The boys and girls lacrosse teams headed to the Sunshine State to get in some spring training before the opening of the season. Below are blog entries from the head coaches, Ian Patrick '84 and RJ Swift '08.
The girls lacrosse program arrived in Tampa, Florida yesterday 32 players and 2 coaches strong. We trained hard last night before an early lights out and were back at it this morning at 6:30. Two training sessions in light rain demonstrated our wide variety of playing levels in preparation for this evening’s two scrimmages.
In the first game, our “B” group took on Hackley School’s (NY) “B” group and won 10-5. Lots of nervous players on the field, but Molly Kracke, Lilah Way, and Paige Feeney produced most of the points. Sydney DaSilva and Rosie McLean worked hard at the draws, and Caroline Donley added a goal. A very good result for our young players. In the second game, our “A” group took on Brooks School’s combination “A/B” group. Mr. Quirk will be pleased to know that, despite being outnumbered significantly, our girls won 8-4. Lauren Marandett, Lucy Hauck, Julia Shaunessy, and Maggie Adams recorded most of the points. Freshman Alli Hoyt scored a beautiful goal to start her career in fine fashion. Goalies Hadley Bosworth and Skyler Irving were very solid in both games. Tonight, the girls are having dinner by grade in preparation for tomorrow’s seven short scrimmages before we head to the beaches of Clearwater, Florida as a team.
Day three of the girls lacrosse trip was a busy one! The day began with a team breakfast in the hotel and then we set out to the fields for seven, half-game scrimmages. The “A” team opened up with a 5-6 loss to Hackley (NY). Four of Hackley’s six goals came off our turnovers, so this will improve when we get sharper. We then took on Tatnall School (DE) and beat them easily, 8-1. The “A” team’s third game was against Pingry School, one of the best private schools in New Jersey. We lost 2-7. We were out-played, definitely, but were unlucky not to score two more. In our final game, we took on Sacred Heart (CT), and we dropped that one 2-4. We actually outplayed them, but we were caught on the transition after a long day of lacrosse. Two injuries to starting defenders definitely did not help, but this gave some less experienced players significant “A” team time. The “B” team opened the day with a 3-5 loss to Pingry (NJ). Our second game was an easy win over Hackley (NY), and in the final “B” game we tied Brooks 2-2. It was a long, long day of lacrosse. Many, MANY tired bodies, sore muscles, and a few injuries, but we will be back at it tomorrow.
Tomorrow night, both the “A” and “B” teams get to take on Pingry again in full games. We will have two practices during the day, then we hope to get revenge on the whooping we received from them today. Overall, our scrimmage record of 4-4-1 is a sound representation of where we fit with the teams down here, and ALL the girls are getting tons of playing time.
During the mid-afternoon, we took them to the beach for a few hours. This evening, the girls got dressed up and had a team dinner at a nice restaurant, then a quick stop for ice-cream. Lights out by 10:30 p.m. tonight, then I’ll wake them up at 6:35 a.m. for a 7:30 a.m. departure to the fields.
The girls lacrosse team finished their fourth day of training playing their best lacrosse. A 6:30 a.m. wake-up call from Coach P. began the long day of two training sessions and two games. We were on the field at 7:45 a.m., and we finished the night at 8:05 p.m. Having done thirty of these trips over Spring Break, even I know that this does not always happen.
Tonight, the “A” team faced a strong Pingry (NJ) team in the first game of the night. We lost to them badly yesterday, so we were looking for revenge. This game might have been the best one of the week. Our girls fought and fought against a stronger, faster, and more skilled group. Right through the last whistle, the pace was some of the fastest I’ve seen our girls play. We ended up losing the game 9-4, but the tightness of the game compared to yesterday was marked. Lots of tired bodies after this one. In the second game of the night, our “B” team took on Pingree’s “B” group, who we lost to yesterday. Tonight was a different story. With “A” girls being loud on the sideline, the “B” girls won decisively 8-3 to avenge yesterday’s loss.
Getting on the bus after the night, there were many ice bags accompanying many of the girls, but the mood was definitely positive and loud. We ended the week with a record of 5-5-1. We had a team order-in banquet at the hotel, celebrated Hadley Bosworth’s birthday with a cake, and recognized the six seniors for their commitment to the program over the past two, three, and four years. Finally, a HUGE thanks goes out to Mel Bride. She and I have led many trips over the past few years, and I can’t thank her enough for the logistical and coaching work she does every year; the girls love this woman. I’ll be taking the first group to the airport at 5:45 a.m., and the last girl flies out at 1:30 p.m. It’s been a great trip, and we’ll see all of your Monday! Keep cheering on the girls!
- Ian Patrick '84, Girls Varsity Lacrosse Coach
Following the lead of Coach Patrick, I figured I would share how the Boys team did last week in Florida. Last Sunday, we made the trek down to Orlando Florida with 39 players and 4 coaches! We were very fortunate to have the expertise of Dave Barker class of ’72 and Mike Delia join us on the trip down south to help us train up the Boys as we head into the season.
Two practices on Sunday got us going for our first game on Monday against a very strong Westminster team out of CT. Our older group played their older group to a 3-2 win in the first half of the game. Jake Peluso ’20 was a difference maker all over the field scoring a goal and assisting on another. Gunnar von Hollander ’21 and Mike Shaw ’20 added the other tallies in leading to a pretty solid start for the boys. Seamus McCarthy ’21 and Will Milewski ’20 shut down two of the most talented players in New England, limiting them to 1 goal. George Whitney ’19 was impressive in leading the defense and made some big time saves. In the second half, our younger players took over with Aidan O’Neil ’22 and Brendan Mcintire ’22 scoring the two goals in the second half. At the end, we ended up on the wrong side of a 6-5 loss but the boys played really hard and competed like crazy.
Our second game and last of the trip pitted us against another strong team in Trinity Pawling out of NY. In three quarters of play, the older guys ended up on the wrong side of an 8-5 score. Jake Peluso ’20 had another fantastic game scoring a goal and making plays all over the field. Aidan O’Neil ’22 was impressive against older kids scoring two very nice goals. Will Hoyt ’21 and Charlie Donley ’19 rounded out the scoring with some very nice plays. Overall, it was a great trip and it was fun to see us progress quite a bit from last year in competing with teams that we lost pretty handily too last year.
Everyone got better and it was fun to see how much the team bonded over the 5 days we spent down south! It was a good start but we have a long way to go and I am very excited about this years group. Big thanks goes to Coach Salit for his continued guidance as well as expertise! We could not have done without him! Now the boys are gearing up for our season opener on March 30th at Boston University under the lights at 7pm. Thanks for all the support of the Boys Lacrosse program here at Tabor.
- RJ Swift '08, Boys Varsity Lacrosse Coach
Many of our other teams have spent their spring break in warmer climates preparing for the upcoming season. Check out the slideshow below of our teams on their travels. Here is a quick overview of the Crew team's travels:
"41 rowers and coxes traveled to Clemson, SC to row on calm water and in warmer temperatures. They rowed many miles and the rowers and coxswains were excited at how much progress they made throughout the week. We can’t wait for the season to begin." Noel Pardo, Varsity Crew Coach.
