Our Story

Lacrosse shares a camaraderie with the Buffalo-Niagara region as they are two of the oldest of their kind.  But while lacrosse continues to grow in popularity at unprecedented rates, Buffalo is not one of the fastest growing American cities.  The Buffalo Lacrosse Academy (BLA) was created in an effort to support both the sport and the city we love, and link their future together.

When two childhood friends both moved back to Buffalo after experiencing life and lacrosse outside of Western New York, they decided to give back to the lacrosse community that gave them so much.  Many others quickly joined them.  Their goal was to enhance the sport by providing playing experiences that the area generally lacked, while bringing together people from around the region.  Using lacrosse as their outlet, new and old friends were committed to enhancing the overall Buffalo-Niagara region as much as they could.
As the sport continues to grow in the future, the BLA looks forward to assisting others in their dedication and contribution to the sport.  The BLA is eager to help create a Buffalo-area lacrosse outreach program, give assistance to new lacrosse communities and continue to collaborate with the many other great lacrosse organization in and around the region.

The list of names to thank for all that they have contributed since the BLA’s inception in 2005 is much too long to list.  However, numerous family, friends and strangers both near and far have all contributed to the goals these two old friends set out to accomplish back in the beginning.  So thanks to everyone who has selflessly contributed to the BLA.  The BLA and Western New York lacrosse will forever be indebted to you.
Thank you for sharing your time with us - we hope your lacrosse experience brings you the enjoyment that it has brought us for the better part of our lives.  We owe so much to the many individuals who have come before us.  We fully believe that lacrosse can help facilitate a bigger and brighter Buffalo-Niagara region.

Mission

The Buffalo Lacrosse Academy (BLA) provides opportunities for anyone who has the character and desire to play at a high level, including nontraditional and underserved communities. In never losing sight of those who have worked tirelessly developing lacrosse in the Buffalo area and honoring the true spirit of the game, the corner stones of the BLA are character, sportsmanship, commitment and quality.

Player Development Program

The BLA strives to develop the total student-lacrosse athlete.  Through much hard work and continual enhancement, the BLA Player Development Program is a curriculum that strives to enhance player growth while having fun.  It includes the BLA Fall Ball training league, Winter Warm-up training, a positional summer Skill School, and the culmination in the summer Elite Travel Teams.  For more information click here.

BuffaloLacrosse.com

In Spring 2007 saw one of the most important, and most challenging of the BLA become a reality. The BLA launched BuffaloLacrosse.com - a community-based lacrosse portal.  BuffaloLacrosse.com’s mission is to bring together in a common site the many amazing lacrosse attributes in the Buffalo-Niagara region.  From professional all the way down to youth, both men’s and women’s, BuffaloLacrosse.com is intended for anyone and everyone to join and share with the WNY lacrosse community.

The Name

The Buffalo Lacrosse Academy (BLA) was the name chosen by its founders to signify that the BLA is a place of teaching and learning the skills of lacrosse and the values to remain with its lacrosse students throughout life.

BLA Colors

The official colors of the Buffalo Lacrosse Academy are Navy Blue, Gray and White. American history has traditionally given opposing sides the colors of Blue and Gray, in part due to the colors of Union and Confederate soldiers uniforms during the Civil War. Part of the mission of the BLA is to bring lacrosse opportunities to everyone in the Western New York and Southern Ontario region.

BLA Logo

Carrying on the popular American tradition dating back to the late 1880’s of organizations adopting a logo, the BLA founders chose a shield to represent it. The shield was chosen as a symbol of strength, tradition and education. The BLA’s mission is premised on the idea of providing the strongest possible quality in every team and event the BLA orchestrates. Another essential part of the BLA’s mission is to continually teach its lacrosse students the value of remembering the true traditions of the original game begun by North America’s indigenous people and the more recent teachers of modern sport. The buffalo in the crest is following the tradition of using the animal to represent the city, even though buffalo never actually roamed Western New York.

The three lines in the lower right corner signify Niagara Falls, one of the many great assets in the Buffalo-Niagara region.  In the lower left corner are crossed sticks, one being a older style stick, still commonly used in the women’s game and the other a modern men’s stick.  The choice in sticks is meant to represent the BLA’s commitment to remembering the great history of the sport while celebrating today’s women’s and men’s games.