Haley Dowdie
As the winter season comes to an end, the spring weather slowly creeps in. The girls lacrosse team dusts off their lacrosse sticks, and prepare themselves for a new season. With tryouts scheduled to begin on March 19, 2012, many new members, in hopes of making the team this spring, practice with returning members at practices held by senior captains Commie Ayuk and Stacey Sousa. The girls have been practicing since February vacation, focusing on “conditioning to build up endurance, speed, and strength,” claimed Sousa. With only 20 available varsity positions, and many returning upperclassmen on the roster, “tryouts will be very competitive and the ones that show the most commitment, effort, and skill will receive [positions] on the team that they deserve,” stated Sousa.
Last years girls lacrosse coach Julie Briggs will not be returning this season. The girls are becoming well acquainted with their new coach Caitlyn Germain. Germain, a gym teacher at Northeast Vocational School, and graduate from University of Delaware, “knows what [she is] talking about when it comes to playing lacrosse,” said Sousa. Germain’s strict coaching is “exactly what we need as a lacrosse team,” claims Junior Christina Ascolillo.
Optimism is the key to success. Captains Ayuk and Sousa hope to see the mindset of the team “to change the attitude on the field into a positive one,” which they said from last season.
Though the season has yet to begin, the captains anticipate hard work and effort to accomplish their goal to “win more games, work harder, [and] have more fun,” claimed Sousa states enthusiastically. With a new coach, new season, and new players, the lacrosse girls have a clean slate to begin their season with high morale.
