 | |
| Sport | Women's Lacrosse |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2020 |
| First season | 2021 |
| Country |  USA |
| Most recent champion(s) | Taylor Moreno |
| TV partner(s) | Various ESPN Platforms |
| Official website | Athletes Unlimited |
Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse is a professional women's lacrosse league. It was founded in 2020 and held its inaugural season was in 2021. [1]
Athletes Unlimited deviates from the traditional sports model. Instead, they employ a point system to determine the top four performers from the previous week. These players assume the role of captains and participate in drafting their teams for the upcoming week. [2] Points are accrued by players based on their individual performance and their team's overall performance throughout the season. The league champion is determined by the player with the highest accumulated points There are 56 players in the league, with each team consisting of 14 players. [3] [4]
On October 20, 2020, Athletes Unlimited announced that they would be adding women's lacrosse as its third league. Michelle DeJulius, who had founded and was the CEO of the now defunct Women's Professional Lacrosse League was named the Senior Director of Lacrosse. [4] The inaugural season took place from July 19 – August 22 in Boyds, Maryland. [2] On August 23, 2021, Athletes Unlimited announced that they would have a second season. [5]
The second season was played from July 21 – August 14 in Baltimore, Maryland. All games being broadcast on ESPN platforms. [6]
The third season was played from July 20 – August 13 in Baltimore, Maryland. All games are continuing to be broadcast on ESPN platforms.
Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse features a "short-form, fast-paced" format. The major rule difference are as follows: [4] [3] [7] [8]
The games are also 10-minute quarters.
The game has also been described as more physical, with less fouls called compared to other levels of the game. There are also no shooting space calls (shooting space being a penalty where a defender cannot stand between the goal and a player looking to shoot unless actively guarding another player). [3] [8]
The 2023 Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse season took place from July 20 – August 13 at USA Lacrosse Headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland. [9] Goalie Taylor Moreno became the first ever Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse player to win two championships. [10] [11]
| Place | Player | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taylor Moreno | Goalie | 1,679 |
| 2 | Sam Apuzzo | Attacker | 1,667 |
| 3 | Kady Glynn | Goalie | 1,346 |
| 4 | Abby Bosco | Defender | 1,301 |
Abby Bosco was named defensive player of the year. She was also the first defender ever to earn a medal.
The All-Defensive Team was composed of: [10] [11]
The 2022 Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse season took place from July 21 – August 14 at USA Lacrosse Headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland. Goalie Taylor Moreno won the Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse title with 1,798 points. [12] [9] [13] [14]
| Place | Player | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taylor Moreno | Goalie | 1,798 |
| 2 | Sam Apuzzo | Attacker | 1,782 |
| 3 | Ally Mastroianni | Midfielder | 1,399 |
| 4 | Britt Read | Goalie | 1,394 |
Becca Block was named the GEICO defensive player of the year for the second year in a row. [14]
The 2021 Athletes Unlimited Pro Lacrosse season took place from July 19 – August 22 in Boyds, Maryland at Maureen Hendricks field. [15]
| Place | Player | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taylor Cummings | Attacker | 1,943 |
| 2 | Caylee Waters | Goalie | 1,753 |
| 3 | Sam Apuzzo | Attacker | 1,685 |
| 4 | Kady Glynn | Goalie | 1,601 |
Becca Block was named the GEICO defensive player of the year. [15]
Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively modified by European colonists, reducing the violence, to create its current collegiate and professional form.
Women's lacrosse, sometimes shortened to lax, is a field sport played at the international level with two opposing teams of ten players each. Originally played by indigenous peoples of the Americas, the modern women's game was introduced in 1890 at the St Leonard's School in St Andrews, Scotland. The rules of women's lacrosse differ significantly from men's field lacrosse. The two are often considered to be different sports with a common root.
A lacrosse stick or crosse is used to play the sport of lacrosse. Players use the lacrosse stick to handle the ball and to strike or "check" opposing players' sticks, causing them to drop the ball. The head of a lacrosse stick is roughly triangular in shape and is strung with loose netting that allows the ball to be caught, carried, passed, or shot.
Ryan J. Boyle is a former lacrosse player who last played professional field lacrosse for the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse (MLL). He most recently played professional box lacrosse for the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) until his release in 2011. Boyle starred in both lacrosse and American football for Gilman School from 1996 to 2000. He starred as a member of the Princeton Tigers men's lacrosse team from 2001 through 2004. Boyle was also a member of the Men's Lacrosse Team USA for the 2002, 2006 and 2010 World Lacrosse Championships.
Kyle Harrison is an American entrepreneur and retired professional lacrosse player. He now serves as the PLL Director of Player Relations and Diversity Inclusion. He had a seventeen year career in professional field lacrosse, and played for the US national lacrosse team twice. As a college lacrosse player at Johns Hopkins University, he played at the two-way midfield position and also took face-offs. He was a team captain on the 2005 team that went undefeated (16-0) to win the NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship. The same year, he won the Tewaaraton Men's Player of the Year Award. As a professional lacrosse player, he was a 9-time all-star, 12-time team captain, and won the 2017 championship.
Joe Walters is an American former professional lacrosse player.
Paul Rabil is an American sports executive and retired professional lacrosse player. He is currently the president of the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL), which he co-founded with his brother, league CEO Mike Rabil.
Taylor Cummings is a lacrosse midfielder, formerly for the University of Maryland's women's lacrosse team. Winning the Tewaaraton Trophy in 2014, 2015, and 2016, Cummings was once regarded as the best female collegiate lacrosse player in the country. She helped the Maryland Terrapins win two National Championships in 2014 and in 2015.
Trevor Baptiste is an American professional lacrosse player who plays as a face-off specialist for the Atlas Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League and the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League. He attended the University of Denver, where he set the NCAA Division I season record for face-off wins by a freshman. During the 2015 regular season, Baptiste led all of college lacrosse in face-off win percentage (72%). He also set the Pioneers' school record for face-off wins during a season. He was selected first overall in the 2018 MLL Draft, by the Boston Cannons. Baptiste has won the PLL Faceoff Athlete of the Year Award four times.
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Alex Aust is an American women’s lacrosse player. Having played with the Maryland Terrapins at the collegiate level, she was named to the US national team for the 2015-16 season and is currently still an active member, wearing jersey number 10. In 2016, she was selected by the Baltimore Ride with their second pick overall in the inaugural United Women's Lacrosse League Draft.
Tom Schreiber is an American professional lacrosse player with Archers LC of the Premier Lacrosse League and the Toronto Rock of the National Lacrosse League. He attended St. Anthony's High School in South Huntington, New York, and played collegiate lacrosse at Princeton University. Schreiber is the only player to have won the professional outdoor lacrosse MVP award three times. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time.
Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) is an American professional field lacrosse league composed of 8 teams. The league's inaugural season debuted on June 1, 2019, and included a 14-week tour-based schedule taking place in 12 major-market cities. The league was founded by the American professional lacrosse player Paul Rabil and his brother Mike Rabil. Investors include The Chernin Group, The Raine Group and Joe Tsai.
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Kylie Ohlmiller is an American professional women's lacrosse player for Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse. She played collegiately at Stony Brook University, where she set the record for most career points in Division I history with 498 and most career assists with 246.
Jared Bernhardt is an American former football wide receiver. He previously played college lacrosse at Maryland where he won the Tewaaraton Award as the nation's best player followed by one season of college football as quarterback at Ferris State. He is currently the director of player development for the University of Maryland men's lacrosse team.
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