U.S. Men's National Under-19 Team visits Bryant July 6-9

U.S. MEN'S NATIONAL UNDER-19 TEAM VISITS BRYANT UNIVERSITY JULY 6-9

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – US Lacrosse and Team USA return to Bryant University this summer, as the 2012 U.S. Men's National Under-19 Team makes Smithfield the home of its final training stop July 6-9 before leaving for the 2012 FIL World Under-19 Championship in Turku, Finland.

The team heads to the international tournament, which runs July 12-21, not only as the reigning champ, but in search of its seventh-consecutive title in 2012. The U.S. defeated host Canada, 19-12, to win the 2008 tournament in Coquitlam, British Columbia, improving Team USA's all-time mark to 36-0 in international competition.

While this is the first visit from the U19 National Team to the Bulldog campus, US Lacrosse's national team programs are no strangers to Smithfield. US Lacrosse held its men's senior national team tryouts and spent time training at Bryant in 2010, as the team -- led by Bryant head coach Mike Pressler -- prepared for its gold-medal run through the 2010 FIL World Championship in Manchester, England.

"Speaking for Bryant University and our athletic department, we are all absolutely thrilled to host the U19 National Team in their final training camp before heading off to the world games in Finland," said Pressler. "Our objective is to make sure that they enjoy all the same support and amenities that the U.S. senior team did here in 2010."

The U19 squad hopes for the same result as its senior counterpart, as well, as the 23-man roster takes on Blue Division competitors Australia (July 13), Canada (July 14), England (July 15) and Iroquois Nationals (July 17) for the right to defend the United States' title run.

"We've been to Bryant before, and we found the facilities to be first rate and the staff to be tremendously accommodating," said Nathaniel Badder, Director of National Teams for US Lacrosse. "That is just what we need as we prepare for international competition."

"The facilities and the personnel at Bryant will ensure that our final training camp before leaving for Finland is both productive and worthwhile," said U19 team head coach Tim Flynn. "Having Coach Pressler there to help and work with the team is very exciting and advantageous."

Practices will be held throughout the weekend (see schedule below) and are open to the public. Flynn and his team arrive at Bryant following three exhibition weekends, the final of which will take place on July 1 when the U19 team takes on the New Jersey All-Stars at Mountain Lakes High School in Mountain Lakes, N.J. The team departs for Finland July 9.

"So far, our team has come together very strongly on the field and off the field," said Flynn. "We've been hosted in Long Island and Pennsylvania with really great teams and are looking forward to representing the U.S. to the best of our abilities next month."

"The first two weekends have provided a great starting point for the team in terms of off-field bonding and on-field chemistry," echoed Badder, "but there is certainly a lot of work to be done before we play our first game July 13. We are excited to come to Bryant and have the opportunity to work on the things we need to improve upon in order to compete at the highest level in Finland."

Follow the U.S. Men's U19 National Team all summer long, from training camp through the 2012 FIL World Championship at laxmagazine.com/teamusa/u19men and on Facebook at facebook.com/teamusalacrosse. For the complete game schedule and other news and information on this year's World Championship, visit 2012worldlacrosse.com.

U.S. Men's National Under-19 Team Practice Times – Smithfield, R.I./Bryant University

Friday, July 6
Session I: 3:00-5:00 p.m.

Saturday July 7
Session I: 9:00-11:00 a.m.
Session II: 3:00-5:00 p.m.

Sunday, July 8
Session I: 9:00-11:00 a.m.
Session II: 3:00-5:00 p.m.

Monday, July 9
Session I: 8:00-10:00 a.m.