MLL and ESPN2 announce full schedule

Boston, MA (February 26, 2008) - Major League Lacrosse (MLL), the premier professional outdoor lacrosse league, today announced the ESPN2 television schedule for the upcoming 2008 season, according to MLL Commissioner David Gross. The network will air eleven games this season, all of which will be broadcast in high-definition.

"I think that fans will be very excited when they see the schedule that ESPN has put together for us this season," said Gross. "Not only does this schedule feature some great match-ups, but amongst the live broadcasts you're also getting the All-Star Game, the first Semi-Final Game, and the NB ZIP Championship Game. This is our sixth season with ESPN and they have proven to be a most valued partner in helping grow the MLL and the entire sport of lacrosse."

ESPN2 has been the national television home of Major League Lacrosse since 2003, when the two parties agreed on a two-year commitment. In 2004, ESPN aired the New Balance Championship Game, making it the first live national telecast of a Major League Lacrosse competition. In November of that same year, ESPN and MLL agreed on another two-year contract. In 2007, Major League Lacrosse and ESPN signed a multi-year agreement which extends their relationship through the 2016 season.

Last season, ESPN introduced goalie cams, telestrators, and player microphones to the MLL broadcasts in an effort to give fans a better feeling for the intense action that takes place on the field. Also, all of last season's games were broadcast in high-definition for the first time. Prior to the start of the 2007 season, ESPN sold presenting sponsorship of their MLL telecasts to the U.S. Marine Corps. And earlier this month, the league announced that DICK'S Sporting Goods would become the presenting sponsor of the helmet cam.

The 2008 national broadcast schedule kicks off live from Harvard Stadium on Friday, May 23rd when the Boston Cannons host the Rochester Rattlers.

2008 Major League Lacrosse Television Schedule on ESPN2

Game Date Teams Game Time Air Date Air Time (ET) (ET)
Friday, May 23 Rochester @ Boston 7:00 PM Friday, May 23 7:00 PM
Thursday, June 5+ Philadelphia @ Long Island 7:00 PM Thursday, June 5 9:00 PM
Thursday, June 19 Washington @ Boston 7:30 PM Thursday, June 19 7:30 PM
Friday, July 4 San Francisco @ Denver 9:00 PM Tuesday, July 8 3:30 PM
Saturday, July 12 Denver @ Los Angeles 10:00 PM Tuesday, July 15 3:30 PM
Thursday, July 17 MLL All-Star Game 10:00 PM Thursday, July 17 10:00 PM
Saturday, July 26 Chicago @ Denver 9:00 PM Tuesday, July 29 3:30 PM
Saturday, August 2 Philadelphia @ Boston 7:00 PM Tuesday, August 5 3:30 PM
Saturday, August 9 San Francisco @ Los Angeles 10:00 PM Tuesday, August 12 3:30 PM
Saturday, August 23 NB ZIP Semi-Final Game 12:00 PM Saturday, August 23 12:00 PM
Sunday, August 24 NB ZIP Championship Game 1:00 PM Sunday, August 24 1:00 PM

Portland Lumberjax now 3-3 with 2 straight wins

Fri., February 22	W	Calgary Roughnecks 9 at Portland Lumberjax 13	Final
Sun., February 17	W	Edmonton Rush 8 at Portland Lumberjax 14	Final
Sun., February 10	L	Portland Lumberjax 13 at Minnesota Swarm 14 (OT)	Final
Thu., February 7	L	Portland Lumberjax 12 at Colorado Mammoth 15	Final
Sat., February 2	W	Portland Lumberjax 11 at Edmonton Rush 10	Final
Sat., January 26	L	Portland Lumberjax 6 at Calgary Roughnecks 13	Final
Full Team Schedule and Results

2/25/2008 - Brodie Merrill Named All-Star Starter

PORTLAND - Portland LumberJax defenseman Brodie Merrill has been named a starter in the 2008 National Lacrosse League All-Star Team, as announced by the league today. Merrill will be joined by forward Jeff Zywicki of the San Jose Stealth, forwards Dan Carey and Gavin Prout of the Colorado Mammoth, defenseman Eric Martin of San Jose and goalie Gee Nash of Colorado as starters for the West Division. The NLL's eighth All-Star Game will be held at Rexall Place in Edmonton on Sunday, March 16 at 1 p.m.

Now a three-time All-Star, Merrill was selected to last year's All-Star team, but was unable to play due to injury. In 2006, Merrill added an assist and collected 13 loose balls as the West edged the East, 14-13.

"I believe Brodie is the most complete lacrosse player in the NLL," said Head Coach/General Manager Derek Keenan. "Every game we assign him to check our opponent's top offensive players and he responds by completely disrupting their offense."

Arguably the league's top defenseman, Merrill leads the league with 97 loose balls collected. He's also amassed 18 points on nine goals and nine assists through the first eight games for the Jax (3-5). Last weekend, Merrill collected his 500th career loose ball and scored five points (two goals, three assists) as Portland rolled to its second straight win, defeating the Calgary Roughnecks 13-9.

"Fans across the league - and in particular here in Portland - understand that he's not only an All-Star, but a Most Valuable Player candidate," added Keenan.

Voting was determined by a combination of fan, league media, and GM/Head Coaches. Reserves will be selected by each All-Star coach and will be announced later this week. Each All-Star team will have 18 players, which includes 16 runners and two goalies. All of the league's 12 member clubs will be represented by at least one of their players in the All-Star Game.

2/22/2008 - Holman sparks rally as Jax win 13-9

PORTLAND, February 22, 2008 - Trailing 8-7 early in the fourth quarter, the Portland LumberJax needed a jolt to rally the team from a one goal deficit to the Calgary Roughnecks. The Jax found their surge in forward Matt Holman, who scored with 11:54 to play to ignite a 5-0 run that led to a 13-9 Portland victory in front of 7,349 wild fans at the Rose Garden Arena on Saturday evening. The win was the second in a row for the Jax (3-5), who moved a half game in front of the Roughnecks (2-5) for third place in the wild, West Division. Forwards Dan Dawson (2 goals, 3 assists) and Derek Malawsky (1 goal, 4 assists) and defenseman Brodie Merrill (2 goals, 3 assists) all had five points apiece in the winning effort.

"This was possibly the most complete game as a franchise we've ever played," said Head Coach/General Manager Derek Keenan. "It was a complete effort as we put together all facets of the game."

Malawsky found the back of the net first for Portland, cutting through and taking a pass from forward Ryan Powell (2 assists) who was fed by transition player Scott Stapleford to give Portland a 1-0 lead with 12:20 left in the first quarter. Calgary evened the game with 7:55 left on a goal from Kaleb Toth.

The Jax took their second lead of the game at 2-1 when forward Peter Morgan (3 goals) scored on the power play with 3:25 left. Dawson and Martin were credited with assists on the goal.

To open the second, the Roughnecks evened the game once again with 11:14 left in the second quarter on a transition goal from Nolan Heavenor. Once again, Heavenor struck with 9:54 left until the break to give Calgary its first lead.

Calgary continued to fire away, extending the lead to two as Jeff Shattler scored with 4:58 left. Portland answered back as defenseman Richard Morgan (2 goals) beat Calgary goalie Pat Campbell with 3:28 remaining in the half to cut the Roughneck lead to 4-3. Merrill assisted on R. Morgan's third goal of the season.

After reloading their arsenal at the half, the Roughnecks came out blazing, scoring the first two goals to extend their lead to three. Portland, however, had an ace up their sleeve. Gunslinger Dawson came back with 12:12 left in the third, shooting past Calgary goalie Ryan Avery to make it 6-4 in favor of the Roughnecks.

The 2-0 run ended as Calgary struck back with 10:52 in the quarter, extending the lead to 7-5 in favor of the road team.

Portland once again cut the lead to one as it scored off a fast break. Merrill and R. Morgan worked a series of exchanges before R. Morgan scored with 9:06 to play in the third.

Calgary came back, putting one past Jax goalie Matt King with 4:18 left in the third to extend the lead to two. However, Portland had the least laugh of the quarter. Off a rebound, P. Morgan scored his second goal of the game with 1:32 left in the third to make it 8-7 in favor of Calgary heading into the final quarter of regulation.

Playing in his first game since Feb. 2, Holman tied the game at eight with 11:54 left off a pass from Martin on the power play. The goal was Holman's second of the season, and could not have come at a better time.

Holman's goal began a scoring streak, as Martin scored with 9:35 to play in regulation to give Portland its first lead since the first quarter. Malawsky and defenseman Ian Crashley assisted on Martin's fourth goal of the season.

Dawson kept the run going, draining a deep perimeter shot to make it 10-8 in favor of the home team with 7:33 to play. Merrill and Malawsky tossed the ball around the perimeter, until Mr. Dangerous scored.

The lead continued to grow as P. Morgan notched the hat trick on a breakaway goal with 7:08 left. The 6'6" brute force could not be stopped as he took the ball the length of the floor and bested Campbell to make it 11-8.

The outpour continued as rookie forward Cory Conway scored with 2:43 left and then Merrill scored his second goal of the game with 2:01 to play to put the exclamation mark on the victory. Calgary would add a late goal, but it didn't matter as the Jax won 13-9.

King stopped 24 of the 33 shots he faced and P. Morgan collected 11 loose balls, a Portland career-high.

Notes: Powell has scored at least one point in all 35 career regular season games he's appeared in with Portland...Powell has tallied an assist in 34 straight regular season games...P. Morgan has scored at least one point in all 38 career regular season games he's appeared in with Portland...Merrill collected his 500th career loose ball in the first quarter...With the hat trick, P. Morgan is back in the franchise lead with 50 goals.

2/20/2008 - Merrill earns player of the week honors

PORTLAND, February 20, 2007 - Portland LumberJax defenseman Brodie Merrill has been named the National Lacrosse League's Transition Player of the Week for week eight, the league announced today. Merrill, the NLL's loose ball leader with 89, scored three goals, added one assist and collected 10 loose balls in a 14-8 obliteration of the Edmonton Rush on Sunday.

The two-time All-Star tied a career-high with the three goals he sent past Edmonton in the team's first home win of the season. This year, Merrill has scored 13 points (7 goals, 6 assists).

"Brodie played last week like he plays every game," said Head Coach/General Manager Derek Keenan. "He's consistently the best defensive player on the floor, an absolute beast when the ball hits the carpet and the most dangerous transition player in the game today."

Overall, Merrill is Portland's all-time loose balls leader (499). He's also fourth all-time in goals scored (28), third in assists (57) and third in points scored (85).

In 2007, Merrill led the Jax and the NLL in loose balls collected with 196. Merrill is one of only three players to lead the NLL in loose balls collected (Jim Veltman and John Tavares) since the statistic became official in 1992.

This is the first player of the week award for Portland since last season, when Merrill was named Transition Player of the Week for week three.

The weekly player awards are determined by a vote of the General Managers and Head Coaches of the league's 12 member clubs.

DUCKS READY TO FIGHT OFF VANDALS AND COUGARS

Written by Ryan Craven (UO Alum '07)

After starting their season off with a 12-4 win over Oregon State on February 9th, the Oregon Ducks are preparing for a 7 game homestretch. First up for the Ducks are the Idaho Vandals and Washington State Cougars this weekend.

"Blackmore definitely came up huge against the Beavs. We've hit it hard the past two weeks and our offense is beginning to really flow. The intensity has picked up, and the team continues to progress and come together more and more each week," Tiller said.

DUCKS vs. VANDALS
Saturday marks the first game of the season for the Vandals, who continue to establish a first-class program under the leadership of 2nd year Head Coach Ryan Hanavan. With no games to look at, not much is known about Idaho's new talent. However, a handful of new freshmen and transfers highlight this year's roster including Kreig Shaw. A standout midfielder at Boise State last season, Shaw transferred to Idaho in December.

Compared to previous years, the Vandals are also sure to have a more solid defensive unit on the field. Senior defender Rob McQuade (#4) makes his debut in black and gold after suffering a severe knee injury following his freshman season at University of Utah in 2005. Prior to the injury, McQuade had intended to continue his lacrosse-playing career at NCAA Division 1 Mount St. Mary's. After a year of rehabbing, he opted to transfer back west to University of Idaho. McQuade assisted under Coach Hanavan last year.

Oregon defender Jeff Brunelle (Senior, #12) and McQuade enter Saturday's game with unfamiliar hostility brewing. The two best friends grew up together in Boise, Idaho. While attending Bishop Kelly High School, the duo played side-by-side for 3 years and founded the annual Idaho High School All-Star Games. After graduating, they continued to team up, taking on coaching roles in Idaho and winning 4 straight Brawl In McCall Championships as starters for the Woozles, a club team made up of college players from Idaho, Utah, and Oregon.

On going head-to-head with McQuade, Brunelle, a fourth year veteran at Oregon, said "It's rare that I ever get to play against someone from my high school, and it's great to see Rob make a return. We've been talking all week, but I think that will end on Friday. It's going to get heated." McQuade declined to comment.

DUCKS vs. COUGARS
Following the Idaho game, Oregon faces another unknown on Sunday when they go up against the Washington State Cougars. After disbanding two years ago, the Cougars have re-established themselves in Pullman and begin their season against the Ducks this weekend as well. With a 20-man roster and strong leadership, this Cougars squad is sure to make a run at competing in the PNCLL this season.

Oregon vs. Idaho
Saturday, February 23, 2008
1:00 PM
Eugene, OR

Oregon vs. Washington State
Sunday, February 24, 2008
12:00 PM
Eugene, OR


All Ducks home games are played on the University of Oregon Men's Lacrosse Field located on the Oregon campus between historic Hayward Field and the University's Tennis Center. Directions to the field can be found at the team's website, www.oregonlacrosse.org.


DUCKS TEACH FUTURE DUCKS HOW TO FLY
Left to right: Austin Loranger, Eric Hjelm, Josh Schane, Will DeSiervo, Brook Pittenger

With no games last weekend, the Ducks took action in the community, hosting a clinic that brought 35 local high school players out to prepare for their upcoming season. The clinic included instruction from the entire Oregon squad.



COMING UP NEXT:

The Oregon Ducks play 7 home games in the next 4 weeks. After Idaho and Washington State, the Ducks host 2 out-of-conference teams from the WCLL next weekend.

The Ducks take on Chico State under the lights at 6pm on Friday, February 29th, and then face University of San Diego the next day, March 1st, at 1pm.

Following Chico and San Diego are 3 more home games:
Saturday, March 8, 1pm - Oregon vs. Montana
Sunday, March 9, 12pm - Oregon vs. Gonzaga
Saturday, March 15, 1pm - Oregon vs. Boise State


For more MCLA news, and live game reports, photos, and commentary of all the Oregon
Ducks action, be sure to check out www.COLLEGELAX.us.

LACROSSE SEASON PREVIEW ON TV 2/21

ESPN2 will preview the 2008 college lacrosse season with a one-hour special
with Inside Lacrosse TV on Thursday, February 21 at 4:00 pm EST

Click here for more info

West Side Lax Boys HS Preview Links + 2008 Schedule

Click Here to see the schedules for Boys 08 HS Lax...

Boys: Oregon High School Lacrosse Association {Click the link to select a conference}
• Columbia Conference (Preseason #1: Oregon Episcopal School)
• High Desert Conference (Preseason #1: Sisters)
• Metro Conference (Preseason #1: Southridge)
• North Valley Conference (Preseason #1: Tigard)
• Northwest Oregon Conference (Preseason #1: Wilsonville)
• Three Rivers Conference (Preseason #1: Lakeridge)
• Willamette Conference (Preseason #1: Sheldon)

FEBRUARY 2008 - LINKS TO NEWS STORIES

Lacrosse close to forming Big East
No. 18 Richmond Women Outscored By Oregon
Men's Lacrosse: No. 9 North Carolina edges No. 16 Denver, 6-5
Women's Lacrosse: Oregon edges Virginia Tech, 14-13
Jeff Zwywicki named NLL player of the week
PNCLL Week 2 Preview
February 5, 2008 - Stocked with 8 seniors, Oregon Womens lax plans to make its mark
8 UMASS Players Suspended
February 17,2008 - Portland defeats Edmonton 14-8
Stanford Defeats Oregon in 8-7 Thriller
Oregon Women Pull Away From Aggies In Lacrosse Opener
NEW U of Oregon Coach hopes to continue winning ways
Oregon Women's Lacrosse To Host 7 v 7 Clinic GoDucks.com
January 26, 2008 - Goal runs send Jax to defeat
January 25, 2008 - Portland State's Lacrosse Club loses to Western Oregon at the Rose Garden Thursday
January 24, 2008 - Disappointment for Jax in overtime
January 19, 2008 - Boston picked to host 2009 championships
January 13, 2008 - NEW YORK POWERS PAST PORTLAND 14-11
LUMBERJAX: DAWSON SELECTED FIRST OVERALL BY PORTLAND
Oregon Lacrosse Signs 16 Recruits for 2008-2009
November 7. 2007 - JHU, fellow lacrosse 'giants' to face off in '08
Major League Lacrosse: Dragons head coach Brian Silcott will not return

2008 Lax World MCLA Division 1 Preseason Top 25 Poll

Rank - School (2007 Record) 1. Brigham Young University (16-2) 2. Colorado State University (13-3) 3. University of California Santa Barbara (14-4) 4. University of Minnesota-Duluth (11-3) 5. University of Oregon (17-2) 6. Arizona State University (10-4) 7. Boston College (15-1) 8. University of Michigan (10-3) 9. University of Arizona (14-5) 10. Northeastern University (16-2) 11. Lindenwood University (9-5) 12. University of Colorado (13-5) 13. University of Georgia (10-2) 14. Sonoma State University (10-4) 15. Chapman University (8-7) 16. Florida State University (14-3) 17. Texas A&M (13-2) 18. University of Illinois (10-7) 19. University of Florida (12-3) 20. Virginia Tech University (10-4) 21. University of Utah (7-9) 22. Cal Poly SLO (10-6) 23. Michigan State University (9-3) 24. SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY (9-2) 25. University of Texas (12-6)