The LXM Pro Tour hit the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas last weekend in its final tour stop of 2012. As part of Adrenaline’s LXM/ATS, this event was an amazing experience for not only myself but for the players and fans that were able to make the trip out. Vegas is a city full of energy and all the players were pumped to be able to play and put on the best show possible for the fans.
I got in late Friday night, but a bunch of guys hosted an auction for a Malcolm Chase’s buddy battling cancer and came together to raise money by auctioning off jerseys from past events. Off the field, this group of players are extremely close and are always hanging out, exchanging stories and just grateful for the opportunity to travel to places like Las Vegas. The Palms hosted all of the LXM players and families for the tournament and it was definitely the coolest hotel I have ever been in. Upon arrival, I stopped and picked up my gear in a hotel suite, which had a basketball court in it, yes, a basketball court. I have an awful jump shot but that didn’t stop me from hoisting up a few air-balls.
Saturday was filled with games for the ATS and this was the first event at the complex in Henderson, NV. All the fields were grass and the venue was an awesome spot for a tournament. After breakfast a few guys and myself hung out in Peter Dante’s suite and we found ourselves playing with the automatic blinds, blasting music and just loving life. Looking back to college and even high school, it’s the little things that you miss the most, things like hanging out in the locker room with the boys, traveling and just hanging out with the guys you go to battle with is truly a special thing that you should always appreciate.
We had an awesome ride to the game, it was about 25 minutes from the hotel and on the drive there we witnessed an incredible sunset. Las Vegas is in the desert but is surrounded by smaller mountains, which provided a nice backdrop from the field. Before long, the opening whistle blew and from the start you could tell it would be a physical game. One of the comments I get the most is something along the lines of “wow, I was surprised at how physical you guys were.” Rosters are filled with elite athletes and this is seen all over the field but you would definitely be surprised at how physical the defensemen are. They are big, mean and throw lumber. Teams traded the first few goals but Sam Bradman broke the 2-2 tie with seconds left in the first quarter. Bradman had a monster game with seven goals and is without a doubt one of the best midfielders in the world right now. The second quarter was its own game in its own right as teams combined for 14 goals. We had a 6-5 lead but STX poured it on making it 12-7 at halftime.
The second half kept the same fast paced style of play with a ton of end to end action. STX stretched their lead to 20-12 before we (Sole) made a run. In the end we lost 22-20 in the highest scoring LXM game ever. We were missing a couple defensemen and definitely felt fatigue in the fourth quarter and its something we are working on as a team to improve. It’s crazy to think that we are still stressing the exact same things as you guys in our in-game adjustments. Things like ball movement and x’s and o’s are always dependent upon passing, catching and ground balls. The team that does those little things better and at a faster pace generally wins and that’s what STX did.
In the end this was a memorable event and a great end to the 2012 season. January 5th marks the first event in 2013 and is in Del Mar, CA. Tune into the Lacrosse Network on youtube and twitter and watch live streams of the games and awesome pre-game and post-game coverage. In a society driven by digital media, LXM and its partners have an incredible online presence that allows fans from all over the world to come together and create a conversation for a game we all love and appreciate!
