Practices in Full Swing Throughout the North

With new teams entering the MBSLA North Division and new youth lacrosse teams also participating in the MBSLA this Spring, lacrosse in the North is as strong as ever.  One of the longest running northern Minnesota lacrosse teams has also revamped their coaching staff for the coming year.  As practices shift into full gear throughout the North, we'll start to look at team schedules and team previews in preparation for the first games of the season on April 14.  We'll also look at can't miss games in the North during the season.

Grand Cities and Proctor are the two new teams in the North in 2012.  Grand Cities is a co-op based team out of the Grand Forks, ND area that includes players from Grand Forks, East Grand Forks, MN and Warren, MN.  Grand Cities head coach is Aaron Cabanaw and he will be assisted by Cameron Willox and Kelly Hurt.  Grand Cities will play their first game on April 14 against Duluth in Duluth, MN.

Proctor will also be competing in the MBSLA North for the first time in 2012.  Initiated by player interest, the team is looking forward to the coming season under the guidance of head coach Steve Lokken.  Those familiar with Lokken, a former St. Johns University attackman, know that he will prepare his team well for their inaugural season.  Proctor opens play against Duluth on April 14 in Duluth, MN.

Another great sign for the growth of the sport in the North is the addition of a 5/6 level team in Duluth that will compete in the Spring MBSLA league in 2012.  The team presently has 25 players on its roster and the interest in the team has been almost overwhelming.  The team will have an 8 game schedule with an additional tournament to be added at the end of the season.  They will have a couple of scrimmages against the new Grand Rapids 5/6 team this Spring.  In another great development for northern Minnesota lacrosse, Grand Rapids will also be fielding a 5/6 team this Spring.  They won't be competing in the MBSLA this season but will be playing a series of scrimmages against other 5/6 teams including Duluth.

Stay tuned for more updates and the Spring lacrosse season in the North unfolds!

2012 NILL Champions Crowned

The 2012 NorthCoast Indoor Lacrosse League wrapped up last Sunday with an upset, some exciting play and an undefeated champion. It was a great way to finish a fun season of lacrosse in northern Minnesota.

Both Team 1 - Honey Badgers and Team 3 - Wieczorek moved on in the first round of the playoffs as the result of forfeits. Unfortunately, the Grand Rapids teams could not make the trip down due to several players missing because of vacation, injury or other reasons. Though they were unable to field teams for the final week of play, their presence in the league this season made the NILL that much better and more fun to play.

The first game of round two pitted the young and feisty Honey Badgers (the Honey Badgers just didn't care, they wanted to play some lacrosse, Honey Badger don't give a sh**! :-) team against the undefeated powerhouse Free Agents who secured the #1 seed in the tournament. The Honey Badgers scored early and played with the Free Agents for awhile until the more experienced team finally warmed up. Once warm, the Free Agents put on a clinic, easily outpacing the Honey Badgers and moving on to the championship game with a convincing 17-7 victory.

Scott Wishart led the way for the Free Agents with 6 goals and an assist.  Bobby Moore scored 4 goals and added an assist, Brandon Nispel and Alex Rogers each had 3 goals and an assist, Xander Hasan added a goal and Brandon Gilseth had an assist for the Free Agents in game 1.

For the Honey Badgers, who saw their season end with the loss, Bryce Holak led the way with 2 goals and an assist, Zack Zierden added two goals, and Dan O'Connell, Jesse Larson and Andy Holak all added a goal.

2012 regular season scoring leader Matt Reeves (L)

Game 2 was the best game of the night, providing an unexpected upset.  Team 3 - Wieczorek played extremely well in a 10-9 upset of #2 seeded Team 2 - Halver.  Team 3 jumped out to an early lead behind goals from Brody Carlson and Silas Wieczorek.  Team 2 kept it close, but by late in the second half, the score was 10-6 in favor of Team 3.  In the last few minutes of the game, Team 2 battled back to cut the lead to one, at 10-9.  One last possession for Team 2 but it was too late and the clock ticked down to 0:00.  The comeback fell just short, and Team 3 moved on to the championship game to face the undefeated Free Agents.

Team 3 was led by Brody Carlson and his 4 goals and one assist.  In support, Silas Wieczorek, Jimmy Bendas and Josh Beery each scored 2 goals apiece.  Team 2 was led by Zach Galo with 3 goals, Steven Halver with 2 goals and an assist, Mitch Smerz and Britton Harris with 2 goals each, and Tyler Kolquist with 2 assists.

2012 NILL Champions - Free Agents

In the first NILL Championship game the Free Agents (8-0) matched up against Team 3 - Wieczorek (3-4-1), coming off a very well played game and looking good.  The final started somewhat sluggishly for each team, but Team 3 played a better first half and took a 5-4 lead into halftime.  In the second half, the Free Agents wore down Team 3 and started to stretch the lead.  With a lead of 7 at one point in the second half and several unanswered goals for the Free Agents, Team 3 got hot near the end, but it was too late and the Free Agents were crowned the first NILL champions with a 14-9 victory over Team 3.

Brandon Nispel led the way in the championship game with 4 goals.  Scott Wishart added 3 goals and 5 assists, Brandon Gilseth had 2 goals and 2 assists, Bobby Moore had a goal and an assist, and Xander Hasan, Mike Feldstein, Alex Rogers, and Matt Kampmeyer each scored a goal for the champs.

NILL Runners Up - Team 3 - Wieczorek

Brody Carlson again led Team 3 with 3 goals and 2 assists while Jimmy Bendas added 2 goals and 3 assists, Silas Wieczorek scored a goal and added an assist, and Kyle Limoseth, Josh Beery and Ian Wieczorek all added a goal.

It was a great first season for the NILL with excellent lacrosse, clean play for the most part and clear improvement from the first game to the last for the high school players.  If the turf is again available for next season, we would like to start the league in December and add a couple games to the season.  Also, we are considering a summer 7 v.7 league with a very similar format to the indoor league, but played outdoors.  8-10 game season plus playoffs, one game per week.  Let me know if you'd be interested in a summer league like this.  Thanks to all who participated!

Instructional Video of the Week: Defending Goal Line Extended

Finally some good instructional videos for the Defense!

Speaking of Sports Domes in Duluth and Bulldogs Lax

Yesterday's post discussed what might be holding the UMD Bulldogs lacrosse team from really breaking through and making a splash in the MCLA national tournament.  The Bulldogs play a demanding regular season schedule and have faced numerous top 10 ranked teams this season.  Just yesterday, they faced #17 Colorado.  This game would be true to form for just about every single game this season in which they faced a top ranked team.  The Bulldogs were tied 5-5 at halftime and then completely outscored in the second half, falling to the Buffaloes by a 14-7 score.  Same thing happened against #3 BYU.  Tied 5-5 at the half only to fall by a final 16-8 score.  Same against #2 UC-Santa Barbara.  Ahead 4-3 at the half, lose by a score of 12-5.

Could it be as suggested in yesterday's article that the Bulldogs facilities are holding them back and they just simply run out of juice at the end of games?  They don't have the opportunity to run up and down a field in practice when they're stuck in half of a field house and they can't fully prepare as the teams from warmer weather climates with better facilities can at this stage of the season.

What Duluth needs for lacrosse and for other activities is a dedicated sports dome facility that could be utilized by the Bulldogs lacrosse team as well as the area high school lacrosse teams during the winter and early spring.  Two weeks ago, the Duluth Parks and Recreation Commission hosted Mark Bigelbach, the developer of several sports dome facilities in the Twin Cities, to give an informational presentation about building a sports dome in Duluth.  The Parks and Recreation Commission reacted positively and will be pursuing the possibility of developing this type of facility in Duluth.  You can see the news report about the meeting below.  Could this be the dawning of a new day for lacrosse in the Duluth area?  Perhaps.  If you like this idea, please contact the Mayor of Duluth and the City Council to express your support for developing a sports dome facility in the City of Duluth.  It's already about 5 years overdue.

Will the Bulldogs Break Through?

Very interesting article about what's holding the UMD Bulldogs lacrosse team back.  What it comes down to, according to Coyne, is facilities.  Duluth lacks the facilities to allow them to practice effectively through the long winter months leading up to the lacrosse season.  Hard to argue that point.  New sports dome in Duluth anyone???


Schooling Schooler: Will the Dawgs Break Through?

by Jac Coyne | LaxMagazine.com

By most standards, Minnesota-Duluth would have to be considered among the traditional elites of the MCLA. They play as tough a schedule as any program in the country, and there are only six other teams that have more than the Bulldogs nine appearances in the national tournament – BYU, Colorado, Colorado State, Simon Fraser, Sonoma State and UC Santa Barbara.

If it's not elite, Duluth sure is running in elite company, anyway.

UMD's leading scorer - Senior attackman Kevin Gaydos

The only knock on the Dawgs is they have never had a breakthrough season along the way. Five of the six aforementioned teams have a national championship to their credit, and Simon Fraser made it to the national championship game in 1999. Duluth, on the other hand, has never advanced past the quarterfinal round, and exited in the first round in five of the nine years. They came close to the semis in both 2007 (losing to Oregon) and 2008 (ASU), but the Bulldogs have never made it to the big stage.

Sometimes you can pinpoint deficiencies with some programs and easily pick up on why they aren't having success, but Duluth doesn't outwardly exhibit any of them. They are clearly a serious team, as their schedule displays on an annual basis, and they have had coaching continuity. While Rob Graff, the architect of the team, stepped down two years ago, he was replaced by his acolyte, Frank Clark, who made only cursory changes to the way the program was run. And there's definitely talent – every year the All-American teams are littered with UMD players

So what is holding the Dawgs back?

I would argue that they are being leashed by their conference. The Upper Midwest Lacrosse League is currently a six-team entity that rarely has a team other than Duluth make an impact on the national scene. Mankato State received a bid back in 2000 and Minnesota snagged the UMLL auto-qualifier in 2005, but forays to other regions by those two teams this season have not been pretty (combined 2-5). And just two years ago, the conference actually had to contract as both Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Wisconsin-Stevens Point folded.

With a weak conference comes weak seeds, and Duluth has lived and died with its match-ups at nationals. The Dawgs have been a 14-seed or worse four times and they were wiped out in the first round each time. Four times they were a sixth seed or better, and each one of those resulted in a trip to the quarterfinals.

To their credit, UMD has always played a grueling non-conference schedule to make up for its conference shortcomings, but that means the margin of error is very small. If you can't pick up a signature win along the way, you're not going to make up for it in conference play like schools in the SLC and RMLC have the ability to do.

This season has played out to form, with four comfortable wins against UMLL teams followed by consecutive losses to the Nos. 2, 3, 4 and 5 teams in the country. Barring a sweep this weekend in the desert against Arizona State and Colorado, the Dawgs will once again be flirting with the No. 16 seed.

Nick, you've seen Duluth over the years and you watched them play Santa Barbara this spring. Is there something I'm missing, or is the conference just not strong enough to give the Dawgs what they need right now?

SCHOOLER: For the 12 years that I have been following this league, Minnesota-Duluth has been one of the most charismatic teams out there.

In high school, I remember talking to my dad, an MCLA fanatic, on the phone when he was watching the national championships in St. Louis. He was telling me about this team from Minnesota that only had 17 or so players. He said they tried so hard, but were just run down by the other teams. He also said that they looked pretty good, but seemed to have a lot of box lacrosse influence in their game. That was their first year in the tournament.

The Bulldogs have come a long way since that time, consistently fielding teams with 30-plus players, including a handful of goalies. They continue to take on the top teams in order to make a better run at the national championship title. In recent years, they have put together some of the toughest in the league. They participate in at least one top-tier round-robin type trip every year and have a grueling travel schedule.

I remember one such round-robin trip back in 2004 at the University of Michigan. There were four teams: Michigan, Colorado State, UCSB, and Minnesota-Duluth. The 'Dawgs were trounced by all three teams while Michigan delivered UCSB's only loss of the season, CSU beat Michigan, and UCSB beat CSU. Duluth was like a younger brother playing with his older brother and his friends; they were outmatched.

This is not the case anymore. The little brother grows up; he gets bigger and stronger and the playing field levels out. What I saw out of Duluth in Santa Barbara last week was just that. They looked pretty good – definitely better than their No. 16 ranking. Their goalie was solid. The coaching was on point, locking off the UCSB middies with long-poles and shutting down the attack with shorties. While I still see a little box lacrosse influence in their game, all of their players can handle the ball and rip quality shots from outside. They just ran out of gas in the second half. That has been a theme for them early on this season - great first halves, poor second halves.

What I see lacking in their game are two things: endurance and facilities. These are not mutually exclusive. After the game, I heard some parents talking about the facilities that the Bulldogs use.

Because of the extreme weather in the Midwest, they have to practice in a fieldhouse. They only have access to a half-field for practice. That has to make conditioning an issue. How can you get used to running up and down a field if you only have half of one? You can't. It also limits the amount of time each player gets to see field time in practice. Many teams will focus on defense on one half of the field and offense on the other half. Duluth cannot do that.

Most importantly, the Bulldogs do not have many home games. Looking over their past schedules, I notice that they only have one to two home games per season at home in Griggs Stadium. Occasionally they will host a team in Minneapolis, but that is just like a road trip.

You gain a lot of confidence by winning at home. The support of your friends and family at games is important. When you know the cute girl from your writing or biology class is watching, you may put a little more effort into the game. You want to impress people in your social circles.

So until Duluth can find a home field or raise the millions of dollars to build a field house, they will have trouble competing with the best and succeeding at nationals. But if they ever break past the quarterfinals, we will all be rooting for them because we know how tough it is for them.

5 Ways to Become a Better Shooter

From LaxAllStars.com

These FIVE Tips can help you become a better shooter in only a couple of weeks:

1) Forget Power, and Focus on Accuracy

It is extremely hard to learn how to shoot hard, and THEN work on your accuracy.  I tried this in high school, and it does NOT work.  The form you develop by focusing on power only is almost universally AWFUL.  Focus on shooting the right way, and focus on putting the ball where you want it, THEN work your way up the power scale.  Without control, pure power is garbage.

2) Train Simple, Train Hard

So many athletes today think they need to have a personal trainer or be on the cusp of training technology.  Bologna.  If you want to shoot accurately and hard, you don’t need a trainer.  You need a pull up bar and some running shoes. Do pulls ups every other day for your back and arms.  Do push ups every other day for your chest and core. Do sit ups or other ab exercises religiously. RUN and work those legs!  Great shooters generate control and power with every portion of their body.  Be strong, train hard and your shooting will improve.  If you are going to hit the gym, focus on Olympic lifts for total body power.

3) Play Wall Ball

It seems like I always use wall ball as a “way to improve”.  This is because it is the SINGLE most important aspect of becoming a good lacrosse player.  If you can really pound the ball off the wall, it means you can catch and then move the ball accurately.  Shooting is very similar, and the skill sets translate effortlessly.  Like I said in point 1, focus on accuracy.  When you shoot on a cage, the ball can go anywhere.  Who cares?  But when you play wall ball, you need to be accurate.  It’s a great shooter’s best friend.

4) Keep Your Shooting Skill Set Diverse

There are guys out there who are time and room shooters (Forrest Sonnenfeldt, Kyle Wharton) and there are guys who are better on the run (Mike Kimmel, Hakeem Lecky) and then there are guys who are great at both (Colin Briggs, Paul Rabil, Jay Jalbert).  You want to be the guy who is great at both. Maybe you’ll be better at one, but practice both.  Going out and ripping shots all day from 13 yards is a mistake.  Take some on run, take some from low angles.  Mix it up and be diverse, because you’ll probably have to do that in a game.  Don’t be a one-dimensional shooter.

5) Partner Up For Better Training

I don’t mind seeing a guy out on a field with a bag of balls all by himself.  Nothing wrong with that at all.  But if you have the chance to partner up when shooting, take it!  It is much easier to replicate catching a pass on the run and then shooting, or catching a pass for a time and room shot when you have someone to throw it to you.  This partner can be a parent, coach or teammate.  Reliance on a partner should NOT be used as an excuse (e.g. my shooting partner can’t make it so I’m going to play video games instead) but it can definitely help you improve!
I’d mention SHOOTING OVERHAND as a sixth tip, but at this point, you should really know better.  Don’t believe me?  Shoot Overhand.  And Shoot Overhand Under Pressure.  There, NOW you should believe me.

Grand Cities Lacrosse Featured on ESPN.com

By Lem Satterfield, ESPNHS

No Distance Too Far

How far will one team go to play lacrosse?

If the team is the Grand Cities Predators, then more than 1,250 miles this season.

Five years ago Brent Lindstrom learned about lacrosse when his son Tanner became interested after watching a game on ESPNU while in Minneapolis for a summer hockey event.

To grow the sport, Brent organized and is an assistant coach with the Grand Cities' Predators Lacrosse team located in Grand Forks, N.D., which will begin its first season of play on April 13.

Their schedule is made up of 16 games -- five at home, six on the road, with a five-game tournament in Grand Rapids, Minn.

The team’s six road games will take them as far away as Providence Academy (Plymouth, Minn.), 306 miles and as close as 80 miles when they play Fargo (N.D.) on May 20.

The Predators are comprised of 17 boys ranging from eighth-to-11th grade from East Grand Forks (Minn.), Warren-Alvarado-Olso (Warren, Minn.), Central Middle School (East Grand Forks, Minn.) and Red River and Central High Schools (Grand Forks, N.D.). The Predators are coached by Aaron Cabanaw, along with assistants Brent Lindstrom, Cameron Willox and Kelly Hurt.

The team brings officials from Minneapolis for each of its home games.

"There is almost no lacrosse background in the area, and the college guys that do know the game are playing for the local college club teams and have their own practices and games," Lindstrom said. "We have to bring our officials in from over 300 miles away in the Minneapolis area and mileage charges are $170 per official each time they come up.”

“Last year in Fargo we played two home games, one on a Friday evening and the other the next day at noon. Two officials, $800 for two games," Lindstrom added.

The Predators play their first game on April 14 against Duluth (Minn.) at Denfield High School (Duluth, Minn.), 267 miles away.

The inaugural Grand Cities Predators are: juniors Jake Dunham, Tanner Lindstrom and Tom Twedell; sophomores Gunnar Bowman, Trey Deck, Nick Gaasvig, Christian Hanson, Christian Hogness, Brandon Johnson, Evan Larson, Pete Schirrick, Aaron Sauve, Tucker Williams, Jake Young and freshman Brady McDonald. Two eighth graders also made the team: Colton Ramsey and Tyler Lindstrom.

UMD Falls to Reigning National Champs

By UMD Lacrosse Media Relations

The rematch against 2011 National Champs BYU

(Duluth, MN --- March 19, 2012) Rounding out an extremely competitive out-of-conference trip that started in California, the Bulldogs headed into the highly anticipated rematch against #3 Brigham Young University, the 2011 National Champions, on Saturday, March 17 in Minneapolis.
“In the past, we have had some very competitive match-ups and we didn’t expect this to be any different. They are well coached and play a very competitive schedule,” said head coach Frank Clark.

The first quarter started out a little rough for the Bulldogs with captain Matt Madden (#17, Rochester, MN) taking an early penalty for holding. Not too long after, BYU was able to secure its first goal by player Drew Shumway (#2). UMD captain Drake Peterson (#15, Terrence Park, Ohio) also received a penalty for pushing in the first quarter. The string of penalties opened the door for BYU to score yet again, this time by Ted Ferrin (#4), putting them ahead of the Bulldogs 2-0.

Though it started out rough, the Bulldogs were ready to answer when Kevin Gaydos (#6, Centenniel HS, MN) passed to Alex McNamara (#10, Apple Valley, MN), who put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard. The first quarter soon turned into a rally of shots from each side. BYU ‘s Corey Gunderson (#17) scored a third goal, but the Bulldogs’ Peterson (#15) answered back on a face-off fast break pass from Justin Vossen (#18, Apple Valley, MN) and put the Bulldogs down by a point, making the score 3-2 at the end of the first quarter.

BYU came on strong in the second quarter which left UMD senior captain Joey Slattery (#25) facing a series of shots . BYU’s Ted Ferrin (#4) was able to get a shot past him, putting them up 4-2. Slattery continued to be a force to be reckoned with at the net, keeping BYU from scoring again until 6:01 remained in the quarter. BYU’s Houghton (#1) would score to widen the gap to 5-2. The Bulldogs continued to rally and an opportunity arose after McNamara (#10) drew a slide dodging from behind and passed to Vossen (#18) on the crease for the goal. BYU saw themselves in a mishmash of penalties for slashing and holding with 3:55 left in the quarter, giving the Bulldogs a 2 man-up advantage. Ben Blaeser (#3, Champlin, MN) took the chance and capitalized on the moment, taking a pass from McNamara (#10) and putting the Bulldogs up another point, making the score 5-4. The Bulldogs secured another goal with: 37 seconds left on the clock. This put both teams on an even par with a tied score of 5-5 at the end of the first half.  “We are in a competitive game, it’s what we expected” said head coach Frank Clark at the half.

BYU saw their second half start out a little rougher than the original start of the game, receiving a 30-second penalty for pushing. At 12:09 BYU’s Ferrin ( #4) scored the first point of the second half. BYU’s Ferrin (#4) continued to have a hot streak, scoring again when the clock read 10:06. Ferrin then found himself in the penalty for being offside. Both UMD players Gaydos (#6) and Matt Murphy (#21, Eden Prairie, MN) took the chance of charging the BYU net, and both walked away with another goal scored for their team, putting the score at 7-6. It was in the latter half of the third quarter when BYU set off on a 4-goal streak, putting them ahead of the Bulldogs 11-7 by the quarter’s end.

BYU continued with their hot streak into the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs kept fighting until the very end of the quarter with McNamara (#10) scoring with: 02 seconds left of the match putting the final score at 16-8.

“BYU is an incredibly talented team, we made some mistakes and they capitalized” said Clark.
Currently, BYU stands with a divisional record of 1-0 and an overall record of 8-1.

The Bulldogs still hold an undefeated record in the UMLC at 4-0, and their overall record now holds at 4-4.

Next up, the #15 Bulldogs hit the road again, but this time to Arizona to take on #8 Arizona State University on Friday, March 23 and #19 Colorado on Sunday, March 25.

Keep up to date with the Bulldogs’ season by checking out umdlacrosse.com and following the team on Twitter @Duluthlacrosse.

Swarm Stars Come to Grand Rapids

From Swarm News

Ryan Benesch and Corbyn Tao in Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids, Minn. - Corbyn Tao took a step and with a long windup, fired a hard shot towards the net.

A crowd comprised of boys and girls sitting only a few feet away in a row of bleachers, watched in awe as the ball whistled by and hit nothing but mesh.

“90 miles an hour,” yelled a brave parent, who clocked the shot with his radar gun near the net.

The now wide-eyed group of kids, applauded in excitement.

It might have been the Swarm’s bye week last weekend, but Tao still found himself doing what he does best: putting on a show with his lacrosse stick.

And Tao wasn’t alone on this particular afternoon. Alongside him was someone who is quite accustomed to finding the back of the net – fellow teammate Ryan Benesch – the Swarm’s leading goal scorer and the NLL’s defending scoring champ.The two found themselves taking shots 3.5 hours north of Treasure Island Field in the city of Grand Rapids this past Saturday while visiting close to 80 kids for a lacrosse clinic.

When Tao and Benesch entered Grand Rapids High School that afternoon, it took only a few short seconds before they felt right at home despite having traveled 200-some miles from St. Paul.

“See that, Corbyn?” asked a smiling Benesch, who pointed to a young girl down the hall sporting his No. 21 player t-shirt.

The two would soon discover that the city of Grand Rapids has been buzzing over the sport of lacrosse for quite some time – and with Swarm fans.

As Tao and Benesch made their way into the gymnasium, the dozens of laxers, who were anxiously awaiting their arrival, greeted the two pros in the midst of passing drill. Several kids in attendance were proudly sporting their orange and black Grand Rapids lacrosse shirts; others donned Swarm tees.

With the sound of a whistle, the group raced to the bleachers and gathered around their Swarm visitors.

A memorable afternoon had gotten underway.

The birth of a program

Four years ago, lacrosse was a foreign word to the 10,869 residents of Grand Rapids. Today, lacrosse has become the sport to play in town.

At first glance, Grand Rapids, which is located 1.5 hours both north of the Brainerd Lakes area and west of Duluth, might night not come to mind when thinking about some of the hotbed lacrosse communities in Minnesota.

But take a visit into town, and you’ll learn quickly that the community has developed a strong connection to the sport. You’ll also meet a group of people that is committed to helping it flourish both on the boys’ and girls’ level.

One of those individuals is Brad Gallop, who helped arrange this past Saturday’s clinic on behalf of the Grand Rapids lacrosse program. When Gallop learned that several Swarm players were going to be in the area to visit SAM 101.5 FM in Aitkin – the radio station that broadcasts Swarm home games in the Brainerd Lakes area – he made every effort to set up a unique opportunity for his program. After a few phone calls, the parties arranged a special meeting in Grand Rapids to have Benesch and Tao stop by for a clinic.

“We’ve been excited for the season to start for quite some time, and then to have it kick off with something like this is just awesome,” Gallop said on having the Swarm visit town.

Gallop, who serves as the head coach of the boys varsity team and wears many different hats in the program, helped jump-start what has become of the Grand Rapids program four years ago. It all started when he decided to host a lacrosse clinic at that time to gauge interest in the sport around town. His inspiration came after he re-discovered his lacrosse sticks that he had played with as a student at the University of North Dakota during the mid '80s.

“I didn’t touch a stick for 20 years, saw it on TV – a college game – pulled the sticks out and I’ve got twins – a boy and a girl – and at the time they were in 7th grade and I said, ‘What do you think about this game?’ They thought it was awesome.”

With his kids fascinated by their newly discovered sport, Gallop decided to send out an invitation at the local arena to attend an “intro to lacrosse clinic.”

“I had 100-some people show up just to see what it was about,” he explained.

But because springtime was winding down and the school’s registration process had already passed, the sport really didn’t take off until the following year. When it did launch, the Grand Rapids program started with just 15 kids. Today, that number has grown considerably to over 100 boys and girls, Gallop says.

“For the kids it’s a no brainer,” he explained. “We get the sticks in their hands, they’re sold.”

Last year, the Grand Rapids boys varsity team featured its first graduating class, and this year Gallop said he expects to have 50 kids competing for varsity and junior varsity spots in just its third year of competitive ball. Gallop also helped launched a 4th/5th/6th grade team this year in an effort to help get kids playing at a younger age.

“We’ve got kids competing, kids invested in it, and so this will be a breakout year for us that way,” Gallop added.

On the girls’ side, the sport has grown just as fast. Around 20 girls attended the clinic, which included a handful of girls who were inspired to pick up a stick for the first time after receiving word of the event.

“All of those girls were playing amongst the boys, wanting to learn, which was great to see,” Benesch said.

Renee Bymark, who serves as the head coach of the girls club team said the program began with 10 girls two years ago, and now has grown to nearly 50 participants.

“I’ve never been involved in a sport like this before, especially starting from the bottom and seeing it grow like it has and with the intensity of the lacrosse community,” Bymark said. “… I expect it to continue to grow.”

While the participation numbers continue to grow across the board, there might be no better way to chart the growth of lacrosse in Grand Rapids than to take a look at what will be taking place the first weekend in May, when the city hosts its annual LAX Shootout tournament.

Because of its size, the Grand Rapids LAX Shootout is held on a local golf course to make room for the 42 teams and 800 participants traveling to the area. All of the teams play a minimum of five games and the weekend event attracts teams from as far away as Winnipeg.

“A lot of organizations make it their primary event,” Gallop said.

To pull off such a large-scale event certainly deserves praise. Take in consideration the following factors: the location of the tournament is 3.5 hours north of a majority of the lacrosse programs in the state; the Grand Rapids lacrosse program is only its fourth year of existence; and most impressive of all, the tournament is held on a golf course. One has to applaud those involved for coordinating one of the premier lacrosse tournaments in the Midwest.

“Obviously to be able to take over a whole golf course and create an event like that and have the community support is huge,” Gallop said.

"Bringing kids together"

Sophomore Grant Gunderson entered Saturday’s clinic eager to take lessons from two of the game’s best. The sophomore midfielder, who was geared up in his “Swarm Lacrosse: It’s Like Hockey… With Balls” t-shirt, could be found with a stick in his hands 15 minutes after the clinic had concluded, still practicing away.

“As soon as I started playing, lacrosse was my new favorite sport,” Gunderson said.

Now in his fourth year of participation, Gunderson is one of the many kids who has joined the lacrosse movement in town, and is enjoying every minute of playing the fastest growing sport in America.

Swarm all-star Ryan Benesch teaching lacrosse skills in Grand Rapids

“For a small town, it’s exploded,” he explained. “It started out really slow, and then one year it doubled. It’s been doubling every year. The kids just love it.”

And when word of Saturday’s clinic reached town, the news traveled fast.

“A couple of the kids in attendance had never played before,” said Kayrn Surface, a parent who helped set up the event. “They heard the radio announcement, and saw it in the paper that the Swarm guys were going to be here, so they wanted to see what the Swarm was all about.”

With Benesch and Tao in attendance, the kids received tips on a wide range of skills ranging from the proper techniques on shooting, passing, dodging, and ground balls.

“It’s good to see that many kids interested in lacrosse and wanting to learn,” Tao said on the turnout. “It’s good for the sport.”

If there’s been one obstacle in the Grand Rapids program, it’s been a lack of coaches. Due to the large growth of the program over the past few years, both Gallop and Bymark noted that they’ll need more coaches to keep up with the rapid growth rate.

With that in mind, the program was ecstatic to have the Swarm around to help coach.

“We’ve never really had that sort of thing before,” said Alexis Tatter, a senior on the girls club team. “… It’s not everyday that we get to have professional people come up here for a sport that we like.”

At the end of the clinic, Benesch and Tao wowed the kids with a few stick tricks and electric shots to the net. The two then proceeded to sign autographs and posed for pictures afterward – several of which reached the phones of Benesch and Tao via Twitter on their drive home.

In just a short matter of time, it was evident that Benesch and Tao had made an impact.

“A few (kids) grabbed registration forms at the end,” Surface said. “…The sport is bringing kids together.”

A trip to ‘The Hive’

In just a little over a month, the Grand Rapids lacrosse program will make the 3.5 hour drive down to the Twin Cities with a group of over 150 people to attend the Swarm’s nationally televised game against current West Division leader Colorado on April 28.

“We’ll be there in full force,” Gallop said. “…It’s going to be a big weekend for Grand Rapids lacrosse.”

It will be a big weekend for the program, not solely because they’ll be at the Swarm game, but because all of the programs’ teams will be spending the weekend in the Twin Cities to compete in tournaments.

And when they do make their visit to Xcel Energy Center, Gallop said it will be fun for the kids to watch Benesch and Tao in particular, now that they’ve gotten to know them.

“It becomes much more personal and exciting for the kids, and I know they’re all looking forward to it,” he added.

Last Saturday’s clinic was certainly a special event for those in the Grand Rapids community, but it was just as enjoyable for Benesch and Tao, who likewise left smiling.

When Benesch learned that the Grand Rapids program would be making the trip down to St. Paul in the coming weeks, he was taken back by their generous support.

“It’s an honor,” Benesch said. “It’s a great feeling when somebody is willing to spend that much time to come watch our team play. We definitely need to put on a great performance for them.”

Bulldogs Lose First of the Season

In the UMD Bulldogs men's lacrosse teams first major test of the season they fell just short losing to #2 ranked Cal-Poly on Saturday March 10 by a score of 9-6. The Bulldogs face another stern test tonight, taking on #5 ranked Chapman University in Orange, CA. Follow all of the UMD Bulldogs lacrosse games on their live Twitter feed http://twitter.com/#!/Duluthlacrosse

UMD player coaching at a lacrosse clinic at Redondo Beach High School in California

Instructional Video of the Week: Faceoff Tips from Anthony Kelly

How to Become a Better Lacrosse Player Away from the Field

How to Become a Better Lacrosse Player Away from the Field

1.  Play wall ball.  Go to the nearest school and pass and catch against the wall. 

2.  If there is an outdoor field or goal nearby – use it!

3.  Play catch at the park or in the backyard with a teammate, friend, parent, or sibling.  If they do not have a stick, have them use a baseball glove and tennis ball.

4.  Place an obstacle in your backyard (pylon, lawn chair, garbage can, etc) and work on your one-on-one moves.  For example, head fakes, shoulder fakes, stick fakes, change of pace, roll dodges, face dodges, bull dodges and split dodges.

5.  Practice cradling in your bedroom, in front of the TV, walking around the house, walking down the street...anywhere!  Practice with you non-dominant hand a equal amount.  Work on stick tricks to improve your feel for the ball and stick skills.

6.  Run around the block while cradling the ball.  If you have a treadmill, jump on the treadmill and practice cradling while running a mile or two on the treadmill and getting a workout in at the same time.  Just start slow so you don’t get shot off the back of the treadmill and injured.

7.  Work on loose balls in your backyard.  Being good at ground balls can make the difference between a first teamer and someone riding the pine.  Practice your groundballs!

8.  Put a piece of tape on a chainlink fence and, using a tennis ball, shoot at it.

9.  Improve your footwork - Improving footwork is an underrated way to improve as a player. So much of what lacrosse players do on the field relies on having quick feet and proper footwork.  A great way to improve footwork is to lay down a training or agility ladder and go through a few routines repetitively. Another excellent way to improve footwork and lower body coordination is with a jump rope. Jump ropes are inexpensive and they don’t take up a whole lot of space. Dedicating 20 minutes per day to a jump rope routine can very quickly improve a player’s footwork and foot speed.

10.  Get in Shape - Having the stamina to play an entire game and make it through all those grueling practices the coach likes to run is crucial. Stamina is mostly built through distance running and cardio work. Doing something as simple as running around five or six miles per week for the two months prior to the season should be pretty adequate in getting a player the stamina he needs. Start off by doing a mile at a time, maybe three to four times per week. Once this distance becomes easy, try stepping up to two miles at a time. About two to three months of distance training should be adequate enough for gaining the stamina a player needs.

Weightlifting can help a player improve his overall strength, but heavy lifting is not      recommended for younger players who have yet to fully physically mature.  The goal of weight training is not to get hugely buff, but rather to improve core strength and tone the muscles most vital to a lacrosse player

Bulldogs top St. Cloud State 15-3

The UMD Bulldogs traveled to St. Cloud to take on the St. Cloud State Huskies in a UMLL battle Saturday March 3 and came away with a convincing 15-3 win. With the win, the Bulldogs are now 4-0 in the early season.

Bulldogs leading scorer Sr. Kevin Gaydos

The Bulldogs were led by attackman Kevin Gaydos who scored 3 goals and added 1 assist. Alex McNamara added 2 goals and an assist while Drake Peterson and Neal Pester each scored 2 goals, Ben Blaeser, Justin Vossen and Matt Murphy each added a goal and an assist and Ryan Butts, Tyler Lorinser, and Matt Madden each added a goal. Midfielder Nathan Monsein was stellar at the faceoff X winning 16 of 18 faceoffs while also leading the team with 6 ground balls. Joey Slattery led the UMD goalies with 9 saves.

2011 National Champion BYU

UMD now starts a brutal west coast road trip where they will face a string of top ranked MCLA lacrosse teams. Next week they travel to California to take on the nations #2 ranked team Cal Poly on March 10, #4 ranked Chapman University on March 12 and #11 ranked UC-Santa Barbara on March 14. The Bulldogs then return to Minnesota on March 17 where they will take on last seasons national champion and #3 ranked BYU at Augsburg College in Minneapolis. To round out this rugged schedule of highly ranked teams, UMD will then travel west again to take on #9 ranked Arizona State University on March 23 and #10 University of Colorado on March 25 in Tempe, AZ. Following this stern test, UMD should have a much clearer picture of their 2012 national title chances. UMD is ranked #15 in the latest Nike/Inside Lacrosse Magazine coaches poll.

Instructional Video of the Week: Fundamental Positioning for Faceoffs

Good video showing the fundamental positioning for faceoffs. Weight should be on your feet. We'll have a short series featuring the fundamentals of faceoffs.

Bulldogs vs. Gophers Highlights from Last Weekend

Feature Film Crooked Arrows to be Released May 18

The first feature length film to be released depicting the game of lacrosse is set to be in theaters nationally May 18, 2012. This movie looks to have some very good lacrosse action starring real lacrosse players from the Onandaga Nation in New York. Be sure to get your entire team out to view this movie as soon as it hits the theaters. A great way to support the growth of the game of lacrosse! Go watch this movie! Trailer below: