NEW YORK, U. S. — On October 16, the Can-Am Senior B Lacrosse League, a Senior-level Canadian and American box lacrosse league, announced that two new teams will be hitting the floor in the new season.
Both the Grand River Warriors based out of Six Nations and More Dudes based out of Albany, New York, will be joining the league.
The league boasts teams that are located in the Southwestern Ontario and Upstate New York regions. Sanctioned by the First Nations Lacrosse Association, the champions of the Can-Am league compete for the Presidents Cup, the Canadian National Senior B championship. Can-Am teams have won the Presidents’ Cup five times.
“We are pleased to announce that we have expanded our league and welcomed not just one, but two new franchise teams into the Can-Am Lacrosse Association at our Annual General Meeting over the weekend, “ wrote the Can-Am Lacrosse League Facebook page last Monday.
The Grand River Warriors will don team colours in orange, black and white and play out of the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena, while More Dudes will play at the Hudson Valley Community College wearing gold, maroon, white and grey.
On the following day, October 17, Danny Vyse of Six Nations posted to Facebook inviting fans, players and goalies interested in playing to reach out. Both Vyse, Nolan Hill and others from the community put the bid in for the team to enter the 2024 2025 season, with the promise of a try out in January.
“This team is for our men to have a place to play and young men coming up from juniors, and minors. We have a lot of talent players on our own reservation and coming up and we will need a place to play for the home town players bring the game back to community and for
the hometown men to get a chance to play in The Can-Am league. Maybe even pro league give more of our native men a chance to get recognized,” wrote Vyse.
Vyse noted that new updates and a media page for the team will be coming soon.
Formed in 1969 as the North American Lacrosse Association, the league reformed after eight seasons. Renamed Can-Am in 1978. This past season, the Tuscarora Tomahawks of the Can-Am Lacrosse League entered the tournament as under-dog champions.
According to the Presidents Cup website, “this is the first time in 25 years that [the Tomahawks] will compete for the Presidents Cup. They finished the regular season with a 5-11 record, but in the playoffs caught lightning in a bottle going 8-3 to capture the Can-Am Lacrosse League Championship.”
The Tomahawks were led by leading scorer Anthony Patterson, who can put the ball in the net and help set up his teammates. Helping Patterson on offence was Hunter Lemieux, a name that will be familiar to Oakville Rock fans having played for them the pervious season.
