The Coquitlam Sports Centre box lacrosse floor, on a sweltering summer Saturday night, might not quite be like playing in front of 40,000 fans in the U.S. collegiate NCAA Div. 1 field-lacrosse tournament.
But if you ask any Canadian lacrosse player, boxla represents the very heart of the game for them.
“I prefer box,” said Victoria Shamrocks prize rookie Tyson Gibson.
Shamrocks rookies Gibson, Danny Smith and Zac Christianson helped lead Robert Morris University of Pittsburgh to its first Northeast Conference championship, and into the second round of the NCAA tournament, over the spring.
“Field lacrosse is much slower, while box lacrosse is back and forth and so much faster,” said Gibson, who was twice a first-team all-star in the Ontario Junior A League with Brampton.
“I also like the physicality of the box game. It gets edgy.”
That’s not to say Gibson isn’t dreaming of the ultimate prize when he enters his senior year in the fall at Robert Morris.
“Playing in the NCAA tournament was one of the greatest lacrosse experiences of my life and I would like nothing more than to make it to the Final Four next year,” said Gibson, who was first-team all-conference this past season.
“We lose Zac, but the rest of the core pieces are in place.”
Field lacrosse is popular from Long Island, New York, down through Baltimore and Maryland to North Carolina and the NCAA Final Four attracts football-size crowds.
Internationally, the U.S. edged Canada 9-8 on Saturday on a last-second goal in the 2018 world field-lacrosse championship game in Israel. (See story, B4)
“My dream is to one day put on the red and white and represent Canada,” Gibson said.
“That’s the dream for any Canadian athlete in any sport.”
On the floor Saturday, the WLA second-place Shamrocks (11-5) defeated the last-place Coquitlam Adanacs (2-14) by a 13-10 count.
Gibson, who had three goals and three assists in Friday night’s 12-5 victory over the Maple Ridge Burrards at the Q Centre, had a goal and two assists in Coquitlam.
“Tyson is a deceptive shooter and a good all-round player,” said Shamrocks head coach Bob Heyes.
And he is a rookie who performs well above his age.
“We were not sure what we were getting with him, but he’s been very good,” Heyes said.
Leading Victoria on Saturday were Casey Jackson with three goals and six assists, Jesse King with two goals and five assists, Rob Hellyer with a goal and six assists and Josh Fagan and Adam Golia with two goals each.
