It's safe to say that, in many ways, Casey Powell started it all for area lacrosse on the national stage.

If Powell had never picked up a lacrosse stick would three Watertown natives have won an NCAA Division I championship for Syracuse University on Monday?

Would Powell and his brothers rank as the top three scorers in Syracuse history?

Would collegiate lacrosse coaches even be able to find Carthage on a map?

Powell, who has been referred to as a legend and the "greatest to ever play the game," began a trail that many in the north country have followed over the last two decades.

Interestingly, Powell, from West Carthage, started his athletic career playing peewee baseball for his father, Larry. But after meeting longtime Carthage high school coach Kirk Ventiquattro, lacrosse quickly became Powell's first love.

By the time he ended his high school career at Carthage in 1994, Powell had set a then national record with 535 points (292 goals, 243 assists) for his career. During that time, he won Section 3 All-America status twice, the first at Carthage to do so, set a single-game goal-scoring mark that he still holds with nine, and was named to the Times All-North first team twice. He finished with 92 goals and 76 assists in his senior year and led Carthage to the Section 3 Class B title by recording eight goals and five assists against East Syracuse-Minoa in the final.

That was just the beginning.

Powell began the Carthage-to-Syracuse connection by signing a Division I scholarship with the Orange in 1994. In his first season with Syracuse, Powell led the team in scoring with 69 points and the Orange won the NCAA championship.

He established an SU record for most points in a game with 13 against Virginia — a record he still holds — and tied a school mark with nine goals in a game against Towson. His eight assists in a game against Loyola in 1997 is second all-time at SU.

In 1997, Powell was the first SU player to be named national Division I player of the year since his lacrosse hero, Gary Gait. Powell repeated that feat during his senior year in 1998. He finished the year as the team leader in scoring with 78 points and was a four-time All-American. He set an SU mark with 287 career points (158-129), which has since been tied by Powell's brother, Ryan, and surpassed by another brother, Mike (307).

Powell, now fourth all-time at SU in goals scored and sixth in assists, has played in the indoor National Lacrosse League and outdoor Major League Lacrosse throughout the last decade and established himself as one of the best professional players ever . An NLL all-star for the New York Titans this past season, Powell plays for the Rochester Rattlers of the MLL and recently passed his brother Ryan as the team's all-time points leader. He is seven away from the all-time league points mark.

Powell was an assistant coach this collegiate season for SUNY Cortland, which lost in the NCAA Division III final Sunday, and helps run the Powell Brothers Academy. Powell and his wife, Lisa, married in 2004, have a daughter, Bella.

To read about previous selections to the Times' list of The North Country's Greatest 100 Athletes of All Time, log on to www.watertowndailytimes.com