NEW ERA
BRAVEST VS. FINEST
FDNY-NYPD 9/11 MEMORIAL GAME HEADLINES US LACROSSE GRAND OPENING
BY MEGAN SCHNEIDER
On Dec. 8, 2001, with five seconds left in the Heroes Game, a special prelude to the New York Saints’ NLL home opener, the New York Police Department lacrosse team scored the game-winning goal against the New York Fire Department at the Nassau Coliseum.
It marked the first time both teams played in a major venue — a bittersweet milestone that came just two months after NYPD Officer Ronnie Kloepfer, who founded the team in 1993 with the hopes of one day showcasing their friendly rivalry on a national platform, perished in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Kloepfer, an emergency responder who played lacrosse at Adelphi, had planned his team’s annual trip to the Chicago Shootout. Everyone would take off Wednesday and then leave Thursday. But on Tuesday, Sept. 11, he died rescuing workers at the World Trade Center. His gun and radio were the only things recovered. He was 39.
“He went in there without fear,” said Officer Sean Rooney, 45, current NYPD coach and player and a St. John’s grad. “He did his job the way he always did.” NYPD officers worked longer hours following 9/11. But Rooney had no doubt they would play lacrosse again. At the Heroes Game, NYPD players wore RK7 on their uniforms for Kloepfer, No. 7. FDNY players wore the No. 343 on theirs to commemorate the 343 firefighters who died during the attacks.
“There were probably 8,000 people in the crowd to watch our game and there were 2,000 to watch the Saints,” Rooney said. “After that I said, ‘Keep the team going. That’s what he wants.’” John Salva played for NYPD before joining FDNY in 2004. He has a tattoo of lacrosse sticks on his leg, which his fellow firefighters joked looked like a butterfly. “The lacrosse sticks to me mean
it’s like another family, just like the fire department,” said Salva, who played at
44 LACROSSE MAGAZINE » September/october 2016
Salisbury. “My whole life has been molded around lacrosse.”
NYPD and FDNY will meet again Sept. 11, 2016, during the grand opening of US Lacrosse’s new national headquarters in Sparks, Md., marking the 15th anniversary of 9/11.
“A lot of these guys, when they come down, they have a lot of things on their mind,” Rooney said. “They just got out of the academy. They’re worried about learning the work field and being safe out there. But also we tell them, ‘You’re on the field. You’re playing lacrosse. What can be better than this?’ That’s what Ronnie instilled.”
NYPD players remember Ronnie Kloepfer with his initials and number (RK7) on their jerseys. Kloepfer died rescuing workers at the World Trade Center in the 9/11 attacks.
EVENT SCHEDULE Saturday, Sept. 10
8-10 a.m.: U.S. Team Boys’ Youth Clinic
11 a.m. – 1 p.m.: U.S. Team Girls’ Youth Clinic
6 p.m.: Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Grand Lodge
Sunday, Sept. 11
10 a.m.:U.S. Women’s Team Exhibition
1 p.m.: U.S. Men’s Team Exhibition
4 p.m.: Sept. 11 Memorial Game: FDNY vs. NYPD
9/11 MEMORIAL GARDEN
Kris Snider, a Seattle- based landscape architect, Washington lacrosse pioneer and US Lacrosse board member, designed the iron spires and surrounding garden that honors more than 60 individuals connected to the sport that died in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
TUFTED TURF
Greenfields, the official turf provider to US Lacrosse, used its innovating weaving technique to maximize playability, safety, aesthetics and durability of Tierney Field. The fibers are nearly identical in texture to natural grass. An underlying shock pad and infill of sand and rubber help absorb impact.
MEDSTAR POWER
MedStar Sports Medicine, a US Lacrosse partner, has leased a portion of the headquarters’ lower level for its sports rehabilitation practice, where renowned lacrosse strength and conditioning coach Jay Dyer also will operate a sports performance center.
LOCKER ROOMS
The facility includes two locker rooms, each big enough to host 43 players.
TIERNEY FIELD
Tierney Field, named after seven-time NCAA champion coach Bill Tierney, will house not only the U.S. national teams in training and exhibitions, but
also neutral-site college games. On Oct. 15, Tierney’s former and current teams, Princeton and Denver, will square off in a fall ball contest preceded by the dedication of the Tigers and Pioneers pillars on the Rosenberg Promenade.
US LACROSSE MUSEUM AND NATIONAL HALL OF FAME
Visitors will find a state-of- the-art museum showcasing the Creator’s Game, evolution of play, Hall of Famers’ stories, the history of the U.S. teams and international competition and a futuristic 21st-century game day experience with interactive touchscreens and video. That’s not to mention valuable relics and artifacts donated to US Lacrosse.
A Publication of US Lacrosse
©BRIAN SCHNEIDER; ©GREENFIELDS; ©MARC PISCOTTY
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