Point Loma Nazarene University is home to one of the top biomechanics labs in the country. It was developed with input from the San Diego Padres but it’s definitely not baseball-specific. This week the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League announced a landmark partnership with PLNU that could shift the power of an entire sport to America’s Finest City.

“It’s not only a game-changing resource for our team, but I think it also raises the standard for the sport in general,” says Patrick Merrill, Seals head coach and general manager.

Major League Baseball and the NBA have embraced a data-driven approach that’s advanced their sports by leaps and bounds. The NLL has been around for decades and many of the training methods being used today are the same as they were in the 1990’s. So, this development is opening a brand new world for the Seals.

“Every year it seems like they’ve got some kind of new analytics or some kind of different training method that they’re working on. Lacrosse has been definitely a little bit behind the trend and old school with everything that we’ve been doing,” says Wes Berg, Seals captain. “So, to be able to take a lot of this really interesting science that baseball has been using for a long time is not something that we’re used to. It’s usually a little more of a cookie cutter program of what you do to train and stay healthy. To have something that they can cater to guys personally, and as a team, is really cool.”

Of course, it’s one thing to have information. It’s a completely different thing to know how to interpret and apply it, which will lengthen the learning curve a bit.

“I think, in a lot of ways, it’s going to be a feeling out process for the first year, even though I would love to implement whatever I’m given right away,” says Merrill. “What we’re excited about is there’s going to be less guesswork in terms of how we use data and then how the how the guys execute on the field.”

With any partnership, both sides need to benefit. PLNU gets the chance to provide data gathering experience with another professional sports franchise, further enhancing the education and future employment opportunities for students.

“Having opportunities like this is what makes our programs excellent,” says Dave Gladson, PLNU Associate Vice President for Marketing. “It’s one thing to learn stuff in the classroom but when you can take what you’re learning in a lab like this and go work with real players on the field, it just takes the program to another level and makes sure that we’re delivering maximum value to our students. When they graduate, they can talk about working with real athletes. It just gives them a leg up for getting in the door for their first professional job and then the sky’s the limit after that.”

The Seals held their first round of testing at the lab as part of training camp. We’ll see how the information impacts the club on December 14, their home opener at Pechanga Arena.