HLX in Chicago October 2024

Saturday, October 11th 2024

We started our Chicago weekend with a tour of Historic Wrigley Field. The team learned the history of the Chicago Cubs, baseball, and the city of Chicago.

Tour of Wrigley Field

Learning the history of the Chicago Cubs.
Learning the history of the bleachers and scoreboards.
Checking out the press box, vistors locker room and dugout

After the tour we went across the street for lunch at Big Star Tacos.

The team enjoying tacos, chips and salsa.

After Lunch

After a morning of history and tacos, it was time to head to practice at St. Ignatius College Prep, for our final day of preparation. It was great seeing, parents, alumni, young fans, and friends of the program come out to support our practice.

Practice at St. Ignatius College Prep

Shots from practice and meeting our young fans.
OWLS educating us about "Playing for Peace"
Autograph session along with a meet and greet of our young fans.

After Practice

After practice, the team headed over to Outreach With Lacrosse and Schools (OWLS) headquarters. The evening kicked off with a networking event. The players met with alumni, parents, and friends of the program to learn more about different industries. Once networking concluded OWLS educated everyone on the work they are doing.

Alumni Networking & OWLS Awareness

Views from our alumni networking event.

We had six rooms of alumni networking with our players, they heard experiences, stories, and were able to ask questions. The alumni's industries covered Finance, Start-Ups/VC, Real Estate, Medicine/Law, and Education. The players met with every room to hear from all alumni about the different industries.

investing networking table with our players.
OWLS sharing stories and educating our players.

Our team raised $11,450 in support of OWLS.

We capped off the night with AL's Italian Beef for dinner.

#27 Miles Botkiss, #22 Lucas Hilsenrath, #13 Owen Gaffney outside AL's beef.

Sunday, October 13th 2024

On Sunday we took on the two-time defending National Champions Notre Dame in a scrimmage Playing for Peace. The game raised awareness for OWLS while bringing both teams together for a competitive matchup.

Playing for Peace v.s. Notre Dame

Sunday's matchup was a competitive game vs. Notre Dame. The beautiful sunny Chicago day brought a large crowd with over 3,000 fans for the game.

Gameday graphic and our team warming up for the game.
Action photos of our exhibition vs. Notre Dame

Check out the 4k highlights from Playing for Peace at Lane Stadium:

Post-Game Tailgate with HLX Family

After the game, it was wonderful to share a Korean BBQ Tailgate with our HLX family. We have such tremendous support from our parents, alumni, and friends, and we always enjoy spending time together after competitions, both at home and on the road.

Some great shots of our guys with their families at our post-game tailgate.

After the Tailgate

After the game and tailgate, we headed to Millennium Park. It is a famous public park in downtown Chicago, Illinois, known for its innovative design and iconic landmarks. Our guys had a few hours to check out the sites, grab some food, and just explore the park.

Millennium Park

Cloud Gate also know as "The Bean".
Our players checking out The Bean.

For a late night snack the team indulged in Chicago's famous deep dish pizza from Lou Malnatti’s.

Monday, October 14th 2024

Our final morning in Chicago was on the Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) boat tour. The cruise revealed fascinating stories behind Chicago's majestic buildings and the cities history.

Chicago Architecture Boat Tour

sights from the boat tour.
Team photo during the boat tour.
Shots of our players checking out the scenery.

After the boat tour, we traveled back to Boston on Monday afternoon. It was an incredible trip from top to bottom. We competed well vs. an ACC team, connected with our HLX community, and helped to spread our knowledge and passion of the game to the next generation all while deepening our own relationships and culture as we build towards a championship spring season.

HLX in Chicago

Check out the whole trip recap on the video below:

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