Nick DiGianivittorio Jr., Correspondent Philadelphia Wings
Lacrosse is Awesome©
The Philadelphia Wings look to Alex Pace (Brock University) to fuel both sides of the ball.
It was the time of year again when the National Lacrosse League came to Philadelphia, PA. On September 17, 2019 at Xfinity Live the 2019-20 Entry Draft was held where previous college players would realize their dream of playing professional lacrosse.
The Philadelphia Wings, one of Philadelphia’s favorite sports teams, had traded their first round selection for Kevin Crowley and needed to wait until the third pick in the second round to start their draft class.
The Wings ended their 2018-19 campaign with a series win over movement rival the New England Black Wolves and successfully earned a first time win over the Rochester Knighthawks with a goal from Blaze Riorden. However, while those were impressive accolades, the team posted a lackluster 4-14 season during their first year back in the NLL. During the 2018-19 season they competed in the East Division against Georgia; New England; the Buffalo Bandits; Rochester; and Toronto Rock. With the 2019-20 season bringing in two new teams, the New York Riptide and the Halifax Thunderbirds, the league decided to create a new division to spread the teams out. The Philadelphia Wings will now be competing in the Eastern Division with the Riptide; Georgia Swarm; and Black Wolves. Knowing this, the Wings needed to acquire some major talent on the defensive end after previous Wings defense man Frank Brown was traded to Halifax.
Philadelphia plans to bolster their defense with their acquisition of Alex Pace who was chosen in the second round and 20th overall. Pace currently plays at Brock University in St. Catherine’s, Canada where their field season runs from September to November. Alex has played on the U17 Canadian National team and plans on heightening the team’s defense. In the 2018 campaign at Brock University, the midfielder had six goals between the lines while having a strong defensive midfielder performance. The Wings plan on using Alex mostly in the defensive end but are not overlooking the fact that he can take the ball down himself and put it past the goalie.
The Wings look to have a more successful season in the 2019-20 campaign and with their new acquisitions from the draft; the Philadelphia Wings could put themselves in a position to be a top playoff contender come spring time.
Nick DiGianivittorio Jr., Correspondent Philadelphia Wings
Lacrosse is Awesome©