Nov. 10, 2008

BALTIMORE, MD. - Bob Carpenter, Publisher of Inside Lacrosse, announced plans today for a major event featuring a college lacrosse tripleheader that will feature the North Carolina Tar Heels against the Virginia Cavaliers. The first-ever Big City Classic will be played at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. on April 4, 2009.

The Big City Classic places some of the elite names in lacrosse on the big stage of Giants Stadium, with New York City providing a unique backdrop. In so doing, IL has ensured that lacrosse will be added to the impressive list of major sporting events that Giants Stadium has hosted. These include but are not limited to NFL regular season and playoff games, World Cup Soccer, college football bowl games and regular season games and major American soccer events, including men's and women's national team games.

The six lacrosse teams involved are worthy of the big stage. North Carolina, Virginia, Syracuse, Princeton, Hofstra and Delaware have advanced to the NCAA Semifinals a combined 67 times. They have won 24 NCAA championships, including the one Syracuse claimed last season.

"For the past three years, Inside Lacrosse has been committed to creating events that will expose fans to the energy and passion of college lacrosse," Carpenter commented. "One of the glaring absences our sport's had to date, is that the top level of Division I men's lacrosse has never been played on the doorstep of New York City. This is the No. 1 media market in the world. To showcase the sport on such a big stage, we knew we had to bring together as much talent as possible. With the combination of these programs, we feel we're bringing to the New York metropolitan area one of the strongest lineups ever assembled."

The Big City Classic adds another property to the IL event portfolio. Two other events were unveiled by IL over the summer. The Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic features Maryland vs. Duke and Johns Hopkins vs. Princeton on Feb. 28 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. The first-ever Day of Rivals features the Army-Navy and Johns Hopkins-Maryland games together on one stage - M&T Bank Stadium - on April 11.

The schedule for the Big City Classic has been set. Virginia and North Carolina will face-off in the first game, at noon. That game features teams who have won a combined eight NCAA titles. The second game will be Syracuse vs. Princeton at 2:30 p.m. Those teams have won a combined 16 titles. The third game features Colonial Athletic Association rivals Hofstra and Delaware, at 5 p.m. Hofstra advanced to the NCAA Tournament last year. Delaware advanced to the final four in 2007. All six programs have entered into a two-year commitment for the Big City Classic.

"Lacrosse is rich and dense in Upstate New York, Connecticut, Long Island, New Jersey and Pennsylvania," added Carpenter. "However, nothing on this large a scale has been organized for the spectator experience. We couldn't be more excited about the upcoming Big City Classic, and we couldn't be more thankful to the coaches and administrations for taking part. If you're on the east coast and you love the college game, mark April 4th on the calendar. It will be more than coming to watch a couple games. It will be a festival. So expect more announcements soon, regarding additional game day components."

Said New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority President & CEO Dennis Robinson: "We are very proud to bring this historic lacrosse triple-header to Giants Stadium featuring six teams that are the collegiate gold standard in the sport. This great event shows once again that the Meadowlands Sports Complex, at the epicenter of one of lacrosse's great hotbeds of interest, is at the forefront of American sports and entertainment."

Ticket prices for the Big City Classic will be $15 for group purchases of 10 or more, $25 for lower level reserved seats and $40 for mezzanine level reserved seats at Giants Stadium. Tickets for the Big City Classic are scheduled to go on sale December 1, 2008.

Go online to InsideLacrosse.com and get all of the latest news on everything happening in the sport, including the entire Inside Lacrosse event lineup: Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic; Big City Classic; and Day of Rivals.

Quotes from the Head Coaches participating in the Big City Classic:

Joe Breschi (North Carolina Head Coach) "What a wonderful opportunity for our young student athletes to perform on a stage like this in Giants Stadium against a terrific opponent. We are thrilled that Inside Lacrosse would consider the University of North Carolina as a participant for the event and we will work hard to prepare our team for the task at hand."

John Desko (Syracuse Head Coach) "Syracuse is very excited to be playing the in Giants Stadium against Princeton the first weekend of April. After being involved in the Face-Off Classic the last two years, we know that being part of the Big City Classic will be a great experience for everyone associated with Syracuse Lacrosse."

Bob Shillinglaw (Delaware Head Coach) "The University of Delaware coaching staff and players are excited to have been asked by Inside Lacrosse to participate in the inaugural `Big City Classic' being held at Giant Stadium. This is a lacrosse fan's dream to be able to see six outstanding teams play in an all day event. Our program is excited to make a two year commitment to Inside Lacrosse for the tripleheader. This is great exposure for lacrosse, the University of Delaware and the CAA conference."

Dom Starsia (Virginia Head Coach) "The University of Virginia is very excited to be involved in this ground-breaking event in the Meadowlands. We are all interested in capturing the attention of the New York City market and the combination of this famous venue, this metropolitan location and the quality of teams involved promises a great experience for the participants, new and old lacrosse fans alike!"

Bill Tierney (Princeton Head Coach) "Being a part of the Face-Off Classic the last two years, has been a highlight for the Princeton Lacrosse program, our players and families. Now, the thought of playing Syracuse in Giants Stadium as part of the `Big City Classic' adds to the excitement for our current and future players. Princeton University and Princeton Lacrosse have been known to be synonymous with first-class opportunities for our student-athletes. Being a part of bringing a big-time lacrosse production to the metropolitan New York area, with the other phenomenal Division I teams in the event, is an honor for our school, team, parents and fans. The task of facing the defending national champions makes it a daunting, yet extremely exciting opportunity, and we look forward to it."

Seth Tierney (Hofstra Head Coach) "On behalf of Hofstra University and its men's lacrosse team we are extremely excited to participate in the inaugural Big City Classic at Giants Stadium. We would like to thank Inside Lacrosse and the Meadowlands for all the work that went into putting this event together. With the six teams that are participating, it will surely be a great day of college lacrosse."

About Inside Lacrosse

Inside Lacrosse is the premier source of information about lacrosse -- the fastest-growing participant sport in the United States -- helping to define the cutting edge of the sport's rapid growth. Inside Lacrosse includes Inside Lacrosse magazine, Face-Off Yearbook, InsideLacrosse.com, InsideLacrosse.tv, LacrosseForums.com, NLLInsider.com, Wingszone.com/nllmb and several other products and services unique to the sport. Inside Lacrosse is also the online lacrosse partner of ESPN.com. Baltimore-based Inside Lacrosse magazine is published 11 times a year. Inside Lacrosse TV, which airs on ESPN2, covers high school, college and professional lacrosse, providing instruction, a look behind the scenes and player features. Face-Off College Yearbook is an annual comprehensive preview of the upcoming men's lacrosse season. Founded in 1997 by Robert Carpenter, Inside Lacrosse is now part of American City Business Journals, Inc. ACBJ is the largest publisher of metropolitan business newsweeklies in the United States and owns a variety of sports publications, including The Sporting News, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal, NASCAR Illustrated and NASCAR Scene.