Lacrosse Community Laments Jax Exit
Thursday, May 7th, 2009 at 11:27 amBut high schools say the sport will continue its outdoors growth
While other players commuted, mostly from Canada, Ryan Powell and some of his teammates made Portland their home.
ANNI TRACY / TRIBUNE FILE PHOTO
Ryan Powell moved to Portland to play for this city’s National Lacrosse League team five years ago, and he doesn’t plan to leave, even though the LumberJax say they will.
The Jax are looking to play elsewhere next year, citing financial reasons after four seasons in Portland, and Powell may or may not join them.
“I’m very entrenched here in Portland,” says Powell, a native upstate New Yorker. “If I were 21 or 22, I’d be kind of following the team around. That won’t be the case with me anymore.”
In recent years, the 31-year-old star forward has gotten married, bought a house, started a successful Rhino Lacrosse club and worked his way into Nike’s fledgling lacrosse business.
While other players commuted, mostly from Canada, Powell and some of his teammates made Portland their home. Richard Morgan has a good job in the area. His brother, Peter Morgan, might decide to live in Portland year-round. Dallas Eliuk, the assistant coach and community relations director and former goalie, married radio personality Daria O’Neill, and the two expect a child soon.
The Jax’s departure will leave a void, because of the team’s influence in the community via its Pacific Power School Program for lacrosse and physical fitness instruction. Also, several players helped coach at high schools such as Beaverton, Sunset and West Linn.
The indoor, or “box,” lacrosse game has little similarities to the outdoor game, outside of the stick, ball, goal, padding and helmet. The prep and youth programs were booming before the Jax arrived and should continue to grow after the team leaves, local lacrosse enthusiasts say.
But having a pro lacrosse team in Portland helped the sport gain exposure.
“It helped us when they were here,” says Kris Van Hatcher, former coach of the highly successful Oregon Episcopal School program and a Jax season-ticket holder. “Maybe the visibility of lacrosse won’t be as strong when they’re gone.”
“It’s a shame, because an exciting, community-minded business couldn’t make it here,” Lincoln High coach Will Harris says. “It’ll be a loss to the lacrosse community.
“It was entertainment,” Harris adds. “But it’s significantly removed from what my guys play; in fact, there has been debate in the lacrosse community about whether to have our kids watch indoor lacrosse (because of its physical nature, different rules, etc.). There’s some ambivalence in the lacrosse community.”
Adds Powell: “(The Jax) gave kids the visual of how the top players move the ball and use their stick skills. And just having guys out there talking to different schools and kids … it was good for the knowledge. I don’t think the growth of lacrosse will slow any. It’ll continue to explode around town.”
LumberJax officials say lack of sponsorship and ticket sales led to the team’s decision to move. One sponsor, Bigfoot Lacrosse, an equipment store in Beaverton, stuck with the team all four years.
“It’s going to hurt a little bit, because what the Portland LumberJax brought was a big stage,” says Cameron Rafish, Bigfoot assistant manager. “It showed there was a life of lacrosse, where you can work and get to the pros. But lacrosse was around before the Portland LumberJax, and it’ll be around long after.”
Powell says his focus now is on making the U.S. squad again for the outdoor world championships next year in London. He says he’ll miss playing in the Rose Garden in front of “awesome” crowds.
“The size of the crowds compared to other places, like Colorado, might not have been the same,” he says. “But our crowds brought the noise. I’ll miss that. It’ll be sad to not play in front of fans where you live.”
Adds General Manager/Coach Derek Keenan: “It was a great place to play. That’s the hard part. You feel for those fans who were there every week. I know they love it.”
