The national women’s lacrosse tournament will begin on campus in less than a month and a half.

AACC will host the National Junior College Athletic Association Women’s Lacrosse national tournament May 13-14 at Siegert Stadium.

Leading up to the tournament, the athletic department is tending to details and deadlines.

Athletic Director Duane Herr said setting up the tournament started with the bidding process.

“We had to fill out this online survey that asks about what’s around the area, what are the nearby restaurants and hotels,” Herr said. “We were selling our campus to the national office so they would want us to be the host.”
Herr explained before he could bid on the tournament, he had to get approval from Felicia Patterson, vice president for learner support services.

The first due date the athletic department had to meet was a 90-day deadline to secure referees for the tournament, according to Herr.

Herr also got enough liability insurance to meet the NJCAA standard.

“It’s mainly for the players on the field in the case of catastrophic injury that would occur and the liability involved in that,” Herr said.

The athletic department had a 60-day deadline to design T-shirts for the tournament.

After that deadline, Herr reached out to the Public Safety Department to insure security at the tournament.

Sean Kapfhammer, director of public safety, said the campus police would be at the tournament to maintain peace.

“Those type of events don’t come with high risk,” Kapfhammer said. “If we’re talking a Loyola or Johns Hopkins event with much more people there, more of a rivalry, there is more of a chance something might happen.”

Kapfhammer said he would staff the tournament with public safety and police officers.

Jim Griffiths, head coach of Women’s Lacrosse and Cross Country, said if the Riverhawks are among the four teams that make it to nationals, they will have some advantages.

“[The team] stays in a routine: they’re not in a hotel,” Griffiths said. “You get more crowd support at home.”
Griffiths also said if the team did or didn’t make it to nationals, he and his staff would help the athletic department do little things such as set up tents, tables and talk to coaches who need any help.

Griffiths said it would be great for the team and the athletic department to be in the tournament they’re hosting.

“One of the biggest disappointments would be if [the team] didn’t make it because [AACC] is hosting it,” Griffiths said.

Emily Rowe, who plays midfielder, said it’s “awesome” having the tournament at AACC because the team doesn’t have to go anywhere.

Rowe said it would mean a lot for the team to play in nationals.

“[The team] worked so hard … and this year being my last, it would be awesome especially for the whole team,” Rowe said.

Victoria Mattoon, goalie, said she is looking forward to playing in the tournament if the team gets there.

“It’s what I’m here for,” Mattoon said about how she feels about playing in nationals.

The last time AACC hosted the national tournament was in 2014. The Women’s Lacrosse team did make the tournament but lost to Monroe Community College in the first round. Monroe Community College went on to win the national tournament that year.

The national tournament starts on May 13 and general admission is $5.