Fans demonstrate their passion for the sport
BBVA Compass Stadium was the place to be for lacrosse fans on Saturday night.
Fans arrived from different states to witness the Major League Lacrosse All-Star Game. Some wore their favorite player’s jersey. Others came in full lacrosse equipment. Some traveled with their youth teams, and others arrived just to see an entertaining game.
With the focus on trying to field a franchise in Houston, MLL marketing manager Kevin Murphy was overjoyed with the support of the city.
“The hard work provided by Savoy Sports Advisors and Houston Sports Authority to lay a grass-roots foundation for not only Major League Lacrosse, but for the game as well was great,” Murphy said. “The sky is the limit with what can happen in the Houston market for lacrosse.”
The energy of the crowd of 10,084 was not lost on the players. Some expressed their support of a new team in Houston.
“It’s great to come down and play in front of new fans,” Chesapeake Bayhawks midfielder Matt Mackrides said. “The fans were excited to see a cool and interesting lacrosse game. They gave us great energy on the field, and the guys had fun out there.”
The next step for the MLL is to continue to work on bringing a team to the city. Commissioner David Gross is excited to see Houston potentially have a team.
“We were impressed with the crowd size,” Gross said. “Hearing people and talking to them saying to bring a team, you know that it’s ready. We’ve just got to get a lot of dotting I’s and crossing T’s, but we’d like to make it happen here. We think this will be a terrific market for the MLL.”
Some fans had more access than just a general admission seat Saturday night. Two lucky spectators — Hayden MacArthur and Ethan Sorkin — became “Ultimate Fans.”
MacArthur is a native of Coppell. He made the trip to Houston after winning an essay contest on the MLL website. The 500-word essay led to an unforgettable experience for MacArthur and his father. It was something MacArthur spoke excitedly about.
“We got to pick the teams and be in the locker room with the players,” MacArthur said. “The coolest thing is to be able to meet all of these guys. These are the people that I’ve watched on TV, in college, Major League Lacrosse and Team USA.”
MacArthur was the honorary captain for the Cowboys team, and Sorkin was the captain for the Gladiator team. MacArthur selected Rob Pannell with his first pick. Pannell didn’t disappoint, as he scored a goal in the first half of the Gladiators’ 2715 victory.
The outcome was a thrill for Atlanta native Sorkin.
“It’s
very
exciting,” Sorkin said. “Lacrosse is probably my favorite sport. To say that I went to the All-Star Game and my team won, it is awesome.”
jaylon.thompson@chron.com