John Raffel
Sports Scene
Lacrosse. It’s a sport that started out strong in the high school ranks in 2005 and remains solid to this day.
Among the teams that have the program are East Lansing, Holt, Haslett-Williamston, Waverly, Lowell, Okemos, Rockford, and Heritage,
Rockford won the Division 1 girls’ state title in 2010. In Division 2, Okemos took the girls’ state crown in 2009 and 2010.
Steven Maiorana is the head boys’ varsity lacrosse coach at Heritage, which has had the program five years. He has 21 players on the varsity and 17 on the junior varsity.
“This is my first year of the program,” Maiorana said. “They did win their first playoff game last year and this year we beat Davison, who we have never beaten before. The sport incorporates all the aspects of the most favorite sports in America, with the speed of hockey, the physicality of football, and the movement of basketball.”
Maiorana said the school does not have a feeder program, “but we are working on that. Without a middle school program, we cannot grow anymore then we already have.”
Heritage uses the high school football field for games and the middle school field for practices.
Mike Emery is in his fifth year as coach for girls’ lacrosse at Rockford. He had previously been a junior varsity and a middle school coach.
“Lacrosse has been available for nine years at the high school level, first as a club sport, and we are now in our fifth year as a sanctioned varsity sport,” he said. “In my five years, we have won four regional championships, two conference championships, and we were the state champion in Division 1 in 2010. We have sent two players on to Division 1 scholarships and eight more to D2 and D3 schools in that time.
“Our high school program includes varsity and JV averages between 45 to 50 athletes. Our youth program now has over 200 players, with the youngest being first graders.” Emery commented that the sport is popular because it encompasses all the activities kids enjoy.It’s fast-paced with lots of scoring,” he said. “It’s never boring, so kids gravitate to it instead of some slower-paced or more individual sports.”
It’s also no secret why the program has become very popular at Rockford, Emery noted. “We have great facilities at Rockford with the growth of boys’ and girls’ lacrosse being one of the reasons turf was installed in the football stadium,” he said. “We also have additional fields for girls and guys at the high school, and a middle school is also utilized with additional fields.”
Emery indicated that on April 28, more than 500 high school girls will compete in a tournament at Rockford, where there will be 14 varsity and 12 JV teams playing. “It’s the largest gathering of lacrosse players in the spring season,” he said.
Brandon Schwind of the cooperative Haslett-Williamston boys’ team has been with the program for six years. One of the successes of the program that he has experienced has been changing the entire lacrosse culture in the community. “Prior to my arrival, lacrosse was a joke sport at our high school,” he said. “Now we are recognized as one of the best in the state and in the Lansing area. Coming from NCAA coaching to high school was an adjustment, but my players and parents have risen to the challenge I laid out in front of them.”
In Schwind’s opinion, the numbers for his program have been subpar. “However, it’s been enough to field two great squads in my two-year tenure as head coach,” he said. “We have been averaging about 23 student-athletes on our varsity roster the past two years; ideally we would like 27 to 30.” The future of the program appears to be very bright, Schwind indicated. “I have enjoyed great success. I have a team GPA of 3.8 and enjoy a current No. 3 ranking in Division 2, No. 8 in all of the state.”
Pete Sims is the boys’ coach at Rockford and has enjoyed plenty of success. “Our goals this year are to be playing in June and also win a conference championship and regional championship. We return most of our starters from last year and look forward to a solid season this year,” he said. “We have 13 seniors on the team. They are the foundation to our success this season. Our ranking in the league will be determined in mid-May.”