The Portland LumberJax (sometimes referred to as the Jax) were a professional

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...

team in the

National Lacrosse League The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United Stat ...

(NLL), which started playing in the 2006 season and ended operations after the 2009 season.

Angela Batinovich Angela Batinovich is an American businesswoman, notable for being the youngest owner of a professional U.S. sports team. She is the creator of "Bat's Daughter", a line of women's clothing. Her father, Robert Batinovich, is a successful real estate ...

, the owner of the team, entered the league as the youngest owner of a professional sports franchise at the age of 24. Announced by the NLL on May 11, 2005, the LumberJax played their home games at the Rose Garden in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous ...

. It was announced on May 4, 2009 that the team would be leaving Portland after four seasons of play and on July 7, 2009 the NLL held a dispersal draft for the Lumberjax players.

Franchise history

The expansion LumberJax got off to a slow start in their

first year A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. A ...

, but later turned their season around and made it to the playoffs with an 11-5 record. The LumberJax finished first in their division, becoming the only expansion team to win their division in the 20-year history of the NLL. The LumberJax season ended with a loss in the opening round of the playoffs to the Arizona Sting. The LumberJax were less successful in their sophomore season, finishing last in the West Division with a 4-12 record. In their

third year Third year, also known as S3, is the third year of schooling in Scottish secondary schools, and is roughly equivalent to Year 10 in England and Wales and Year 11 in Northern Ireland. Most pupils are 14 or 15 years old at the end of S3. Tradition ...

, the LumberJax finished with a sub-500 record for the second straight year (6-10), but were able to enter the playoffs as the fourth-seed in the West. The LumberJax won their first playoff game in franchise history on May 4, 2008, an 18-16 victory over the

San Jose Stealth The San Jose Stealth were a member of the National Lacrosse League, the professional box lacrosse league of North America from 2004 until 2009. They played at the HP Pavilion at San Jose, which is also the home of the NHL's San Jose Sharks and the ...

at the HP Pavilion in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...

. Dan Dawson scored 7 goals and added 5 assists for a total of 12 points. They then defeated the Calgary Roughnecks in the Western Division Final 16-12, to earn their first ever trip to the Champion's Cup, which took place Saturday, May 17, 2008 at the HSBC Arena in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

against the Buffalo Bandits at 7:30 PM Eastern. The LumberJax lost 14-13. On May 4, 2009 the team announced it would be leaving Portland after four seasons of play due to financial concerns. Future options included moving the franchise to another city or selling it to new owners; however on July 7, 2009, a dispersal draft was held for Portland's players, essentially shutting down the franchise.

Awards and honors

All-time record

Playoff results

References

{{Defunct NLL Defunct National Lacrosse League teams Lacrosse clubs established in 2005 Lacrosse clubs disestablished in 2009 Defunct sports teams in Oregon LumberJax Lacrosse teams in Oregon 2005 establishments in Oregon 2009 disestablishments in Oregon

Franchise history

Awards and honors

All-time record

Playoff results

See also

References