By Lauren Simpson
Cornell Athletic Communications

Cornell men's lacrosse alumnus Max Seibald '09 undoubtedly left his mark on the program throughout his collegiate career, standing as one of the best midfielders in Big Red history to this day. What is even more impressive, however, is the strides he has taken to positively influence others' lives while simultaneously growing the sport of lacrosse.

One can learn a lot about a person through their work ethic. Individuals that are constantly raising their own bar while pushing those around them to be better are invaluable, both in sports and in life. When it comes to the culture-rich Cornell men's lacrosse program, this theme shines through time and time again. This enticed Seibald on his recruiting visit and is one of the determining factors that drew him to Ithaca in the first place.

"When I sat down with coach Jeff Tambroni, he looked me in the eye and said, 'We'd love to have you here, but we're not making any guarantees. You're going to have to work every day to earn your spot. You're going to have to prove to everyone around you that you deserve to be here,'" said Seibald. "That kind of approach was attractive to me. That sold me and got my competitive juices flowing. That was unique compared to the other things I was seeing and was a major driver in why I came and why I thrived in the culture and the environment."

Cornell's first-ever Tewaaraton Trophy winner in 2009, Seibald truly excelled at Cornell. His accolades were piled high by the end of his senior year, as he also earned the USILA Lt. Raymond J. Enners Award for the Outstanding Division I Player of the Year, the USILA Lt. Donald MacLaughlin Jr. Award for the Outstanding Midfielder of the Year, and the Senior CLASS Award that season. He became just the third Cornell men's lacrosse player to receive All-America honors four times during his career and, at the time of his graduation, was the only men's lacrosse player in Ivy League history to be named a four-time first-team All-Ivy selection. He was inducted into the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019.

Once Seibald graduated from Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences with his bachelor's degree in Applied Economics and Management, that's arguably when his greatest work began. Having heralded such a successful career with the Big Red, Seibald found himself with the option to continue playing lacrosse professionally. After 10 successful years in Major League Lacrosse (MLL) and a five year stint in the National Lacrosse League (NLL), Seibald's initial expectations were exceeded.

"Was it my plan to go a decade of playing lacrosse and making a living that way? No," said Seibald. "Was it my plan to enjoy my life, make the most out of it, start a couple businesses, and do it while I could for a few years? Yes, and it turned into a little bit more than that."

Seibald was ahead of his time in terms of making a living off of the sport of lacrosse, doing so when many could not say the same. He had a number of endorsements, most notably, a deal with Nike. With these ventures falling into place, Seibald started to dip his toes into his own business venture, one that would just so happen to help promote and expand the game of lacrosse as well.

"While that was happening, I started my own camps and clinics," said Seibald. "I was running camps in New York City, both in Manhattan and Long Island. I started to go from small day camps to overnight camps, where I ran camps in Nebraska, Texas, and Minnesota. My network started to grow, and I was able to create a small business."

As Seibald's business grew, so did the sport that he was passionate about. This would quickly become a common thread as he continued his lacrosse career, including when he represented Israel at the 2018 World Lacrosse Championship.

This wasn't Seibald's first time at the World Lacrosse Championship, however, as he was a vital member of Team USA in 2010 and 2014. As the youngest member of the Team USA squad in 2010, he helped the red, white, and blue clinch gold, checking off a goal he had set for himself years prior.

"The U.S. experience is something I always had on my bucket list," said Seibald. "It was very cool to go in and play with guys that I grew up idolizing. I had an amazing coaching staff that year, and I was fortunate enough to get the gold medal out of the way."

As one could imagine, going from playing for Team USA, a country where lacrosse is very prevalent, to representing Team Israel, a country where the sport is growing, was distinctly different.

"The experience with Team USA was very business-like," said Seibald. "For Israel, one, being later on in my career, and two, just having a completely different approach to it, made it very unique. The experience was a little bit freer. There was no expectation to bring home gold. Obviously everyone wanted to win and place as high as possible, but winning gold was not the expectation."

Aside from competing at the highest level possible, Seibald and Team Israel also focused on something that Seibald was familiar with – spreading the love for the sport of lacrosse.

"The experience was not only showing up, staying with the team for the few weeks, playing, going home, and doing it on repeat," said Seibald. "We were doing camps and clinics with the youth in Israel, making appearances, and spreading the game. It was really cool to be a part of that in Israel."

As cliché as it sounds, all good things must come to an end, and several years ago, Seibald was ready to start thinking about "life after lacrosse." He made the decision to go back to school to obtain his master's degree, earning his MBA from NYU's Stern School of Business in 2017 and specializing in Real Estate, Finance, and Management.

Shortly after, he co-founded DAX Real Estate, a boutique real estate investment firm focused on the acquisition and repositioning of multifamily and mixed use properties in New York City. Seibald and his business partner, who happens to be his brother-in-law, have since founded their own management company as well, Ankor Management. While delving into the world of real estate was a new experience for Seibald, it is the same skills that he learned on the playing field that have helped him achieve success in the professional world today.

"It's a new challenge, but I try to use what I've used in other venues to allow me to be successful – the willingness to work hard, be open to being coached, learn from the people who know more and are more experienced, and challenge yourself," said Seibald.

Even though Seibald himself has stepped away from playing lacrosse, he certainly hasn't stopped creating opportunities for others to experience the sport that has given him so much. He continues to sit on the board of City Lax, a not-for-profit organization that has given lacrosse a presence throughout the five boroughs in Manhattan.

"Previous to City Lax, there was no public school lacrosse," said Seibald. "City Lax is a public private partnership which funds and allows 80 plus programs city-wide so that there is lacrosse in the five boroughs. I've been on the board for a number of years, as well as out on the field coaching. That's my biggest outlet for giving back."

With all he's done, and is currently doing, to help grow the sport of lacrosse, Seibald's reason for doing so holds so much more meaning than purely increasing participation numbers.

"For me, it's not necessarily about growing lacrosse," said Seibald. "It's about providing opportunity to be exposed to a sport that gave me so much. Lacrosse has opened up so many doors, relationships, and career opportunities, and continues to open doors all the time."

With as many doors that have been opened for him through lacrosse, Seibald is now in a position to pay it forward, and takes pride in doing so.

"There were a lot of Cornell alumni who helped support me, get me internships, and push me in the right direction in the real estate world," said Seibald. "Now I'm trying to do my part."