In the evolution of lacrosse, the final progression is the development of professional leagues. Baseball, basketball, football and hockey each only have one premier league in the United States, but lacrosse doesn't just have one league -- it has two. The National Lacrosse League was founded in 1986, and Major League Lacrosse was debuted more recently in 2001. Within sports, prominent professional leagues typically don't co-exist harmoniously, but there are two major differences between the lacrosse leagues that allow them to work side by side.
The first difference is that the NLL is played indoors on a more confining turf field than the expansive grass fields the outdoor-based MLL uses. The second is that the style of games played is extremely different. The NLL resembles a hockey match with only five runners -- forwards and defensemen -- and one goalie on the field for each team. This setup, along with a 30-second shot clock, allows for a faster paced, hard hitting game to emerge -- one that can attract fans from other sports bases.
The MLL follows a more traditional lacrosse script, using the same rules as college but adding a two-point shot as well as a 45-second shot clock. With the college game and MLL having so much in common, it is no surprise that the MLL is more popular than the NLL with recent graduates.
Although the sport is the same, the variations amongst the two leagues allow each to occupy its own niche. One thing they both have in common, in addition to the sport, is a plan for expansion.
Six of the NLL's 10 teams are located west of the Mississippi, and the MLL is currently in the process of adding three yet-to-be-named western franchises, as well as a Los Angeles-based team by 2006. While both leagues are stressing the need for expansion, MLL Commissioner David Gross said he recommends patience.
"We're not looking to rush out and grow this thing too fast," Gross said. "I think we've all seen too many sports leagues that grow too quickly and don't have a big enough base behind it."
Fans of lacrosse have seen this all too clearly. Over the past 19 years, the NLL has had 16 teams fail in 14 different cities. While the league has struggled to find permanent homes for its teams, it is beginning to attract more attention on a national level.
In February 2005, the NLL All-Star game was televised on NBC -- marking the first time ever that lacrosse has been featured on national network television. The league will make its second appearance in May when NBC will televise its championship game.
For Doug Tarring, the St. Anne's Belfield boys lacrosse coach, its obvious why the professional game is growing nationally.
"The pro game is a more wide open and fun game to watch," Tarring said. "It gives some of those players a career."
The emergence of the two leagues has allowed select Virginia lacrosse alumni to continue playing at the next level. Along with goalie Tillman Johnson and current Cavalier assistant coach Connor Gill, former Virginia All-American midfielder and 1997 graduate David Curry is one example. For the past four summers, Curry has played for the New Jersey Pride of the MLL, where he has been a three-time All-Star and is the franchise's leading goal scorer.
While lacrosse isn't a career for Curry -- he works full time in New York City -- the flexible 12-game season allows him to continue playing the game he loves, albeit putting his job first.
"My job is very schedule-sensitive," Curry said. "I just need to know well in advance if there's ever a Thursday or Friday practice or game, but the league does a pretty good job of keeping it on the weekends. It's not hard to do as long as you're willing to give up weekends."
It has been proven that lacrosse is expanding at the youth levels and that involvement has never been higher, but it will go for naught should the level of play at the college and professional levels falter.
Gross still remains optimistic.
"One thing we've found out about lacrosse is it's addictive," Gross said. "Once you pick up that stick you don't ever want to put it down."
If Americans follow suit, the sport will never be the same.
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