Connecting Through Lacrosse
3/9/2014 3:03:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
Liam Banks and the Orange work to grow the game
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Orange men's lacrosse team capped a sun-drenched weekend in Atlanta by participating in a youth clinic this morning on the fields at Kennesaw State University. The clinic was organized by former Syracuse All-American and LB3 Lacrosse founder Liam Banks.
Banks was the driving force behind yesterday's Cobb County Lacrosse Classic featuring Syracuse and St. John's. The game drew a crowd of more than 5,700 and was the centerpiece of a weekend that included this morning's clinic as well as a youth lacrosse tournament.
"It's huge for the lacrosse community down here," Banks said of the weekend. "You talk about kids having some type of trigger or something that inspires them to improve and be better. This is that moment. You have the most storied program in the country coming to play down here and the lacrosse community came out in great numbers yesterday to support what we are doing."
Banks started LB3 in 2005 as a way to continue teaching and coaching the game. In the nine years since, LB3 has expanded to offer instructional camps and sponsor club and travel teams in Philadelphia, St. Louis, Greensboro, Atlanta and Florida. Along the way, Banks and his staff preach the Orange motto of playing the game with "Head, Heart and Hustle."
Sunday's clinic included nearly 500 youngsters from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama and Tennessee. Current SU team members and Orange alums John Zulberti, Steve Ianzito and Kevin Drew helped teach fundamentals like dodging, shooting on the run, midfield defense and more. Afterwards, the Orange put on a shooting display. Banks entertained the kids with a variety of stick tricks, and the team made sure every last camper left with an autographed SU lacrosse poster.
"It was great to see all the young kids and how excited they are about the game," junior attackman Kevin Rice said. "You don't think of Atlanta as being a hotbed for lacrosse, but there were so many kids out there. After the amount of people that came to the game yesterday, you can see they really love the sport here."
"It's huge for the lacrosse community down here," Banks said of the weekend. "You talk about kids having some type of trigger or something that inspires them to improve and be better. This is that moment. You have the most storied program in the country coming to play down here and the lacrosse community came out in great numbers yesterday to support what we are doing."
Banks started LB3 in 2005 as a way to continue teaching and coaching the game. In the nine years since, LB3 has expanded to offer instructional camps and sponsor club and travel teams in Philadelphia, St. Louis, Greensboro, Atlanta and Florida. Along the way, Banks and his staff preach the Orange motto of playing the game with "Head, Heart and Hustle."
Sunday's clinic included nearly 500 youngsters from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama and Tennessee. Current SU team members and Orange alums John Zulberti, Steve Ianzito and Kevin Drew helped teach fundamentals like dodging, shooting on the run, midfield defense and more. Afterwards, the Orange put on a shooting display. Banks entertained the kids with a variety of stick tricks, and the team made sure every last camper left with an autographed SU lacrosse poster.
"It was great to see all the young kids and how excited they are about the game," junior attackman Kevin Rice said. "You don't think of Atlanta as being a hotbed for lacrosse, but there were so many kids out there. After the amount of people that came to the game yesterday, you can see they really love the sport here."
Press Conference | NCAA Semifinal
Saturday, May 24
Highlights | Syracuse vs. Maryland - NCAA Semifinal
Saturday, May 24
Syracuse vs. Maryland: NCAA Tournament Semifinals
Saturday, May 24
Walkin' and Talkin' with Carter Rice
Saturday, May 24
