M. Lax sees first competition at fundraiser for leukemia research

Gilles Gibault, age 11, has already received a distinction only a select few will earn -- he is a team captain of the Penn men's lacrosse team.

And he has already battled an opponent bigger than any team the Quakers will ever face.

Gibault is a leukemia survivor.

Last Saturday, the Red and Blue traveled to Baltimore to participate in the fourth annual Price Modern Lacrosse for Leukemia Fall Invitational.

Gibault was appointed an honorary captain of the Quakers, a "patient hero" who joined the team on the sidelines during each game and even donned a makeshift uniform of his own.

"He was a great kid," Penn junior goalkeeper Ryan Kelly said. "It was really nice to have him there wearing a Penn jersey and a Penn hat. It made us proud to represent Penn."

Along with 11 other collegiate teams and Team U.S.A., the Quakers played four games in four hours, all in the name of charity. The Red and Blue faced off against North Carolina, Maryland-Baltimore County, Butler and Washington in games where the score took a back seat to the cause.

"While you're out there, you want to compete and win as an athlete," Penn junior defenseman Steve Brown said. "But you have these underlying thoughts that we're playing for these kids, which definitely adds meaning to the day."

This marked the first year the Quakers attended the invitational. The Red and Blue's participation was primarily due to new head coach Matt Hogan, who arrived at Penn during the summer to replace departed coach Marc Van Arsdale.

"We had another fall contest scheduled, but that fell through," Hogan said. "We had a choice between this tournament and a few other options, but given the timing and the cause it represented, we felt those were good reasons for us to participate."

The games marked the first time the Quakers faced an opposing team since they started practicing in late September. In addition, it was the first time they entered a game situation under Hogan's direction.

"It was the first time he got to see us play in any competition," Kelly said. "Things change with game pressure and he was able to get an idea of who can and will step up."

The day also provided Penn with a good opportunity to gauge its early progress, helping the Quakers gain a better idea of what they need to accomplish in order to have a successful spring season.

"We were able to get different looks on offense and defense, which starts getting us ready for the regular season," Brown said. "Our guys were coming out with a little more fire and intensity and we did well on both ends of the field. This definitely helped pull us together."

But in the end, the Quakers helping themselves as a team was only a peripheral benefit of the invitational, which raised $100,000 for the charity.

"It was a good event and very worthwhile," Hogan said. "The people that ran the tournament should really be commended for their efforts because they were doing something excellent for the game of lacrosse and, more importantly, for leukemia research."

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