Michael Sowers Is Living The Dream In His Beloved Hometown

Last weekend, Philadelphia Wings forward Michael Sowers made his NLL debut, connecting on two goals and one assist in the Wings’ 14-10 loss to the Halifax Thunderbirds at Wells Fargo Center. Sowers’ introduction to the world’s foremost box lacrosse league was noteworthy due to the fact that the 27-year-old only recently took up the box game, amid a storied field lacrosse career that included stops at Princeton and Duke, along with three all-star selections as a member of the PLL’s Philadelphia Waterdogs.

“The ultimate goal is to win,” emphasized Sowers. “Unfortunately, we just didn’t win playing in front of our home crowd. That stinks. But it was good to get out there and get one under my belt. I’ve learned so much from the guys and coaching staff over the last few weeks. They put me in a great spot to go out there and be successful, just do the things that I feel comfortable doing like carrying the ball with my stick and cutting hard off the ball.”

In addition to taking the field as a 27-year-old rookie, the all-time leading scorer in Princeton lacrosse history exhibits a distinctive physical characteristic involving his rather noticeable size, or to be more specific, the lack thereof. Sowers is listed at 5’9, 175 lbs. While this may represent a fairly typical bodily dimension for an American male, in the rough and tumble world of lacrosse, this type of frame most certainly lands in the lower range of the percentile chart.

First game for Michael Sowers? Coulda fooled us 😎

Veteran moves from the rookie on his FIRST NLL goal.@NLLwings pic.twitter.com/85rGEFnihE

— NLL (@NLL) February 8, 2025

Despite this obvious-to-the-eye circumstance, the two-time Tewaaraton Award finalist considers his height and weight nothing more than a collection of numbers on a piece of paper.

“When I step out there, I don’t feel like I’m 5’9, I feel like I’m 6’5,” he said. “I feel like I’m as tall as anybody. Being a quote, unquote, little guy in some ways makes me a little bit of a target. At the same time, it forces me to rely on my speed and IQ. When you don’t necessarily have a size advantage, you have to just figure out ways to create your own advantages. I never really looked at myself as being at a disadvantage because of my size. It’s just a part of who I am.”

Sowers’ interest in box lacrosse began at an early age when he and his family would frequently attend Wings game at Wells Fargo Center. The Sowers crew reignited their love of the organization when the reborn model of the Wings began playing in South Philadelphia in 2018. This ongoing love affair with team and league led to a sudden epiphany when taking in NLL action as a paying customer.

“I grew up going to Wings games at Wells Fargo Center. I was always super interested in the box game. I love watching the NLL because the guys are so talented and skilled. From a body standpoint, the timing was right. I went to a couple Wings games over the last few years, and I remember sitting in the stands at one point last year, watching the game and seeing the crowd and then thinking how cool this would be,” reminisced the lacrosse lifer.

The hometown kid has a spectacular debut! Michael Sowers picks up 3 points in his 1st @NLLwings game.

Sowers highlights 👀 pic.twitter.com/PmNBaq9c0m

— NLL (@NLL) February 8, 2025

Now that Sowers has officially competed in an NLL game, long held opinions regarding the similarities and differences between the box and field forms of the sport have grown even more apparent. While the size of the scoring target may be significantly different, the way in which one attacks said target remains remarkably universal, no matter the size of the stick or the presence of an overhead scoreboard, as opposed to the sun and sky.

“Obviously, the goal size is a big difference. But at the end of the day, you still have to beat your guy and go to the net. If they slide to you, you pass the ball to the open guy. If you don’t, you go in and score. At the most fundamental level, it’s still lacrosse, which is relieving for me to think about,” assessed Sowers.

The 2020 Inside Lacrosse Division One Player of the Year later noted a glaring dissimilarity when comparing the indoor and outdoor game.

“One major difference is the lack of out of bounds, besides when the ball goes over the boards. You have to train yourself to be constantly reacting, whereas in field lacrosse there are break times to stop and digest what just happened. Whether it’s a shot going out of bounds, or a turnover, in box that time is not available,” Sowers related.

Sowers is a Philadelphia guy through and through, growing up and attending high school in the Philly suburb of Upper Dublin (20 miles northwest of the Wells Fargo Center). When the Wings acquired the former high school All-American in a December trade with the Albany FireWolves, Sowers’ dream of playing inside the setting of so many cherished childhood memories quickly went from indelible fantasy to unfathomable reality.

“It didn’t really hit me until I walked out to our first shootaround after I was signed by the team,” he said. “Walking out on the floor took my breath away a little bit. You look up at the 20,000 seats, you see the Sixers championship banners and the Flyers jerseys hanging from the rafters. All the history that comes with those franchises and having the ability to be a part of that, and then playing in that same arena where I grew up watching games. It is simply surreal.”

Away from the field, Sowers holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Princeton and a master’s in management from Duke’s Fuqua School of Business. The former All-ACC Academic Honor Roll recipient/National Honors Society member works as an acquisitions and capital markets associate for commercial real estate firm Buccini Pollin Group. Being in a position to meaningfully contribute to both the business and sports landscape of his beloved hometown provides an otherworldly level of fulfillment to a man who so clearly defines the term scholar/athlete.

“I’ve always been the best in my life when I’ve had multiple things going on,” beamed Sowers.“I’m very intellectually curious, always wanting to learn more about different things. I’ve really been living the dream. BPG’s mission is to improve the Greater Philadelphia Metro. Whether it’s building apartment buildings or buying office buildings and/or land, then building something on top of it. I get to work in a lot of the communities that I grew up playing sports in. Being able to do that and then go play for both of Philadelphia’s professional lacrosse teams is a dream come true. I get to work to benefit the city, while also representing the city through the sport of lacrosse.”

No conversation with a proud Philadelphia product would be complete without discussing the newly crowned Super Bowl champion Eagles. Sowers’ love affair with the franchise dates back to watching games with his grandpa, dad and brothers as a kid. Last Sunday’s big game viewing experience occurred at a friend’s downtown Philadelphia apartment, with Sowers and company reveling in the Birds 40-22 thrashing of the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.

As one can easily imagine, Sowers is completely over the moon when discussing all things Eagles.

“The run the Eagles have been on during the last few years has been unbelievable,” celebrated Sowers. “I don’t know if anybody saw them doing what they did to the Chiefs. It’s a special team. I feel like they’ve become the gold standard for the NFL in terms of the team they’ve been able to put together and the culture they’ve been able to establish. Working as a young professional in Philadelphia and having an opportunity to watch Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, AJ Brown and guys like that, and just how they carry themselves, it’s unreal to witness. Sometimes you have to pinch yourself that you get to watch them every Sunday, especially going through so many tough years as an Eagles fan. It’s truly been unbelievable.”

Whether it be on the lacrosse field, in the boardroom or celebrating a treasured world championship football team, very few Philadelphians are currently operating on the lofty level of Michael Sowers. A prouder-than-ever son of the City of Brotherly Love.

Michael Sowers is back in action tonight when the Philadelphia Wings travel to Halifax to take on the Thunderbirds. Faceoff begins at 6pm ET on TSN+, ESPN+, & NLL+.