The USBOXLA Nationals return to San Jose, California in 2020 (Photo: Zach Heffner)
The US Box Lacrosse Association (USBOXLA) has officially rescheduled this year’s USBOXLA Nationals to Labor Day weekend (September 5-7, 2020) at the Silver Creek Sportsplex in San Jose, California.
Previously scheduled for early August in Huntington Beach, due to the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the multi-phased reopening of the state of California, the date and venue change was required in order to successfully and safely accommodate the potential hosting of this year's USBOXLA Nationals.
Tournament play will begin on Saturday morning, while the last game on Monday will be played no later than 2pm PT.
In addition to the tournament, the Nationals will also include a pre-event USBOXLA Academy session hosted by current & former National Lacrosse League players, as well as a showcase game between Team USBOXLA East & Team USBOXLA West.
Club directors who had teams registered for the event were informed earlier this week of these recent changes to the 2020 USBOXLA Nationals schedule, and had previously been kept informed of the event’s status over the past several weeks.
As of June 5, California is in Stage 2 of the reopening the state. This phase does not include the hosting and participation of larger scale youth sporting events. With the continued successful slowing of the spread of COVID-19 in Santa Clara County, USBOXLA officials are hopeful that the state will have reached the final phases of reopening by September, allowing for youth tournaments like Nationals to take place.
USBOXLA is committed to only hosting this year’s Nationals if pandemic-related government requirements and re-opening regulations allow for an event like Nationals to be safely hosted. USBOXLA will not put any players, coaches, referees or other attendees in an unsafe or high-risk environment.
The five-pad Silver Creek Sportsplex, which has successfully hosted the USBOXLA Nationals in the past, will be reopening later this month under strict guidelines for sporting functions with a limited amount of participants in attendance (i.e. camps).
If Nationals do take place over Labor Day weekend as planned, USBOXLA will clearly communicate to anyone attending the event what measures must be adhered to in order to maintain a safe environment for those playing, coaching, officiating or spectating.
Teams that would still like to register for the 2020 USBOXLA Nationals can visit usboxla.com/nationals for more information. If the Nationals are unable to proceed as planned, teams will be fully refunded their event registration fee.
About USBOXLA
The US Box Lacrosse Association (USBOXLA) is the country’s largest and most recognized box-specific governing body operating today. USBOXLA is a 501(c)3 charitable corporation whose mission is to develop and promote box lacrosse in the United States through a unified organization that provides high-value services, programs, and benefits to its members. Founded in 2010 by current University of Denver Associate Head Coach, Matt Brown, and former National Lacrosse League player, Shaydon Santos, USBOXLA has grown from a small regional association to one that presently serves over 25,000 individual members all over the US, all playing box lacrosse the right way.