GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD MORNING, College Crosse Nation! Thanks for making us a part of your day! Here’s everything you need to know for September 26, 2018.

College Crosse News

The NLL held their 2018 draft last night in Philly and the Wings were a spectacular host.

The new Philadelphia Wings, a National Lacrosse League expansion team playing under the name of the city’s former franchise, hosted the league’s draft Tuesday at Xfinity Live, giving the city a chance to welcome the team’s newcomers. The Wings were one of four teams to enter the NLL during its inaugural season in 1987, but relocated to New England 2014. They’re now an expansion team owned by Comcast Spectacor, which also owns the Flyers.

Over the years, the league has downsized, but NLL commissioner Nick Sakiewicz — former CEO of the Union was named commissioner in 2015 — announced over the summer that the league will be expanding two teams every year for the next three years for a total of 15 teams by 2020. The league also announced a partnership with Turner where all games will be broadcast on Bleacher Report Live.

Austin Staats went #1 overall to the San Diego Seals last night.

A banner 2018 season continued for Austin Staats as he was selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 National Lacrosse League (NLL) entry draft. Staats was selected by the expansion San Diego Seals franchise. Staats led Onondaga Community College to a junior college national championship in the spring, scoring 43 goals with 32 assists in just 11 games. He finished his two-year career at Onondaga with 156 points. This summer, Staats scored 16 goals in helping the Iroquois Nationals win a bronze medal at the Federation of International Lacrosse World Championship in Israel.

Chris Cloutier of North Carolina went #2 overall to the hometown Wings.

Bucknell’s Matt Gilray went #3 overall to the Buffalo Bandits.

Bucknell great Matt Gilray was selected by the Buffalo Bandits third overall in the 2018 National Lacrosse League Draft, held Tuesday night at Xfinity Live! in Philadelphia. A three-time All-Patriot League Second Team selection, the versatile Gilray played close defense, long-stick midfield and short-stick defensive midfield over the course of his collegiate career. In 2018, he helped anchor a Bison defense that held 10 of its 15 opponents under 10 goals, causing 13 turnovers and scooping up 28 ground balls. Gilray totaled 149 ground balls, 47 caused turnovers and 10 points (5g-5a) in 53 career games. He graduated ranked eighth in Bucknell’s history in ground balls and twice served as team captain.

Here’s a look a look at the draft from XFinity Live.

Ocean City, NJ will always get a shout out on College Crosse [dot] com.

These Leopards look hungry.

So Bloomberg reported that there might be a new outdoor lacrosse league next year.

Major League Lacrosse might have some competition for next summer.

According to Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg, Paul Rabil and a group of sports and media investors, including The Raine Group, will start a brand new professional lacrosse league that is scheduled to start next summer.

The Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) will reportedly consist of six teams with plenty of top-talent players, some of them who played for the United States and Canadian national teams this summer in Netanya. According to Soshnick’s report, the players in the PLL will be full-time employees, receive health benefits, and get an equity stake in the league. This is all different than in Major League lacrosse, where many players have second jobs during the week. MLL team owners voted to raise their payroll limit and expand their schedule and game day active roster last week. The nine-team league made a flurry of signings over the past week as well, some for multi-year deals.

Hard-hitting podcast on the aftermath of former Baltimore lacrosse player Devin Cook’s death on the Baltimore community from WMAR.

Devin Cook was a well known and beloved lacrosse player in Baltimore, coming up through the ranks of the city’s youth programs to become a leader for his City College team. When he came of age to drive, he worked tirelessly to save up the funds to buy a car. With those wheels he gladly drove his teammates home, no matter the hour. But one night, it was Cook’s mother who was left wondering where her son was. Cook was tragically killed in Park Heights, in a murder that remains unsolved. His absence from the local lacrosse community is palpable, and the mystery of his killing leaves many hearts broken, and many more questions unanswered.

BOSS Breschi’s still got it!!

Legends apparel dropped their new lacrosse gear promo yesterday. I’m fairly positive I saw a Marquette jersey in there at :55 mark.

Here come the Bonnies!!

If the first half showed the potential for the brand-new St. Bonaventure men’s lacrosse team, the second half reminded Randy Mearns his Bonnies still have a long way to go. The university’s newest Division I sport made its debut Saturday during the Ellicottville Lacrosse Festival, playing John Carroll in a fall season-opening scrimmage at Ellicottville High School, Bona’s first official competition in the sport in 25 years. The Division III Blue Streaks came back from a 5-2 deficit at halftime to win 13-8. For a coach with high hopes long-term as Bonaventure plans to fully fund the program, Mearns admitted some disappointment, but also saw a lot to like in the first half.

“Guys were anxious, guys were nervous – even from a coaching staff you kind of go through it and you’re getting pumped up and we responded,” Mearns said. “Obviously in the first half we were doing a lot of the little things right and we got some of the momentum and I just kind of felt that guys performed, but it’s like a game, it ebbs and flows. We were moving the ball, goaltending we were making some saves, we were clearing the ball and as the game goes along, it’s a grind and we get into the third quarter and we stop winning faceoffs or some GB (ground ball) battles and then we take a couple penalties and all of a sudden the momentum shifts and then you’re scrambling.”

What’s Up, PhilaJersey?

STAND UP, SOUTH JERSEY!!: Galloway farm cuts corn maze into shape of ‘Philly Special.’

Sahl’s Father Son Farm has a new design for its corn maze this year that celebrates the Philadelphia Eagles’ Super Bowl championship. Starting Sunday, visitors can walk through a corn-maze cut in the shape of the “Philly Special,” the play the Eagles ran before halftime against the New England Patriots that resulted in quarterback Nick Foles catching a touchdown pass. The maze features a diagram of the play as well as a picture of Foles catching the football.

Jeremy Sahl, one of the owners of the farm, said the family came up with the idea minutes after the Eagles won the Super Bowl in February. “We were hollering and hopping out of our chairs and jumping around when someone shouted something about putting the Eagles’ Super Bowl win into the corn maze this year. That was it,” Sahl said in a statement. “I mean, it took some time to finalize the design process, but after corresponding with the Eagles for a while, this is what we ended up with. We’re really proud of it!”

World/National News

Oh what now: Lousy no-good milennials and their .... * Shakes Dice * .... low divorce rates?

Americans under the age of 45 have found a novel way to rebel against their elders: They’re staying married. New data show younger couples are approaching relationships very differently from baby boomers, who married young, divorced, remarried and so on. Generation X and especially millennials are being pickier about who they marry, tying the knot at older ages when education, careers and finances are on track. The result is a U.S. divorce rate that dropped 18 percent from 2008 to 2016, according to an analysis by University of Maryland sociology professor Philip Cohen. Demographers already knew the divorce rate was falling, even if the average American didn’t. Their question, however, was why? And what do current trends mean for the marital prospects of today’s newlyweds?

Your GIF/Video for September 26, 2018

The new Bumblebee movie looks pretty awesome actually.

That’s it for today!! I’ll see you out there!! Make sure you follow us on social media!

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Managing Editors: Safe Fekadu, Chris Jastrzembski, Ryan McDonnell