Hundreds of lacrosse players in Akwesasne to compete at 2018 Founders Cup

The year was 1998, and the last time Akwesasne hosted the Founders Cup National Junior B Box Lacrosse Championships.

In late June, the Canadian Lacrosse Association(CLA) announced that the prestigious tournament would be held in Akwesasne, and this year the Mohawk Medicine Men will be the host team. “It’s been 20 years since this tournament was held in Akwesasne and we’re going to make sure its return to our community is one of the best ever,” added Kariwate Mitchell, General Manager of the Medicine Men.

The week-long national championship begins on Tuesday morning, August 14, and will take place at the A’nowara’kowa Arena on Kawehnoke(Cornwall Island). The first game is scheduled for 11 a.m., with opening ceremonies held at 7:45 p.m., that same day. Later that evening, at 8:30 p.m., the host Medicine Men will compete against the Elora Mohawks (Ontario).

Initially, the Seneca Nation in New York State secured the tournament, but the event fell through for the host organization unexpectedly after game officials were not able to acquire work visas for the tournament.

According to a press release issued by the Canadian Lacrosse Association, “the CLA Box Sector had approved in principal that the 2018 Founder’s Cup be held in Seneca, New York, on the condition that game officials could successfully and legally enter the U.S. for the tournament. The host organizing committee – which included the First National Lacrosse Association (FNLA), First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League (FNJBLL) and Seneca War Chiefs – was given a deadline of June 15, 2018 to have a confirmation of work visas for all travelling officials. However, despite their hard work and diligent pursuit, the hosts were unable to secure work visas for officials by the required deadline.”

The Junior B national championship, which has been won by Ontario Lacrosse Association representatives for the past seven years, will feature a handful of teams from Canadian and American leagues.

The eight teams that will help deliver an action packed event, ages 16-21, hail from the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League (Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba), the West Coast Junior B Lacrosse League (British Columbia), the Ontario Junior B Lacrosse League, the East Coast Junior Lacrosse League (Nova Scotia and New Brunswick), and the First Nations Lacrosse Association will compete for the national title, along with the host Mohawk Medicine Men who play out of Massena and feature players from Akwesasne, Cornwall and the surrounding area.

The gold medal game starts on Saturday at 5 p.m.. Additional information on the event can be found online at founderscup.lacrosse.ca. You can also follow on Facebook and Twitter to stay up-to-date.

Stay on the look-out for Akwesasne TV’s video coverage of the Founders Cup throughout the week.

Kwah í:ken tai tehontakienhtà:ne…ne enióhrhen’ne!

By: Regan Jacobs, Executive Producer, Akwesasne TV.

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