Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 2/26/21
From US Lacrosse
Throughout the month of February, US Lacrosse Magazine and Blaxers Blog have partnered to shine on a light on the Black men and women who have paved the way for this generation of lacrosse players and well beyond, through a series of pieces like the Most Influential Figures in Black Lacrosse History and the Future Leaders of the Black Lacrosse Community.
With feedback from over 25 members of the lacrosse community, they compiled a list of the best Black men and women (see story) to ever step on a lacrosse field.
The Philly players are John Christmas and Chris Dent, both Lower Merion grads from different eras. Christmas
Christmas played at the University of Virginia from 2002 to 2005, where he was a two-time USILA All-American and two-time All-ACC selection, and helped lead the Cavaliers to the 2003 NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship. At Lower Merion he Christmas graduated as the state’s all-time leading scorer and was a rare Pennsylvania three-time All-Americas.
Christmas also played four seasons with the Philadelphia Wings in the NLL and six seasons in the MLL. He co-founded the L.E.A.P.S. program in 2009 to develop the game of lacrosse in the Philadelphia inner-city and now is the head lacrosse coach at De La Salle High in California. Christmas also was a longtime coach with the Duke’s Lacrosse Club and has brought many players to Uganda to help develop the “Fields of Growth.”
Dent was an All-American in his senior year at Lower Merion when he led the Aces to the state championship. At Penn State, Dent – who finished his career with 119 total points – became a major key in the success of the Nittany Lions’ over the next four years by leading the team to its first two 10-win seasons in 1987 and 1989.
Without further adieu, they present the All-Time Men’s Lacrosse Teams.
Men’s Team
A – Syd Abernathy, Navy (1978-81)
A – John Christmas (Lower Merion), Virginia (2002-05)
A – John Walker, Army (2003-06)
M – Jim Brown, Syracuse (1954-57)
M – Kyle Harrison, Johns Hopkins (2002-05)
M – Myles Jones, Duke (2013-16)
M – Albert Ray, Rutgers (1980-83)
FO – Trevor Baptiste, Denver (2015-18)
D – Damien Davis, Princeton (2000-03)
D – Fred Opie, Syracuse (1984-85)
D – Tommy Smith, Virginia (1994-97)
G – Harry Alford, Maryland (2004-07)
Player/Coach – Rick Sowell, Washington College (1984-85)
Honorable Mentions: Sam Bradman, Salisbury (2009-12); Shamel Bratton, Virginia (2008-11); Isaiah Davis-Allen, Maryland (2014-17); Chris Dent (Lower Merion), Penn State (1985-88); Joe Fowlkes, Morgan State (1975-78); JT Giles-Harris, Duke (2017-Pres.); Jules Heningburg, Rutgers (2015-18); Wayne Jackson, Morgan State (1970-73); Aaron Jones, Cornell (1984-87); Jovan Miller, Syracuse (2008-11); Dave Raymond, Morgan State (1974-77); Brian Silcott, Nazareth (1991-93); Wendell Thomas, Towson (1971-74); Zack Thornton, Loyola (1994-95); Dan Williams, Army (1984-87); Chazz Woodson, Brown (2002-05).
