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NLL Colorado Mammoth

Kroenke Sports and Gait to team in recruitment venture

January 13, 2005 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Colorado Mammoth News Release


DENVER – Kroenke Sports Enterprises (KSE) and lacrosse legend Gary Gait have formed a partnership to develop the sport's first national college recruitment program, National Development Program (NDP) Lacrosse. Gait will serve as president of the venture.

NDP Lacrosse, the most comprehensive recruitment program of its kind, will operate a summer series of tournaments that will allow college coaches to evaluate high school lacrosse players. A combination of tournament play, video technologies and online access to updated player and tournament stats will allow college coaches to track player progress nationwide during prime recruiting seasons.

"NDP Lacrosse will level the playing field for high school lacrosse players nationwide," Gait said. "The program will let coaches take a look at players they wouldn't normally see – the players who don't go to many camps and may not have a chance to be recruited.

"As a former college coach, I know how tough it can be to reach kids in some parts of the country and this should streamline the process," Gait said.

NDP Lacrosse will hold tournaments throughout the country for high school boys and girls. Each team will play a minimum of five games per tournament under NCAA rules on fields that meet NCAA regulations. All games will be monitored by professional

statisticians using a standardized scoring system. Additionally, players will perform at a skills combine and will be offered specialized instruction from coaches. There will also be clinics for high school coaches and seminars for parents on the college recruiting process.

"Gary's ideas for standardizing the recruiting process are visionary and we're pleased to be involved," said David Ehrlich, Kroenke Sports chief operating officer. "NDP Lacrosse is helping to grow the sport, a goal that Kroenke Sports shares, and we believe this program may be a model for college sports recruiting."

The online facet of NDP Lacrosse will serve both players and coaches at all levels of collegiate lacrosse, including club programs. Players will be listed in the NDP database and will have access to recruiting information and contacts at every college in the country that offers lacrosse. Coaches will then be able to contact players, watch video and monitor their performances at NDP tournaments and skills combines.

Gait, a former Syracuse University All-American, has played professional lacrosse for 15 years. He is the National Lacrosse League's all-time leading scorer and is in his final season as captain of the Colorado Mammoth. Gait also is a player-coach for the Baltimore Bayhawks of Major League Lacrosse.

Kroenke Sports is the parent company of the NLL Colorado Mammoth, NBA Denver Nuggets, NHL Colorado Avalanche, MLS Colorado Rapids, Pepsi Center arena, Paramount Theatre, Opera Shop stage production company, Altitude Premium Consulting, and the Altitude Sports & Entertainment regional sports network. KSE also has ownership interests in the AFL Colorado Crush and Universal Lending Pavilion.

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