By B.C. Manion
A national lacrosse tournament that nearly left Pasco County has drawn a record number of entries for this year’s event.
The Dick’s Sporting Goods Tournament of Champions presented by Pasco County will feature 90 teams, in five divisions, seeking to win the title of national champion.
The tournament, which will run from Dec. 29 through Dec. 31, has attracted teams from 20 states and two Canadian provinces, said Josh Gross, NDP’s senior director of lacrosse operations.
NDP, which is based in Colorado, operates the tournament and had considered moving it to IMG Academy, an elite athletic training facility in Bradenton. IMG had offered a number of enticements, but Pasco officials beat the offer and kept the tournament in Wesley Chapel.
The tournament has been in Pasco since 2008 and has a significant impact on the local economy.
Gross said the county made a short-term commitment to provide Internet capabilities in the press box at one of the fields, and also made a longer-term pledge to provide more fields to support the tournament.
In addition to announcing a record for the number of teams taking part in the tournament, Gross also said that organizers have decided to have the tournament every year from Dec. 29 through Dec. 31.
Previously, the tournament had dates in early January and the dates changed annually.
That became problematic, Gross said.
The new schedule also offers another advantage, Gross said.
“This gives teams a chance to play and celebrate the New Year,” he said. In the past, some games were scheduled as early as 8 a.m. on New Year’s Day, not exactly when people are at their best after celebrating the night before.
Many of the families who come to the tournament stay at Saddlebrook Resort Tampa, which is located nearby in Wesley Chapel, Gross said. So many of them stay there; it becomes like a second venue for the tournament, he added.
Gross applauded the resort for going out of its way to be family-friendly.
Saddlebrook offers affordable food options poolside, Gross said. It also has swim-up movies, allowing people to hang out at the pool and watch a movie on a big screen nearby, he said.
“They do a great job for New Year’s Eve,” Gross added.
While NDP organizes myriad events all year long, Gross said the lacrosse tournament is the one that he and his staff look forward to the most.
For one thing, it’s warm.
More importantly, though, the tournament showcases top lacrosse teams from across the country that have had to win a qualifying tournament in order to compete.
The tournament draws “the best quality of teams with the most on the line,” Gross said.
