At Lakewood High School, Spring sports are a big deal. The warm weather brings a great feeling when playing, which builds confidence and leads to wins.
Lakewood has a variety of teams, including students from all grades, from freshmen to seniors. The girls’ Lakewood lacrosse team consists of 40 girls: 11 freshmen, 6 sophomores, 14 juniors, and 9 seniors.
Lacrosse has four distinct positions: attack, Midfield, Defender, and Goalie. Our senior midfielders are Gabby Ripley, Maggie Barmann, Lilly Burns, and Helen Fraunfelder. Our senior attackers are Kyla Burton and Luella Darr. The senior defenders are Zoe Serna and Laura Gutierrez. Then, our all-star senior goalie is Ava Schmoldt!
The season starts in mid-February and ends in May. The season’s first game was on March 24 against Olmsted Falls, and the last match was held on May 10 at 12:30 p.m. against Padua.
A big part of this team is teamwork and cooperation. The Junior Varsity team always knows how to keep the energy and good mindsets flowing. Varsity has excellent leadership and communication skills on and off the field. Junior and Varsity lacrosse teams always keep positive spirits, win or lose, and are continuously happy no matter how hard the days have been.
“I’m so incredibly proud of JV, they increased their knowledge so much about lacrosse, and have gotten better each game,” Michelle Blauman, Varsity Coach of the Lakewood Girls lacrosse Team, said. “I know the score can sometimes be really disappointing, but I’m always so happy with how you guys do with losses and get right back on the field every time.”
“I think we all know when to stay positive, like we’re never negative, even though we may be down a few points, we always keep our heads up,” Varsity lacrosse defender Vashti Arrow said. “And I think that’s what makes our team so great, [we] always look for the positives and not the negatives about things, at the end of the day the score doesn’t reflect who you are, and I think just going out there and playing your best is what makes everything positive about lacrosse.”
Sometimes goals can be based entirely around winning games, but for lacrosse, the primary goals are to improve your skills, love the game, and have great sportsmanship as a team. For Coach Blauman, those goals were achieved entirely.
“This season’s goals were for you guys to improve every single day that you get on the field, and for that, when the season comes to an end, to still love the game of lacrosse,” Coach Blauman said. “I think we achieved that, like we are 99% there.”
“I think everyone comes in with a lot of different expectations walking into practice,” Arrow said. “We always have something that we want to improve every single day, and like our coaches, Coach Michelle and Coach P, always say improve by 1% each day.”
Little wins at practice each day help these girls continually improve in the sport.
“My goal was to just be the best I could in my third year, to help players get better with their skills, and to be the winning team in the future,” Varsity Midfielder Gabby Ripley said.
Keeping yourself motivated through school and practice can sometimes be challenging. Sometimes our mindsets shift when games are more difficult and don’t always go as planned. However, the lacrosse coaches and players help keep your mind at ease and motivated through hard times.
“I think making sure practices are light, even after a loss, and talking to the team about how wins aren’t everything,” Coach Blauman said. “Making sure to really keep your guys’ mindsets right.”
At practice, the girls will typically huddle in a circle to discuss ways to improve their games and discuss things they did well. Talking about it helps the girls to learn and keep their mindsets in the right spots.
Each player also helps the other to get better at lacrosse. Joining a new sport can be difficult, but everyone on the team is helpful and can give great advice to a new player.
“Really focus on your stick skills constantly, first like work with your right hand and then your left, then just trying to jump in and play the sport,” Ripley said.
“If I like love a sport so much or if I start liking a sport, I start putting my time and dedication into it,” Arrow said. “I think some ways that keep me going through the season of staying active with this sport is doing wall ball, going on a run, doing small clinics, anything to keep you active, and I think even if you think you can’t do it, the smallest things like wall ball, that’s what helps you the most.”
The lacrosse girls all have great advice for new incoming players, and summer clinics are coming up for those interested in playing in the future.
Our season is very dedicated to our seniors, which is only appropriate given their relentless dedication to the team. They bring leadership and strong teamwork, building memories and inspiring the underclassmen to continue playing lacrosse.
Senior night on May 7 was a night to remember. The underclassmen decorated the bleachers and sidewalks for the seniors, parents made gift bags and flowers, and the whole night, the seniors were celebrated for their greatness throughout their years of playing.
“As a senior, senior night is really nice just to be able to celebrate your accomplishments and have everybody recognize you,” Ripley said.
“The seniors, they keep me laughing,” Coach Blauman said. “I never know what they’re gonna say or do, they keep me on my toes. I think even though they’re unpredictable, they’re great kids.”
The seniors continuously put hard work into everything. The Lakewood girls lacrosse team possesses excellent skills, remarkable improvements, and top-tier sportsmanship. It truly is a fantastic team and sport to be a part of.
