Hampton lacrosse set to make NCAA history

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch

Posted: Friday, February 12, 2016 1:58 pm

BY VIC DORR JR. Richmond Times-Dispatch
[e-mail]
[phone]
@RTDVicDorr

Hampton University is about to add a splash of diversity to intercollegiate lacrosse. ... The Pirates will formally launch a men’s varsity program when they play host Saturday afternoon to Division II Roberts Wesleyan.

They also will make history.

Hampton is the first historically black college or university to launch a Division I lacrosse program. No HBCU school has played men’s lacrosse since Morgan State’s Division II program folded 1981.

So significant is the event that ESPN’s "SportsCenter on the Road" will broadcast from the Hampton Campus from 10 a.m. until noon. The game will begin at 12:30 p.m.


Read more: http://www.richmond.com/sports/college/article_6c922568-4dd3-5821-8d59-f9efa81c7897.html

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Colleges

How a grieving mom achieved her son’s dream: A black college lacrosse team

By Rick Maese February 11
@RickMaese



Hampton lacrosse player Tyrone Jackson tapes his stick before practice. The Pirates will begin play Saturday as the first men’s lacrosse program at a historically black college in 35 years and the first ever to play at the Division I level. (Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post)

HAMPTON, Va. — The ragtag lacrosse team was scurrying under the lights, and no one seemed to mind that the wind whipping in from the harbor was freezing at dusk, cruelly punishing any exposed skin. ... “Oh, we jogging today?” the coach barked. “Okay. Game’s on Saturday, but you guys think it’s okay to jog.” Lloyd Carter threw his arms in the air.

Truth is, the 57-year-old couldn’t have been happier. Carter was in the final days of preparation for a historic game. His Hampton Pirates will host Roberts Wesleyan on Saturday — and will become the first Division I men’s lacrosse team from a historically black university. ESPN will mark the occasion by airing its two-hour “SportsCenter” live that morning from the Hampton campus as part of its Black History Month programming and will feature the team throughout the show.
....

Despite its centuries-old Native American roots, the fast-growing sport today has a reputation as an elitist, costly endeavor that has struggled to make inroads among minorities. ... Participation among African Americans has increased in recent years, but the sport remains predominantly white. According to the NCAA’s participation data, nearly 86 percent of men’s college lacrosse players last year were white, compared with 3.5 percent black. Five years ago, 91.4 percent of men’s players were white and only 2.2 were black. All of the Pirates players are African American.

Morgan State was the last HBCU to field a men’s team, but that squad disbanded 35 years ago. While Howard and Delaware State feature women’s programs, Hampton surprised many last year when it decided to elevate its men’s club team to the Division I level.
....



From left, Hampton players Jeremy Triplett, Alexander Hudson and Darrell Kidd take a breather at practice. (Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post)

Aren't these guys biting off more than they can chew? Yes, but there's a reason for that, as these comments point out:

dwbruce45

2/11/2016 5:05 PM EST

Though I wish Hampton well they will be crushed against d1,d2 and most d3 programs. They should have started out as d3. If only 13 players are showing up for practice they should have stayed club. Hope I'm wrong but they are not putting the effort into the program that is needed. They will masquerade as d1 team in name only.

jknows25

8:15 AM EST

That is not a viable option for a Division I athletic program by NCAA rules (which Hampton is for all over their other D1 sports). If all of you current programs are Division I, when starting a new athletic team you have to start as a Division I program. Many schools like JHU lacrosse and a lot of Division II schools but compete in wrestling in DI are grandfathered in.

dwbruce45

12:01 PM EST

JK, thanks for clearing that up. I wish Hampton the best and will tune in to watch the first game.

[ericson00]

1. I wonder how much longer that sport will be essentially a socialite game,

almost a contact version of croquet.

[hack89]

2. Judging by the inroads it is making on Little League in Rhode Island

I would say not much longer. It has exploded where I live.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. Your opinion may not be widely shared. NT

[whistler162]

15. Hey... LaCrosse, it sounds French so it must be elitist!

[Lucky Luciano]

10. Wrong.

This is a very aggressive rough and tough sport. Our high school in NY was and still is one if the best.

Many from my HS are in the lacrosse hall of fame. I wonder with the growing popularity of those in my HS are going to be at the same level as the future players.

[du_grad]

16. Lacrosse is a pretty brutal game

I attended college from 1967-71. At that time, my alma mater, Denison Univ., was the midwest lacrosse school to beat. Many kids came to DU from the east coast just to play lacrosse.

I didn't know much about it until I finally attended a game my junior year in college. Anybody that calls this sport a socialite game has obviously never been to one. There are no time outs except for injuries, and it takes as much or more stamina than soccer. It is fast paced and the players are running most of the time.

The game originated with native American Indian tribes who played the game for days at a time, from sunup to sundown. Sometimes hundreds played at a time, and the size of the field could be six miles!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_lacrosse

This is not a game for anyone who is not in shape!

[TexasTowelie]

4. +1

Since my alma mater has the best varsity lacrosse team in Texas (Southwestern University).

[mahatmakanejeeves]

5. Baltimore's Channel 2

used to broadcast local lacrosse games on Saturday afternoons from February (yes, the lacrosse season has already begun) though May. Among the local teams were Navy, Hopkins, Towson, Loyola, Maryland, and Georgetown. Visitors included Syracuse, Albany, UVa, and on and on. Sadly, they lost the contract for that about five or six years ago. I think 2010 was the last year, as I recall watching the broadcasts in the digital broadcasting era. The transition from analog to digital broadcasting was made final on June 12, 2009. I converted in 2008, so I might have seen the 2009 season games in digital.

Thanks for writing.

[TexasTowelie]

6. Yes, I know.

My team played a squeaker against Hendrix College from Arkansas last weekend. We came from a 6-3 deficit in the third period to win 8-7 in overtime.

We used to play in the same conference with Hendrix and always had tight games with them, but I believe this is the first time that we defeated that team.

Our team started as a club sport in 1984 and we won the Texas Conference in 1988 against the University of Texas. They ended up winning the small school bracket five years in a row in the smaller school division of the Texas Conference before they went NCAA Division III and upgraded to a varsity sport. I saw a few great games at Texas Stadium when I lived in Irving.

[rocktivity]

7. Too bad it's not signficant enough for ESPN to broadcast it.

How much historically black college or university broadcast DO they do, as long as we've touched on the subject?


rocktivity

[mahatmakanejeeves]

12. Although the game is significant,

Last edited Sat Feb 13, 2016, 04:46 PM - Edit history (1)

I don't think that the level of play will be that high. Expect lot of mistakes and sloppy play. I'm sorry, but they're new at this, so that's to be expected.

Because, for many teams, this weekend is the first weekend of the 2016 lacrosse season, ESPN has lots of matchups to choose from. I don't have cable, so I don't know what games will be shown. I think lacrosse is on ESPN-U, isn't it?

Take a look at the Inside Lacrosse website to see if you can find their TV schedule.

I also do not know much about smart TVs, but shouldn't it be possible to call up this game and view it on demand? Surely there will be video cameras recording the game for posterity.

Thanks for writing.

ETA, at 3:45 p.m.:

Lacrosse television schedule

[Ex Lurker]

8. Are the players African American?

Apparently some are based on the picture. I ask because a lot of HBCU baseball teams are predominantly white.

[Princess Turandot]

9. I saw Morgan State play a few times....

back in the day! (I was only a few days old, of course. Ahem.)

[Deuce]

11. Jim Brown was a pretty good Lacrosse player...

https://apps.uslacrosse.org/museum/halloffame/view_profile.php?prof_id=35

[mahatmakanejeeves]

14. Quint Kessenich: Hampton's Addition a Much-Needed Move Toward Diversity

Quint: Hampton's Addition a Much-Needed Move Toward Diversity



(Inside Lacrosse Photo: Brian McWalters)

It's been 35 years since the "Ten Bears" at Morgan State took the lacrosse world by storm. In four of five years between 1970 and 1975, they were ranked in the Top 20. The "Ten Bears" upset highly ranked Washington and Lee University during the 1975 regular season. Six years later, Morgan State cut its program.

Since that time, lacrosse has grown from the Carolinas to Florida to Texas and west into California and up the coast to Oregon and Washington state. But this explosion hasn't been matched by diversity. A 2010 NCAA study reported that just 1.9 percent of Division I lacrosse players were black and that fewer than 10 percent were nonwhite.

Hampton has added a Division I men's varsity lacrosse team beginning in 2016. The first game is Saturday against Division II Roberts Wesleyan. Located in southeastern Virginia, Hampton is a historically black university with a student population close to 5,000. The Pirates compete in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, and the athletic department offers 14 varsity sports.



{Morgan State Bears from the early '70s}

Meanwhile, terrific work is being done in Boston, New York, Denver, Miami and right here in Baltimore by organizations determined that the game should be made available to all young athletes. ... Charm City Lacrosse is 8 years old. This spring the program will teach and instruct 500 boys and girls in Baltimore. According to executive director Artie Spruill West, the operating budget is $300,000 and includes scholarships to summer camps, field trips to games on college campuses, practices and game costs. Charm City is supported by volunteers and through contributions from corporate donors.
....



{Duke midfielder Myles Jones and friends}

To no surprise, the results were lopsided.

Hampton Athletics twitter feed