Lynchburg Living

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By Ashley Blanchard

Lacrosse is the fastest-growing sport in the country and it is easy to see why. The game is fast-paced and full of action. Lynchburg has caught the trend, and this spring, playing fields in our region will be filled with lacrosse enthusiasts from elementary school to college-aged participants.

The northeast has traditionally been a hotbed for lacrosse but now teams span to California, Texas and Florida. In the last 10 years, the number of players has grown to 1.2 million. College, high school and youth programs have seen, on average, a 40 percent increase in players since 2000. And Lynchburg is experiencing similar growth.

The rise of interest in the sport is due to expanding school teams, youth programs, development of the Major League Lacrosse (MLL) and the media exposure of the sport. The MLL launched its first season in 2001. It currently consists of seven teams across the US and Canada: Boston, Long Island, Chesapeake (formerly Baltimore), Washington, Chicago, Denver and Toronto. ESPN2 covers the 36-game season, which runs from May through August.

In Lynchburg, all of the college programs are thriving, whether established or young. Lynchburg College’s (LC) men’s team is nationally recognized and has a pre-season rank of No. 11 by Inside Lacrosse magazine and No. 13 by Lacrosse magazine. Sweet Briar College (SBC) and Lynchburg College womens’ teams have long been recognized for their programs. Liberty University (LU) and Randolph College (RC) have young programs but are attracting students to the schools because of them.

The Lynchburg College Hornets, coached by Steve Koudelka since 1997, is a Division III team and kicks off their first Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) game of the 2010-11 Season with the home field advantage against Roanoke College on March 19. Roanoke is their biggest rival, along with Hampton-Sydney and Washington & Lee. The Hornets have won the ODAC Conference three years and have advanced into the NCAA Tournament four times in the last eight years and ranked as high as 9^th place in the national ranking in 2010.

Capital improvements have been seen around the city for this up-and-coming sport. At LC, both the men’s and women’s team play on the The Shellenberger Field, which got a big facelift in 2007.

“Recently we finished a $4 million renovation where we installed Field Turf, added lights and a new seating section,” Koudelka said.

Liberty University is also investing in their Lacrosse Program, which currently participates in the SELC Conference. The women’s team is beginning their second season. The men’s team is reigniting a club team that folded in 2006, a year after the van the team was traveling in hit a tractor-trailer in Alabama, hospitalizing six.

Kyle McQuillan was in that crash in 2005. A 2007 graduate and former team member, he knows better than most what bringing LU’s men’s team back to life means. Now, he has every intention to make it a successful resurrection as the new team’s head coach.

Previously, the team had been a student-only driven team. The University is undergoing a $125 million capital improvements endeavor. A new field house and field for men’s and women’s teams are slated to be operational next season. Lacrosse games this year will be played at the soccer stadium.

“Popularity of the sport has really helped to grow Liberty’s teams,” McQuillan said. “The University recognizes the growth of lacrosse in Lynchburg, the east coast and the nation and that students will come here because they are attracted to the sport. Our roster boasts players from 12 states and Canada.”

So, what makes lacrosse so special? In Koudelka’s eyes, it’s all about honoring the past.

“Lacrosse is rich in tradition. The longer you play and learn about the sport, the more appreciative you become of its history,” he said. “The game dates back to the American Indians, and it is important for our kids to know that its origins are not just about winning and losing, but it was part of growing up and becoming a man. It was originally used to train men for battle or to settle disputes. It is competitive and physical.”

Sweet Briar College has a long history of lacrosse. After Bryn Mawr established the women’s first collegiate team in 1926, Sweet Briar’s team played the first intercollegiate lacrosse game in the country against William & Mary. Since then, women’s lacrosse nationwide has grown to 477 college and college club teams.

Historically, lacrosse was played in prep schools. Virginia Episcopal School (VES) and James River Day School used to have to travel miles to play another team; now the schedule includes local schools and clubs. Friendly rivalries between E.C. Glass and V.E.S. are now met each spring. And it’s not just local growth in the sport that’s occurring on the high school level. Nationally, high school teams have nearly doubled from 1,273 teams in 2000 to 2,612 in 2007. This translates to 150,000 high school boys and girls playing the sport on approximately 3,500 teams across the country this season.

The growth of the sport has opened many doors, particularly for girls, who want to play in high school and college. Amy Donnelly, girls’ varsity lacrosse coach for V.E.S., has been in Lynchburg for three years. She has helped start teams and is energized by the growth of the sport for girls.

“I believe girls are attracted to lacrosse because it is a fun game to play and it is exciting to watch,” Donnelly said. “Once you learn the fundamentals of the sport, athletes can have an impact in a lot of different ways on the field.”

V.E.S. senior, Diane Girling, has a passion for the game. She plays lacrosse, field hockey and basketball, but has chosen to play lacrosse in college. Davidson College, a Division I school in Charlotte, North Carolina, has awarded her an athletic scholarship beginning in the fall of 2011. Davidson’s team is one of 300 women’s NCAA teams across the country.

Of course, college and high school sports are fueled by youth programs. And on the lacrosse field, boys and girls programs alike have seen tremendous growth. The Forest Youth Athletic Association is entering its fifth season. It initially began with 35 boys and has now grown to 190 boys and girls. They travel to Roanoke, Salem, Lexington or Charlottesville. Additionally, they have added a high school age team.

Meanwhile, Blue Ridge Lacrosse Club offers a spring lacrosse program for boys in age divisions U11, U13 and U15, and girls in age divisions U13 and U15. Teams compete with other programs in Lynchburg, Forest, Salem, Roanoke and Richmond. In addition, they offer clinics throughout the year for kids ages 8 and older.

Blue Ridge Lacrosse Club and LC have partnered to promote lacrosse in the region. This fall, Koudelka and the Lynchburg College Men’s Lacrosse brought “After School with Lacrosse” to Linkhorne Middle School, thanks to funding from the Department of Education’s 21^st Century Learning Grant through the City of Lynchburg, as well as Paul Munro Elementary. Twice a week during the months of October and November, participating students learned the fundamentals of the game from current LC players.

“My personal goal is to introduce the sport to as many as we can,” Koudelka said.