Lax Tourney to be held in Philly in `05
The NCAA championship cabinet, which met in Indianapolis last week, accepted the recommendation from the NCAA Lacrosse Committee to accept Philadelphia's bid. Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field, the swanky new $520 million home of the NFL's Eagles, will soon host the Final Four. Baltimore and Philadelphia were the only two cities in the running to host the tournament.
Chappy Menninger, chairman of the NCAA Lacrosse Committee that recommended Lincoln Financial Field, told The Baltimore Sun that Philadelphia had a higher financial guarantee, better parking, a grass surface and is in a bigger media market, all of which factored into the committee's decision.
"Baltimore was the first time [the tournament] has been held in a professional site, and we were thrilled by it," said Princeton head coach and committee member Bill Tierney. "But if it is ever going to be in a permanent spot, you'd better have something to compare it to."
One of the most significant problems with M&T Bank Stadium this past May was a rain-soaked field. Many players were completely covered in mud by the end of both the semifinals and the finals. However, the stadium's grass was replaced by an artificial surface, Momentum Turf Surface, this summer.
Even with the rainy weather, the Final Four attracted over 109,000 fans, including a record breaking 37,944 to watch the semifinals - the largest crowd ever for an outdoor NCAA Lacrosse Championship.
"It's extremely disappointing [losing the event to Philadelphia]," said Marty Schwartz, the current tournament director. "I really felt like we changed the whole face of the NCAA championships. I thought our local committee [Lax4Baltimore] did an incredible job in making this head and shoulders above other championships."
"I would have liked to have seen it in Baltimore for four years," said Maryland men's coach Dave Cottle. "The only concerns were the field condition and the logistics of practice [teams practiced at other venues to avoid more wear on the grass], and they fixed them both."
The decision is an obvious disappointment for Hopkins, which enjoyed somewhat of a home-field advantage this past May.
"I'm very disappointed because I thought Baltimore has done such an unbelievable job," said Johns Hopkins head coach Dave Pietramala. "[Baltimore] is a great place because of the importance of the sport here."
In addition to Hopkins and the University of Maryland, both Loyola and Towson play Division I lacrosse.
"We're going to another professional venue, which I'm sure will be first class," Pietramala said. "I'm just anxious to see if the level of support in that whole community, in terms of fans, is going to be the same."
M&T Bank Stadium is expected to bid to be the host for the championship games in 2007 and 2008. As agreed, it will host the event next year. Tickets are on sale for the 2004 championships and organizers are expecting 42,000 fans on Memorial Day, which would be a sellout. Seating is only available in the lower concourses.
"Hopefully, we'll get [the championships] back in two years," said Schwartz.