Star Showdown was played in front of a league-record 12,674 fans at INVESCO Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, the current home of the MLL’s Denver expansion franchise. New Jersey midfielder Walid Hajj scored the game-winning goal with 7:50 remaining in overtime as the Young Gun All-Stars held off a frantic comeback by the Old School All-Stars and escaped with a 21-20 win. This will be the first time the MLL All-Star Game takes place in Boston.
2006 U.S. TEAM ROSTER
Name/Current Team:
Ryan Boyle/Philadelphia Barrage
Kevin Cassese/Rochester Rattlers
Roy Colsey/Philadelphia Barrage
Christian Cook/Baltimore Bayhawks
Ryan Curtis/Boston Cannons
John Gagliardi/Long Island Lizards
Chris Garrity/Boston Cannons
Kyle Harrison/New Jersey Pride
A.J. Haugen/Denver – MLL Expansion
Jay Jalbert /Long Island Lizards
Pat McCabe/Long Island Lizards
Blake Miller/Long Island Lizards
Nick Polanco/Long Island Lizards
Casey Powell/Rochester Rattlers
Michael Powell/Baltimore Bayhawks
Ryan Powell/Rochester Rattlers
Todd Rassas/Chicago – MLL Expansion
Doug Shanahan/Chicago – MLL Expansion
Matt Striebel/Philadelphia Barrage
Kyle Sweeney/Philadelphia Barrage
Trevor Tierney/Baltimore Bayhawks
Scott Urick/New Jersey Pride
Joe Walters/University of Maryland – 2006
About US Lacrosse
US Lacrosse, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is the national governing body for men's and women's lacrosse. US Lacrosse has more than 180,000 members and helps to develop and promote the sport by providing services to its members and programs to inspire participation, while preserving the integrity of the game. To learn more about the organization, please visit www.uslacrosse.org.
About Major League Lacrosse
Major League Lacrosse, a ten-team professional outdoor lacrosse league, was founded in 1999 by fitness entrepreneur Jake Steinfeld, CEO of Body by Jake Global L.L.C., and founding partners Dave Morrow, a former champion lacrosse player and now CEO of Warrior Lacrosse, a leading global provider of innovative and high performance lacrosse equipment; and Timothy B. Robertson, former CEO of The Family Channel and the current chairman of Bay Shore Enterprises, L.L.C., an investment holding company with activities in international media and Internet technology ventures. The MLL commenced play in June of 2001. The MLL is comprised of two conferences. The Eastern Conference contains the original six teams, Baltimore, Boston, Long Island, (Montclair) New Jersey, Philadelphia and Rochester. The Western Conference debuts in the 2006 season with MLL expansion franchises Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Additional league information can be found at www.majorleaguelacrosse.com.
###MLL###
http://www.majorleaguelacrosse.com/news/?id=2933
