PLL champion Waterdogs honored at City Hall
The Waterdogs' Dox Aitken and Michael Sowers were recognized for their accomplishments as well as the team's this season.
In a packed City Hall meeting Thursday morning, Councilmember Isaiah Thomas honored an array of special guests, but only one came brandishing a shiny Tiffany & Co. championship trophy.
After winning the Premier Lacrosse League championship on Sept. 20, the Philadelphia Waterdogs were invited to be recognized at City Hall.
“I’m very, very excited to talk about the Waterdogs,” Majority Whip Thomas said. “If you don’t know, the Waterdogs have won a second PLL championship for the city of Philadelphia.”
Thomas invited Dox Aitken and Michael Sowers, two of the players who attended the meeting, to stand and be applauded. Aitken and Sowers were recognized not only for their team’s accomplishments but for their personal achievements as well.
Sowers won PLL Attackman of the Year and was the league’s leading scorer with 51 points. A Dresher native and Upper Dublin High School graduate, Sowers was part of Waterdogs championship teams in 2022 and 2026. Aitken, who won two national championships with the University of Virginia, is a Villanova native who spent his first season with the Waterdogs.
After a 14-4 win against the Denver Outlaws at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, N.J., the Waterdogs are enjoying their victory lap in a city that feels like home.
“Growing up around here, and then finally making it to a professional level, it’s just really being welcomed back by the city and being recognized in such a special building that I’ve passed countless times,” said Sowers said, who walked to City Hall from his home.
Sowers and Aitken grew up playing together in the area, long before live broadcast games and designer trophies.
“Mike and I started playing together in fourth or fifth grade,” Aitken said. “So it’s pretty cool to have someone like him, and then also play for the hometown at the professional level. It’s really special.”
They are preparing for the U.S. men’s team tryouts this weekend and the arrival of lacrosse in the Olympics in 2028. The Waterdogs are among the athletes and teams working to grow the sport at the professional level.
“Not everybody in Philadelphia knows about lacrosse, but it’s kind of why Mike and I are in Philly for as long as we can,” Aitken said. “We want to close the gap and keep people invested in us and the game.”
ESPN announced that the Waterdogs’ championship win over the Outlaws on ABC was the most-watched championship game in PLL history, averaging 405,000 viewers.
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“It feels like every time we play, there’s a pro-Waterdogs crowd,” Sowers said.
“Plus, we won, and the city always supports winners.”
