Lacrosse fans of all ages were treated to three exciting matches at Centralia’s Tiger Stadium for the second annual Laxapalooza put on by Twin Cities Lacrosse Saturday afternoon.
The first and third matches featured Twin Cities teams, as the third/fourth grade team defeated University Place 12-9 in a scrimmage to open the day’s festivities before the seventh/eighth grade squad beat Tacoma 12-8.
Twin Cities athletes were featured in last year’s Laxapalooza, as well, but the biggest addition to the event this spring was a professional showcase between the Washington Athletic Club (WAC) and Portland’s 503LAX. Both teams featured former collegiate and professional players, and WAC knocked off 503LAX 16-14 in the final match of their regular seasons.
Athletes competing on Centralia’s turf came from programs and teams across the nation, including Rutgers, Villanova, Denver, Richmond, Maryland, United States Military Academy West Point, Gonzaga, and Washington, among others.
Cole Johnson, an All-Patriot League first-team selection from Army; Christian Mazzone, an All-American team honorable mention out of Rutgers; and Will Snider, a 2017 NCAA champion from Maryland; were among the headliners on the field.
Mazzone, a New York native and coach of Eastside Catholic’s lacrosse team, believes there is a “ton of potential” for the growth of lacrosse in the area. He enjoyed playing in front of young fans who swarmed him and his comrades for autographs and selfies after the match.
“We don’t usually get to play in front of a lot of fans. It was cool to come to this beautiful field and play in front of a bunch of kids who are clearly really excited about the sport,” Mazzone said. “That’s something that’s cool about lacrosse is it’s a very small community. So when you see a bunch of kids who are excited about it, it kind of brings you back to when you were a kid.”
Johnson, a Bellevue native, said his goal is to give back to the sport that he’s loved since he first picked up the stick in fifth grade. When young athletes approached him asking for advice, he told them to simply enjoy the game.
“They’re so young. Right now, it’s just enjoying the game and falling in love with the process of getting better and bonding with the bros,” Johnson said. “I’ve had my career. I got to live in these kids’ shoes. It’s cool to see it growing even more than when I was growing up.”
Twin Cities Lacrosse is in its fifth year and has three teams. Founder Brad Coulter, a University of Denver lacrosse alum, said Saturday’s event was “probably the highest level of lacrosse that’s ever been down here,” and it was made possible by his connections through competing in the same league as WAC and 503Lax.
“These numbers are in my head, but I’d guess 80% of the kids that pick up a stick and come and try lacrosse, they end up wanting to play,” Coulter said. “It’s a fun sport. There’s a ton of hockey involved in it, there’s endurance of soccer, and a lot of the offense and defense of basketball. It’s just a fun, fast-paced sport with lots of scoring.”
Coulter said next year’s plan is for the club teams to run it back along with all three of the Twin Cities Lacrosse, as the fifth/sixth grade team was absent. In the future, he wants to field a high school team no later than 2027 with a possible junior varsity team next year. To learn more about Twin Cities Lacrosse, visit its website at tclax.org.
