MCC Sports and First Coast Lax step up to Save Duval Girls Lacrosse

JU battled UF at JU last year in Duval County. The state's first Men/Women lax program tandem was founded where else, Duval County!

Jacksonville, Florida - The death penalty. That is the switch that gets pulled by the government when the most undesirable criminal elements pass through the system. That controversial measure eliminates the most horrid criminal offenders. Those who have done tremendous harm to society. So why would youth sports be a government target for the death penalty?

We can wonder why it is so easy for government officials to use programs that benefit our kids through investment and therefore project our society forward until we are blue in the face. Does any sane, and rational person see the point of following the path that Duval Public Schools has been on for the past 10 years? Certainly not the path anyone would want to see their sports program go. Eliminate sports programs and see things like teen pregnancy, juvenile justice bills, and unemployment rise. What do they think the economy needs – a bunch of teenagers entering the work force?

They have no idea.

But we have a great idea. Let’s find a way to FUNd Duval County Girl’s Lacrosse. Jon Fox still has no idea what the lines mean or the rules are for girl’s lacrosse, but that doesn’t mean that the sport is not the fastest growing youth sport in the nation. Maybe if he had a daughter who played he would know the rules. What’s important is that we all know the rules…well most of us anyhow…and we can do something to keep the girls playing lacrosse. First Coast Lacrosse League, LaxManiax Elite Lacrosse Club, and the Living Crosse Foundation are teaming up in an effort to raise $12,000 for the Duval County Girl’s Lacrosse Programs.

FCL is going to make a donation based on the total league participants this year. Last year, more than 400 girls competed in the Fall league and gained valuable experience in a relatively stress-free environment. This year, for every participant who signs up, $10 will be donated to the Living Crosse Foundation to be given to Duval County Athletics for Girls Lacrosse. FIRSTCOASTLAX.com

In addition, the JEM Memorial Tournament JEMLAX.com will be donating their profits to Duval County Athletics. The tournament is run by the Living Crosse Foundation in support of Florida’s grass roots lacrosse programs. In addition to donating proceeds from team fees, the JEM will also host a Braveheart Tournament, a hardest shot competition, and a shot accuracy competition with prizes involved to assist in the fund raising. There may also be a hat passed around too . We hope to raise a significant amount of funds from the tournament.

As a local lacrosse person, I want to make sure that everyone knows that lacrosse is truly a community game. We are proud of having served the lax community for the past six years in many different ways. I would like to challenge those of you who have been blessed financially to help with this effort – it will have a tremendous impact on the lives of these young student-athletes for years to come! This is the final piece of the puzzle – individuals who can step up and help, doing so and feeling good about it!

Here is a challenge! I will personally match every $1,000 gift for Duval County Girls Lacrosse up to $5,000! Let’s make a difference this year and work to insure that this doesn’t happen again by redesigning and reinvigorating the Duval programs! Everyone who donates will have their name listed on the front page of the FCL website in a section called “Duval Lax Life Savers”. Now if that doesn’t make you want to part with your pesos I don’t know what will (I am kidding of course).

If you would like to join us in supporting the drive for Duval County girls lacrosse, please email me at paul.mccord@mccsportsinc.com. There are a lot of great ways to get involved.

Let’s be clear: There WILL be girl’s lacrosse in Duval County this year. No doubt about it!

Bo Kimble to Visit JU Lacrosse, Promote 44 for Life

In honor of fallen teammate Hank Gathers' life, Bo Kimble shot his first free throw of the 1990 NCAA tournament left handed, a skill that Gathers worked on tirelessly going into his senior year in an effort to improve his free throw shooting. Gathers died tragically in a game after collapsing due to a heart defect prior to the NCAA tournament.

Jacksonville, Florida – Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Just ask Bo Kimble what he thinks about the Jacksonville University women’s lacrosse team’s success in just their second season as a Division I program.

“They are literally running the same system as we used to run at LMU (Loyola Marymount University) but in women’s lacrosse. Now I don’t know that much about lacrosse, but it’s pretty cool to think that our style of play is being used in different sports.” Said Bo Kimble, the former LMU point guard who led the nation in scoring his senior season at LMU. “If you put in the work and you are faster to the ball than you can do things that your opponent’s can’t.”

The formula seems to work very well for the Dolphins who carry a 7-4 record (2-0 in the National Lacrosse Conference) into this weekend’s critical double header against undefeated conference rivals Liberty and Longwood.

“Watching the 30-for-30 special about Bo and his team at LMU, it became clear that their style of play complemented the types of athletes that we have at Jacksonville University,” commented Mindy McCord, head women’s lacrosse coach. “A coach can draw many parallels between the sports of basketball and women’s lacrosse and the types of schools and athletic programs at Loyola Marymount and JU. The system was a natural fit and Bo’s team-first personality and fearlessness are great mentors for our young team.”

“The System” of play is very different from other ways of playing women’s lacrosse. It does not rely on stick skills as the primary mechanism of success, but conditioning is a huge key. The system has developed eleven JU players with more than 10 points this season. Only seven may play on attack at a time, giving opponent’s fits in terms of scouting. Opponents never know who the hot Dolphin is going to be game by game. With more than a dozen players on their roster from non-traditional states, it makes sense for JU to play an unconventional style of play.

Kimble led the nation in scoring in 1990, averaging 35.3 points per game in LMU’s frenetic system taught by then-coach Paul Westhead. His teams led the nation in scoring (124 points per game) and to this day still hold the most combined point scores in NCAA history. It was not uncommon for LMU to place five players in double figures in scoring in a game. Kimble led his upstart small school program to the Elite-8 in the 1990 NCAA basketball tournament. The season is chronicled in part of the ESPN 30-for-30 special “Guru of Go”. During that season, Bo’s best friend and teammate Hank Gathers passed away tragically due to a heart condition. Bo and his team dedicated the remainder of the season to the fallen Hank, and now Bo and his fiancé Dr. Tamara Goode, have dedicated their lives to prevention of sudden death at sporting events through their 44-for-Life Foundation.

“Having family members who have been saved thanks to CPR and AED training, we owe a special debt to the workers on the front lines of this issue. The 44-for-Life Foundation provides education, training, and equipment to schools and programs nationwide while providing emotional support to those who have lost family and teammates. Bo and Tami are very special people to us personally and provide more inspiration than just the system.” Added McCord.

McCord’s father-in-law, Jim McCord, was saved twice during his life by CPR and AED’s. Once at age 50, and a second time at age 68.

“The life that my father-in-law led touched so many lives and his life was a direct result of being near people who were trained in heart related life-support. These are skills taught by the 44-for-Life Foundation. More lives will be saved as a result of the things that Bo and Tami are doing and we support their work.”

Jim McCord (left) was able to enjoy many years with family, including son Paul (middle) and grandaughter Taylor (right) thanks to technology (AED) and CRP trained roofer who heroically gave McCord CPR for 20-minutes after he had suffered heart failure in his Venice, Florida home. Doctors credit the CPR for saving his life and preventing brain damage due to oxygen loss in the brain.

44-for-Life’s mission touches First Coast lacrosse in even more direct ways. Several years ago, Fletcher Goal Keeper James Hendrix was struck in the chest with a shot, stopping his heart. His high school coach Josh Covelli, a quick thinking paramedic, was able to revive him utilizing his training and background in lifesaving techniques! The school’s AED was used to shock Hendrix back to a stable heart beat. The incident shows how lives can be saved through technology and education. Hendrix did not have a cardica defect, so he returned to play lacrosse after recovering from his chest injury.

photo courtesy of lacrosse.com - Fletcher head coach Josh Covelli, armed with an AED, helped to save James Hendrix after a shot hit him in the wrong place causing his heart to stop.

Lacrosse has experienced cardiac related deaths similar to basketball. In states like Florida where heat may be a mitigating factor, having CPR trained personnel and every game and AEDs at all sporting events is essential to continuing to prevent cardiac-related deaths. Cornell’s George Boiardi was killed when he was struck in the chest with a ball in 2004.

Dr. Goode and Mr. Kimble will address the JU Women’s lacrosse team on Saturday and share their inspirational story. On Sunday, Bo will serve as honorary game captain when JU takes on conference rival Longwood University. Longwood is the two-time defending conference champion, and has not been defeated in conference play since the inception of the NLC in 2009. JU started their program in 2010 and is the only team in the history of the league to hold a half-time lead against the reining champions.

Morgan Derner (Lake Mary, Florida) uses her speed and fitness to run "the system". Could she be the Hank the Bank of JU lacrosse? Her teammates will honor #44 on Sunday when they take on defending champion Longwood at noon.

“I am so excited to serve as an honorary game captain on Sunday. We are grateful for all the positive messages that are being spread regarding our cause to get AED’s in every school nationwide. The awareness of our foundation and the cause is the most valuable aspect of what we do as a foundation.” Added Kimble.

The JU Women’s team will hold a fundraiser for the 44-for-Life Foundation at the Sunday game. Those wishing to donate may bring checks to “44-for-Life Foundation” or contribute cash. Individuals wishing to become involved with or donate personally to the foundation may visit the website 44forlife.org for more information.

“Their foundation puts into perspective what college sports are all about. If we can use sports as a vehicle to make our society better by developing leaders like Bo and Tami within our program at JU, then we are fulfilling our true duties as coaches. And the
system is fun to run too.” Said McCord.

The Dolphins have already surpassed their regular season win mark from the 2010 campaign where they obtained six regular season wins en route to an 8-11 opening season. They can clinch a winning season by sweeping their opponents this weekend. The Fins, at 2-0 in league play, would put themselves in the driver seat for the NLC regular season title with wins over Liberty and Longwood, each of whom sport undefeated conference records (2-0 and 3-0 respectively). JU defeated conference foes High Point (7-2, 2-1) 17-10 and pesky Davidson (1-8, 0-2) 13-9 last weekend. Davidson defeated JU twice in their first season, including the conference semi-finals when they dropped JU in a heart breaker 10-9 in the final minutes.

“Every game is a championship game to us. Every opponent is dangerous. We have to play our game and do our best each time out on the field in order to become a champion. Liberty and Longwood coming into town will present us with another ‘conference tournament’ feel just like last weekend’s games. We have to focus on each game with zoom focus in order to be successful.”

About Bo Kimble:
Featured in the ESPN special series, “30-for-30” in the documentary “Guru of Go”.
Played prep basketball at Dobbins Tech in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Player at USC as a freshmen before transferring to Loyola Marymount
Led #11 seed LMU to the elite-8 in the 1990 NCAA tournament
Led the nation in scoring his senior season, 35.3 points per game
Drafted in the first round of the 1990 NBA Draft (8th overall by Denver)
Currently on the Board of Directors of the ’44-for-Life Foundation’
44-for-Life Website

A JU/LMU History:
Bo’s LMU team played against JU during his senior year. Bo matched up against Dee Brown in a showdown that ended with a 106-105 overtime victory for LMU. The game is considered one of the best basketball games ever played in Jacksonville. The point guard match-up was perhaps the greatest match-up between small-college Division-I point guards of all time. Bo and Dee became friends, competing against each other in the National Basketball Association in future years. Dee Brown was a Jacksonville-area prep product. Hank Gathers was the second player in NCAA history to lead the nation in both scoring and rebounding. The first: Artis Gilmore, a Jacksonville University standout in the early 70′s.

Sunshine Classic: A Show of Strength for Lax in Florida

Bobby Stockton (Nease High School) is one of many JU Dolphins who hail from the Sunshine State. They will be competing Sunday in their HOME STADIUM, EverBank Field! Come out and support them!

Who Would Have Dreamed Five Years ago Lacrosse Would be Played in Everbank Field?

Jacksonville, Florida – The dreams of the Jacksonville Roadside Armadillos have come true. More than thirty years ago a group of roughly thirty men, mostly Naval officers stationed in one of three Jacksonville area bases, started a spark that ignited into a flame and now a blaze. Who would have guessed that the efforts of those men and their families would have come to this?

Sunday at EverBank Field, the dreams of the Roadside Armadillos will be realized. The hopes of lax pioneers like Randy Evans, Ray Carnacelli, Patty Lombardo, Jack Francis, and Mindy McCord (and so many awesome lax pioneers we cannot name them all) will be seen on the perfect grass field in 75 degree placid weather. And every reason why lacrosse will become a major sport in Florida will be realized.

The re-match of the NCAA national title game…the FIRST lacrosse regular season game broadcast live on ESPN…the FIRST exposure for JU Lacrosse on ESPN3. RIGHT HERE. THIS WEEKEND!

But it takes all of YOU spreading the word over the next 24 hours and getting to the event yourself to make it happen! We hope to have 10,000 people attending the game. This will cover the expenses of ESPN (which is broadcasting both games in different ESPN networks), the stadium fees, and the travel fees for the teams coming to the games.

The lasting effects on the area of this game will be tremendous. The ability to talk more about the sport of lacrosse and why it is going to be a major sport on the youth, prep, and collegiate levels in Florida will be answered.

On a side note, the NATION will see Jacksonville as a cosmopolitan metro-plex, with great beaches, fantastic winter weather, and a sport other than football that is important. Being a football person with a Super Bowl under his belt (which is growing at a scary rate), I can honestly tell you that football and lacrosse are two great sports that co-exist very well. The Baltimore metro-area has the Ravens, the Orioles, and countless college lacrosse programs as well as major league lacrosse and indoor pro teams!

No sport has ever been diminished by lacrosse, which preaches multi-sport participation in its core tenants. Lacrosse is a sport that is one of our nation’s original games. Therefore, elements of football, baseball, basketball (which was created by a lacrosse player), and soccer crossover into lacrosse. The more sports you play, the easier it is to pick up a stick and play lacrosse. Likewise, playing lacrosse makes you a better overall athlete for those other sports.

It is our nation’s First Sport. And now we need everyone to make it the First Coast’s sport on Sunday. See you there at the tailgate (tailgating starts at 10am!), or for one of the double header faceoffs (JU vs. Georgetown at noon; Duke vs Notre Dame at 3pm).

Please don’t forget about the opportunity for our local youth players, boys and girls, to see the teams practice sessions on Saturday at the Jaguars practice facility. A special thanks to the Jags, and Maurice Jones-Drew for all their help in promoting and supporting the event!

Moe’s Sunshine Classic Brings Team Building Opportunity to First Coast Lax Teams

The Nationally Televised Event Will Also Grow the Sport Exponentially in Florida


Jacksonville Florida – It was just this past April when Jacksonville University’s director of athletics and I sat down at a local Cracker Barrel for breakfast to discuss a wild idea. Having seen major lacrosse in stadiums across the north during months of the year when the temperature makes the sport tough to enjoy (it is a spring sport in most places), I thought it would be really great to have some big games in a stadium in the southeast.

JU being the new kids on the block for men’s lacrosse in the southeast had a great inaugural season under the leadership of Matt Kerwick. Coach Kerwick is one of the best college coaches at being accessible to the local lacrosse community and building the sport. Having a stadium event would provide access to thousands of lacrosse people to a quality stadium event while exposing the event to thousands in Florida and the south who may have never heard of the event.

Duke and Notre Dame signed on, Georgetown agreed to be a part of the program, and the city of Jacksonville stepped up and embraced the idea and the rest is history. The Moe’s Southwest Grill Sunshine Classic is born! Now there is an exciting lacrosse event in Florida that can take the sport of lacrosse to new heights. As many as 100 high school boys and girls teams are planning on attending the event as a team. Local people who have never seen lacrosse are signing on, with ticket prices starting at just $25.50 (for two games), the price is right.

EVENT PARTICULARS

February 20th may be a bad time to play lacrosse in Detroit, Boston, and Philly, but in Florida, 2.20.2011 is just fine!

Teams will have a chance to tailgate in the parking lots and team bond before the event, sit together inside the stadium and see two great lacrosse games up close and personal, and for some, enjoy a ride home full of memories. What is not to like about that?

Check out this seating map. EverBank Field has never been used for lacrosse before, but the stands are right on top of the field. It’s going to be a great event. For more information on how you can get your team involved, contact the stadium box office for group tickets. Club seats are the way to go for lax fans – they are right behind the benches for the teams and have premium amenities. There are no team discounts for club seats, but the seats are just 20% of the cost of a normal club seat. Unreal.

Gold: $39.50, Orange: $34.50, Green: $25.50 (both games included. ALL ticket fees included)

To buy tickets for a group, call 904-630-3958. If you are bringing a charter bus, parking is $40 for the bus, and a special tailgate lot will be set up for your team!

The event is being sponsored by Moe’s Southwest Grill. Florida lax-buff Brad Chasteen, a Moe’s franchisee, has been spearheading growth of the sport over the past five years. The event will bring together the southern lacrosse community in a venue reflective of the growth and strength of this rapidly expanding sport. It will be great to bring everyone together in fellowship of the sport.

FHSAA Votes to Change Lacrosse Start-Date

Gainesville, Florida - The FHSAA heard, and they reacted. In a quick and decisive motion today in Gainesville, the FHSAA board of directors, led by the leadership of director of athletics Cristina Broska, passed a proposed schedule that was nearly unanimously recommended by a survey of almost 100 coaches and athletic directors. Immediately following the meeting, Mrs. Broska released an email to her lacrosse list serve of officials and athletic directors that stated:

“This morning, the FHSAA Board of Directors voted on an item to change the start/finish date of lacrosse for this season. For the 2010-11 school year, the season’s first practice date is January 31, with the finals being held on May 7.”

District tournaments will be held the week of April 18-22nd with the state finals weekend being played on May 7th. This better aligns Florida’s calendar with neighboring Georgia and creates a more ‘spring’ feel for the sport, which is played in the spring at the prep and collegiate levels nationwide.

The survey was conducted by Chris Claussen, a long-time lacrosse advocate, coach, and purveyor of the sport in Naples, Florida. A former college player in New England, Claussen saw a lot of conflicts between his soccer playing dual-sport athletes on the girls side and sought an easier way to keep the girls from being placed in a catch-22. Choose one or the other.

Programs from Vero Beach to Bartram Trail and all areas in between took place in the survey.

JU Men Rock The Mount 14-7 in Decisive Win in Jax

Kerwick One Win Away From His 100th Career Victory

Jacksonville, Florida - In a game that was filled with uncertainties, the JU men’s lacrosse team was anything but, racing away from Mt. St. Mary’s in the second half, 14-7, in a physical game at the Ashley Sports Complex.
The Dolphins (2-3) managed to weather a 9-24 night from the faceoff ‘X’ and put together a five-goal run spanning from the third to fourth quarter before putting the game away late in the fourth.

Freshman Cameron Mann scored his second hat trick in as many games and added two assists while freshmen Nick Scalzo and Donovan Lange also contributed three goals apiece on a night that saw 11 Dolphins record points. Senior goalie Brad Hester returned to his fine form, making nine saves, including six in the second half.

The Mountaineers (0-2) were led by a three-goal performance from Cody Lehrer while Jake Willertz scored two of his own. Goalie T.C. DiBartolo finished the game with seven saves on the night.

“I’m really happy with the performance tonight,” said JU head coach Matt Kerwick. “We preached to the guys to play 60 minutes of lacrosse because we know the effort is there it just sometimes falls off. We went up against a great team and a great goalie so this was nice win for us.”

The Dolphins played the Mountaineers to a tough first quarter, ending 2-2, while the rain began to fall heavily around the field. Lange put JU on the board with 4:11 remaining in the half and Mann scored three minutes later before a quick response at the end of the quarter from Lehrer evened the score.

The Dolphins opened up the second quarter with a bang when TJ Kenary scored a spectacular behind-the-back goal after a great look from freshman Max Gurowski from behind the goal. The hosts would score 42 seconds later on a man-up goal when Ryan Serville took a skip pass from Mann to put the Dolphins up 4-2.

The third quarter saw the Dolphins pull away from the Mountaineers with goals coming from Lange Mann and two from Scalzo as JU outscored The Mount 4-1. The last three goals of the quarter were a part of a five-goal run that stretched into the fourth quarter with goals from Mann and Lange. The Dolphins have gone on a five-plus goal run in three of their five games this year.

The Mountaineers submitted a late comeback bid with three goals in four minutes but the Dolphins would pull away at the end, finishing the game on a four-goal, nine minute run.

The man-up unit for Jacksonville started to find its rhythm in this game, scoring three times with goals from Serville, Mann and Dan Jones while the man-down defense excelled, giving up just two goals on six attempts. JU has committed fewer penalties than its opponent in every game this year.

The Dolphins hit the field on Friday night at 7 p.m. when they face Providence at the Ashley Sports Complex as Kerwick looks for his 100th career win. The game will also be broadcast live on www.ASun.tv

Jacksonville Men Nearly Defeat All-Stars in Fall Ball Finale

Jacksonville, Florida – Jacksonville University unveiled the first Division I team in the history of Florida collegiate lacrosse on Saturday and the team of nearly all freshman came within a goal of upsetting a group of professional lacrosse players, including several Major League Lacrosse players and National Lacrosse League players. The Young Fins held a 1-goal advantage going into the fourth quarter before a late run by the All-Stars who narrowly escaped play with a 17-16 victory at the exhibition. Nearly 500 fans came out to watch the game which was free of charge and featured several behind the back goals and big plays on both sides of the ball.

Ryan Serville (Ontario/St. Mary’s) led Jacksonville with four goals from his attack position. The 6’3″ Canadian U-19 player stood tall against the huge All-Star defenseman who averaged 6’4″ and 245 pounds. “He (Serville) has great balance and soft hands. Every one of our stick checks he eluded or took, and even though he’s a bigger kid he kept his leverage and was crafty with his feet.” commented one of the All-Star defenseman.

Leading one of several strong JU midfield lines was Culver Bradley (Maryland/Huntingtown), Donovan Lange (Maryland/Northeast), Cam Mann (Connecticut/Salisbury School) proved to be a tough dodging threats, giving the All-Stars all they could handle. Nick Scalzo (New York/Webster Thomas) provided attack support with multiple goals and assists on the afternoon.

“What was most impressive about the JU team was how they did not back down against us,” commented NLL player and Boston Cannon Bryan Bendig. “We jumped out to a strong lead and next thing you know the score was tied. That took a lot of fight on their part. Most of us (All-Stars) feel that in a year or two they (Jacksonville University) will be a real force, but they have some good things going on now. It was a great game to play in and to watch.”

“Coach Kerwick told me before the game that he had a very deep midfield. They ran really well all game.”

The JU Men’s lacrosse program open their regular season at home against perennial powerhouse and ACC-foe North Carolina (UNC) on February 6th in a historic event that features a women’s game against University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). The games will mark the first Division I lacrosse games played by a Florida Division I institution. Including the neighboring states South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, Jacksonville University will become the first Division I men’s and women’s programs in the deep south to compete in an NCAA regular season contest. A tremendous milestone for the sport of lacrosse and for JU.

In recognition of its leadership role in lacrosse, JU is also working on a capital campaign for a lacrosse facility and has created a lacrosse booster organization called the Lacrosse Legacy Club (or LLC). To get involved in either the men’s or women’s programs as a member of the LLC, contact either Coach McCord (mmccord@ju.edu) or Coach Kerwick (mkerwic@ju.edu).

Season tickets are available by contacting Nikki Swanson at (904) 256-7444 or nswanso1@ju.edu.

The Girls are Lumped with the Boys in Duval County

Jacksonville, Florida - Female student-athletes are being lumped and penalized based on their male sport counterparts shortcomings according to Duval County director of athletics Jon Fox in a meeting to explain why girls and boys lacrosse programs would be held out of district and FHSAA competition for the 2010 school season. According to Fox, the boys programs lacked support of organized officials and coaches, and could not compete with the Bolles school on a competitive level and therefore both the girls and the boys needed to take a step back and not compete with schools like Bolles at all for a period of two years.

Three of four girl’s lacrosse District One Finalists last year were Duval County schools, each with substantial winning records. Mandarin dropped a heart-breaking 1-goal decision in the championship game to Fleming Island.

He believes the move, which restricts the programs to participating against only Duval opponents whom he cited as less competitive, will make the lacrosse programs more competitive. The logic of this decision was tested by area coaches who noted that it would be tough to improve by not competing against better quality opponents.

No move was slated to move football out of FHSAA dispite Duval County football programs lack of competitive games with the Bolles School’s football program over the past decade. Duval schools have being outscored more than 500-100 over a 6-year span, an average score of 48-7 during that time.

As Mr. Fox explained, “Why would we want to play teams if we cannot be competitive.” Again, no move was made to move football, or girls and boys soccer (teams from Duval County are routinely ‘mercy ruled’ by non-county schools) from the ranks of district play. Only lacrosse.

The most disturbing element of the meeting came when Mr. Fox admitted that he made a mistake when he did not properly address the girls sport separately from the boys sport, causing the girls to reap the same consequences although not creating the same issues.

“We have never had an incident at a girls lacrosse game in Duval County, other than the county field liners never paint a safe, accurate field,” commented Jacksonville University coach Mindy McCord. “I have officiated games in Duval County for the past three years. I spend time after the games talking to the coaches and teams and helping them out. It is a very helpful community. The biggest issue we had was the fields never being painted correctly and that was a result of the county workers and not the coaches, players, officials and parents. It is a shame that so many girls will be left behind in their developmental process because of a few isolated incidences on the boys side. Even those incidences should have been handled at the time and not collectively slid to this level. You could make the same arguments for issues in other sports if you wanted to.”

One of the issues that was cited by Fox was a game two seasons ago that was played without officials. The decision was made by the coaches of the teams, one of whom was a Duval County coach. During that game, a young man was seriously injured. What AD Fox failed to mention was that there was no school game administrator present at the game. Normally, school administrators make the decisions to play or not to play in these situations as coaches are not seen to be objective.

This is also mandated in the county’s sports contract. A game administrator, who works full-time at the school, must be present for all county contests and would have made the decision to cancel the game due to lack of officials present.

No game administrator was present at that contest. Someone was nearly killed. Mr. Fox blames lacrosse’s lack of officials and a coach’s decision on the incident.

Obviously the assigner of officials was somewhat responsible for not having more games with enough officials. He is no longer assigning officials for the boys game. That change was made by the Florida Lacrosse Officials Association and it forced a split between the women’s and the men’s organizations to better organize both groups. There has not been a girl’s lacrosse game cancelled due to lack of officials since the sport became assigned officially four years ago.

Safety was also a primary reason cited. But the county holds the responsibility for accurately painting the fields and policing the coaches of all sports teams and neither has been done correctly since becoming an FHSAA sport two years ago in Duval County. There was a test that the district required all coaches to take. While there was never a girls rules test, they put an outdated boys rules test into the system. Wasn’t that supposed to be the answer to knowing ‘lacrosse’ before being permitted to coach the sport?

Meanwhile, other areas have thriving lacrosse programs throughout the State. Only Duval County has chosen to remove their teams from District consideration.

Mr. Fox claims that the school principles made the decision and there is absolutely nothing that can be done at this juncture.

The move is unfortunate for the boys and the girls. The girls of which seem to be innocent bystanders in the process, having their participation opportunities removed as a result of the so-called boys mistakes.

All other sports, which apparently are well-run, will continue as planned for the 2009-10 sport season. The girl’s programs plan on filing a complaint with the district administration.

JU Braves Uncharted Waters for Lacrosse in Florida

Jacksonville, Florida – It seems like it was just yesterday that JU director of athletics Allan Verlander was announcing Florida’s first Division I tandem of lacrosse. There were many questions. Who will coach the team? Where will the teams play? Who will the teams play? Will JU be able to compete at the Division I level? And what is lacrosse?

Many of those early questions have been answered. JU named Mindy McCord Director of lacrosse and head women’s coach out of the gate. They conducted an exhaustive four-month search for their men’s coach before naming Team USA assistant coach Matt Kerwick their inaugural men’s coach. The school is building a new mulit-million dollar turf field-track stadium and installing new locker rooms for lacrosse. The programs put together some pretty impressive first year schedules, with the men opening with powerhouse UNC (#6), and facing other national favorites like Duke (#3), Hofstra (#10). The women open with established DI program UMBC (#40) , and other top-40 programs Louisville, Oregon, Johns Hopkins, and new cross-state rival Florida, who begins their first season of lacrosse two years after hiring their head coach, Mandy O’Leary.

If they will be competitive or not at the Division I level will have to be the question in a few years, but they have done all the right things to get themselves to that point thus far. Not the least of which was both program’s coordinated recruiting efforts. The men’s program will have forty men competing for playing time this Fall and the women’s will have thirty. That should provide them with plenty of good young players from which to build on as they try to establish themselves. Some of these players are very impressive and a few are previewed on the JUDolphins.com website.

http://www.judolphins.com/news/default/184/13509/ (women’s preview)
http://www.judolphins.com/mlacrosse/news/173/13506/ (men’s preview)

So, it looks like it should be exciting for JU. Most importantly, JU has answered the question to the campus at Jacksonville University “What is lacrosse?”

Coach Kerwick and Coach McCord have held several camps on campus. Almost 1,000 kids have attended camp at the university. Both the men’s and women’s program launched successful club programs last year. Several of those players will be competing for roster spots this Fall. Coach Kerwick founded a local club program (Team Fin/Finslax.com) to help the area’s boys learn the game under his tutelage. There have been numerous clinics and coaching visits with local coaches to build the sport. Both programs have done their fair share in building the sport and awareness of the sport on the First Coast.

With school starting in a couple weeks and Fall lacrosse also kicking off at the Division I level for the first time on the First Coast, it will be exciting to see the programs in person up close and personal. The JU Women are planning on scrimmaging during the First Coast Fall Ball season to show the local girls what college lacrosse looks like and most importantly, what they practice like. The more role models for local kids, the better!

Stay tuned for more updates about lax developments on the First Coast right here!

Organizing a Parent’s Club that Supports your Team Positively

St. Johns, Florida – Nothing can be more useful than a parents club. At the same time, nothing can be a greater distraction to a head coach and consequently his or her players. When I founded the Bartram Trail girls program five years ago, I chose not to have a parents club because I did not want to have a group of parents to ‘manage’. It was a new program. Most parents did not even know the rules or the expectations of the game. The kids were having fun. The director of athletics had someone to open the gate to the field and collect gate receipts. What else was there?

That philosophy may have worked for me, but it does not work for most coaches who want help running the gate, managing concessions, and providing support in the booth for play-by-play and/or scoreboard. Helping out with odds and ends.

Then there is the over-active parents boards. The parents who tell the coaches what to do and how to manage the program effectively. I know a highly experienced coach who once had a parent president tell her that she was not allowed to send group emails to her team unless they were cleared by the booster club first. And how about the parents who intervene on their child’s behalf in team matters….when their ‘child’ is a senior captain of the team! I have seen it all.

So where do you start? With a team ‘board member’ code of conduct. If parents want to be a part of the team board, they have to agree to the rules as stipulated by the head coach and hopefully the athletic administration. Sample rules include:

1) There is absolutely no dialogue with to take place between board members and the head coach over playing time (HUGE conflict of interest).
2) Board members must respect the on field decisions of the coach and support them without question when speaking with other parents involved with the team (insubordination).
3) Parent volunteers must arrive on time for assigned duties and are forbidden from using alcohol of tobacco products during the event. Parents may not arrive to their station following the consumption of alcohol (embarrassment and team liability).
4) Any program issues will be brought to the attention of the head coach first (chain of command/respect of the head coach) prior to addressing with athletic directors or principals.

And you can feel free to add and embellish these as much as you would like. Point is, the parents in the booster club, or your volunteer lax organization must agree to support you and the program. If they cannot do this, there is no point in having parents involved other than from the stands. If they complain about not having a snack bar, too bad. Sign the parent conduct paperwork for the program or keep quiet!

Most parents will agree to support the team positively. If this is the case, and I hope it is, then structure your parents based on what is important for your home and away contests. Here is an example of a simple way of doing it without having too many people involved (it does not require 12 parents to support a lax team).

* Snack Bar Supervisor – Stocks and assigns volunteer workers for the fund raising snack bar at each home game.
* Game Day Supervisor – Assigns volunteers for the gate, field set up, score keepers, and game announcer/music person.
* Team Meal Coordinator – Works with the coach on a budget for team meals and assigns which games will have team meals. Assigns volunteers for each team meal (if needed).
* Away Game Chaperone – If needed, this person provides extra ‘security’ at away games and also watches over the team if needed. Also can coordinate a hotel rooming list and bed check if staying overnight.
* Team Fund Raiser – This person helps the head coach raise any funds for the program. Perhaps there is a goal of $2,000 to raise. This person outlines a couple of easy fundraisers, like the online Goal-a-Thon run by Team Jumper, and then provides the documentation needed to be successful.
* Team Program Supervisor – this person works WITH the Fund Raiser to assemble a team program that features advertisements and sponsorships of the program. Nowadays, anyone can produce these programs online and have Fed-Ex Kinkos or MediaWorks produce a game program for very little expense. $200 or less to produce with an advertiser income for the program of about $1,000. It is a great way to recognize your seniors and provide a roster for games each week.

Notice that there are always volunteers needed. If you have folks that agree to volunteer for small jobs, you will need to have someone there to manage them or at least make their life organized so the volunteers can manage themselves. All in all, if you have 4 or 5 ‘dedicated’ parents on your high school team and ’4 or 5′ volunteers, you can make it through a season and have an excellent program.

At the end of the season, sit down and meet with your Parent’s Club and talk about what went well and what they would like to improve upon. Be sure to keep them at arms length and remain professional. It is tough to have ‘friendships’ with anyone who has an agenda outside of the team’s best interests and most parents feel that the team’s best interests are either their own or their child’s playing time/experience. Be careful and be professional at all times around parents. Be polite and be friendly but do not become a ‘buddy’.

One coach told me “I have yet to meet a parent who valued the program’s welfare over their kid’s own self-interest.”

Best of luck in your journey to build a successful parent’s club!