FOUR FOR FINAL FOUR

The 2009 men's college lacrosse championships will return to Foxboro, Mass., where Syracuse University won its 10th Division I crown last season. Where the event heads from there for the next three years will soon be determined, with four cities vying for the right to hold it. The finalists are Baltimore, which held the event at M&T Bank Stadium in 2003-04 and again in 2007; the Meadowlands in New Jersey; Denver; and Boston. The championship event, held annually on Memorial Day weekend, features the Division I semifinals on Saturday, the Division II and III title games on Sunday and the D-I championship on Monday. It has grown into the most-attended outdoor NCAA championship event in the nation since the NCAA decided to move it into an NFL venue in 2003. M&T, home of the Baltimore Ravens and located in the heart of one of lacrosse's hotbeds, was the site of the initial experiment and has the most experience holding the event. When the championships returned there in 2007 following two record-setting attendance figures in Philadelphia, they attracted 123,215 fans over the three days. That mark was eclipsed last season at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, home of the New England Patriots, when 145,828 attended. The NCAA is expected to make its decision late this month or early next. It could award the event to one city for three years or give it to three cities for one year each. The most intriguing candidate is Denver, Division I's most western outpost. The U.S. Air Force Academy is sponsoring the bid, aided by the University of Denver. The stadium would be Invesco Field at Mile High, home of the Denver Broncos. Fans who want to attend this year's event in Foxboro can go to www.lax2009.kraftsportsgroup.com to purchase tickets. SU opens camp Thursday The Syracuse men will open spring practice Thursday. The team, ranked No. 2 in the nation behind Virginia in Lacrosse Magazine's preseason poll, will hold its annual Media Day in the morning and practice in the afternoon in the Carrier Dome. So far, there is no official word on the status of highly celebrated junior-college transfer Cody Jamieson. Back in the saddle Gary Gait, the second-year head coach of the Syracuse University women's lacrosse team, will officially begin moonlighting as a professional indoor player when Philadelphia visits Rochester on Saturday night in the Knighthawks' National Lacrosse League opener. Behind the bench will be Gary's twin brother, Paul, recently hired as the team's head coach. The Gaits enjoyed legendary careers for SU, leading the team to three national championships from 1988 to 1990. The brothers then starred in the NLL, helping put the indoor league on the national map. Gary Gait, 41, retired in 2005 after 15 seasons. He led the NLL in points and goals seven times and retired as the league's all-time leading scorer with 1,091 points. He also won three league championships, one with Detroit and two with Philadelphia. Former SU All-America defender Regy Thorpe, the player/general manager of the Knighthawks, lured Gait out of retirement and paid a heavy price to do so. He yielded a player and first-round draft picks in each of the next two seasons to Colorado in exchange for the rights to Gait. Gait will continue to coach at SU, where he led the Orange to its first Division I title-game appearance during his inaugural season. Lacrosse Magazine has the Orange ranked No. 2 in its preseason poll, behind national champion Northwestern. Annual 21 Dinner The fourth annual 21 Dinner, which annually celebrates the life and legacy of former Cornell lacrosse captain George Boiardi, will be held on Jan. 24 at Bridgewaters, located at 11 Fulton St. in New York City. Boiardi, a defensive midfielder who wore jersey No. 21, died after being struck in the chest by a shot during a game against Binghamton on March 17, 2004. Upon his graduation from Cornell he planned to join the South Dakota chapter of Teach For America, the national corps of outstanding college graduates who commit two years to teach in public schools and become lifelong leaders for social change. All proceeds from this year's dinner will benefit The Mario St. George Boiardi Foundation. The foundation's mission is to empower the next generation through athletics and academics. For more information on the dinner go to www.boiardifoundation.org Dave Rahme can be reached at 470-2148 or drahme@Syracuse.com