Avery F. Blake

Avery Blake attended Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, graduating in 1925. He went on to Swarthmore College as a member of the Class of 1928. While at Polytechnic Institute, Blake played four years of lacrosse, three years of basketball, and two years of football. At Swarthmore, Avery played one year of football and one year of lacrosse.

After leaving Swarthmore and returning to Baltimore, Avery coached at Baltimore Poly from 1927-30. While coaching at Poly, Avery played for three years with the Mt. Washington lacrosse club and also for the professional box team from 1931-55. He joined the physical education department at Swarthmore College in 1931, where he coached lacrosse and assisted in football until he joined the staff at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960. Avery's record at Poly was three championship scholastic teams in his three years of coaching there. At Swarthmore, he won the Penn-Delaware Championship for 13 years, and in 1953, he won the USILA "B" Championship. His coaching also included the All-American Team which went to England in 1937. He coached three North-South squads during his tenure at Swarthmore. Avery's coaching record at Penn since 1960 has found him winning two Penn-Delaware Championships and two championships of the USILA Mid-Atlantic Division.

Avery has been extremely active in all phases of lacrosse and has served on the following committees and associations: Publicity Advisor - Rules Committee; Advisory All-American Committees since 1939; Executive Board of the USILA - 1947-1948 and 1957; Executive Board of the USCLA for many years; President and Vice President of the USCLA from 1944 to 1947; also Vice President USILA -1958 until 1961 when he was elected president of the USILA.Avery was the founder and president for several years of the Penn Lacrosse Coaches Association, later changed to the Penn-Del Association. He helped organize, played and refereed in the old Sunday Lacrosse League in Baltimore. Avery promoted three clinics at Swarthmore College and coached at the Florida Forum for one year.