Early Summer League Notes

2010 Central Iowa Lacrosse Association
Summer Lacrosse League

I had grand plans this morning before I left for work to post this information on the actual Central Iowa Lacrosse Website. Unfortunately my PC, modem, and/or router decided that it did not need to connect to the Internet.

This year I am taking a much firmer stance on the way the summer lacrosse program will work. Last year it was a casual pick up league which resulted in sporadic attendance. This caused problems as one week we would have 7 guys and the next we would have 27. Sometimes we would have full fledged games with 10 per side and others we would not have enough for a half field scrimmage.

Making matters worse were the selfish guys. On the nights when there actually were subs, everyone was supposed to make an effort to let people get some time; yet a couple of guys refused to ever get off the field. I applaud those that repeatedly took themselves off to let new players on. In the end we were all out there to have a good time, but those that showed no respect by never rotating off did their best to ruin it for some people. Not a great way to help the sport grow...

But after a successful box league over the winter, I have learned a lot. As the lax population in Des Moines continues to grow, we are moving into a better position to have an actual field league as opposed to random pick up games. This summer we will have a more formal field lacrosse league. Period.

Here are some things to expect:

• Early June-Mid August
• Thursday nights, starting at 6:00
• Open to adult and high school players
• 3-4 Teams chosen by appointed captains
• Team reversibles
• A small fee to cover the reversible & league expenses*
• If you do not pay, you will not play
• Substitutes will be allowed but limited & approved by the ref & opposing team
• Every team will be responsible for providing refs & youth assistants

The full details are still being worked out, of course. I am in the process of arranging a field. Hopefully there will be lacrosse lines, but I cannot guarantee anything yet. The most important points to consider revolve around the organization of the league. Every player will be responsible for paying a fee up front to receive their reversible and be eligible to play.** You are basically buying the team reversible and playing for free.

Every team will provide a ref and scorer for the games between the other teams. The only stats kept will be penalties, goals, and assists (sorry goalies) to keep things simple. If a team fails to provide two officials, that team will suffer a forfeit loss with stiffer penalties for repeated infractions.

Depending on the number of teams and expected daylight hours, we will have at least one game per week. It is possible that we may have two games provided we have four teams and plenty of daylight. The games will be running time and split by half time only. Time outs will be available.

Sure there will be pick up games as well, most likely on a biweekly basis. There will also be introductory Toss Arounds on Saturdays, probably on a monthly or triweekly basis. But the main focus of our summer program this year will be the organized league.

The pickup league will be run like last year only on a different night - probably Monday or Tuesday. This league will be free and stats will not be kept. The number of pick up games may be altered based upon participation and response.

We will also have a youth program for kids in grades 5-8. This program will be introductory in nature and will focus primarily on teaching skills to younger players. At this time the specifics are not nailed down, but the goal is to have them playing scrimmage games by July. Summer league teams will also be required to provide an assistant for these sessions as CILA's ultimate goal is increasing participation and creating a sustainable lacrosse community. Fee and reversible considerations are currently being made. These sessions will run at the same time as the Summer League.

CILA is also looking for team sponsors to cover the initial reversible jersey costs. Each sponsor will receive an official reversible to display in their place of business. Links, logos, and phone numbers will be posted on the CILA website to identify them as an official sponsor. A link will be posted on this blog as well. Teams will be identified by their sponsor's name on the CILA website, this blog, and Facebook. The Summer League sponsorship has the potential to carry over to the 2010 Box League will minimal (if any) additional cost. If you or some one you know is interested in sponsoring a team or the youth program this summer, please contact me directly.

As the Valley season draws to a close next month and June draws nearer, more concrete information will be posted. Until then, I will try to keep everyone up to date on what is going on. The bulleted items above are sticking points to this year's program.

*I am not taking a cut of the fees. The fee will be purely to cover the cost of reversibles and to help maintain the goals used by CILA. We currently use Valley's goals; as such we should help offset the cost of replacing those nets. Further, CILA is investing in regulation size box lacrosse goals for this year's box league. As CILA is not funded, the summer league's dues will help offset that cost as well. Everything goes back into the Central Iowa Lacrosse Association.
**Getting money for the Box League was easy for the most part, but some guys "forgot" to pay repeatedly. This will not be the case for all future leagues. All money will be turned in upfront or you will not be able to play.

Monday Morning Tiger Report - Week 3

Yesterday Valley left Indian Hills around 6:00 am bound for Lincoln, NE. Spirits were high as we hit the interstate following our win over Millard West last week. Nobody was prepared for what would happen in Lincoln...
We left West Des Moines at 6:00 am. We drove three hours to get to the games. Not an excuse.
The Tigers' first game started at 10:00 am. We got to the field at little after 9:00 and tried to get the guys warming up as much as possible. Since there was already a game in progress, it was kind of tough. Not an excuse.
Last year's only loss came during the UNL tournament in Lincoln, at the Vine Fields on the Nebraska campus. Yesterday's games were on another field at the Nebraska campus. Last year's game was at 10:00 am; yesterday's game was at 10:00 am. Not an excuse.
With no disrespect to the Rampage, we beat ourselves. Simply, we did not show up ready to play. Lincoln, knowing about our upset win over Millard West last week, were ready to take us down. Having lost to West already this season, the Rampage saw a win over Valley as their statement game. Unfortunately we supplied them the paper and pen to make that statement. After going up by two goals early, Valley hit the cruise control to let the Rampage score three unanswered goals. Lincoln led by a goal at halftime.
Despite a wake up call during the break, the Tigers still played sloppy and lazy lacrosse. Once again midfield Dylan Griess answered the call and led both teams in scoring with five goals. In the end it was not enough as the Tigers gave up a goal with 26 seconds left to lost 7-6. West Side Lax has a complete write up.
The second game of the day was against a struggling Papillion-La Vista team. The Monarchs came into the game winless and the trend held as Valley won 8-1. Papio's goalie looked strong in net and kept the game relatively close. With a bit more back line support and improved firepower upfront, the Monarchs could be a force to reckon with.
Valley was not the only team to beat itself this weekend. Michigan, the most dominant program in the MCLA, lost to 2-5 Colorado over the weekend. Coming in with back-to-back national championships and a 49 game winning streak stretching back to 2008, the Wolverines were the hands down favorites in the MCLA. Colorado has been struggling all year and fired their head coach last week.
With an interim coach, nobody expected anything from the Buffaloes - especially not Michigan. There is no doubt that the win was monumental for Colorado. Still, it should have little negative impact on the Wolverines over the course of the season.
I mention the Michigan loss because it mirrors Valley's loss yesterday. Both are cases of a top ranked team with a potent offense and solid defense that did not show up to play. Individual efforts aside, both teams failed to respect their opponents by assuming that they would just walk out with a win. Coach Paul sums it up best:

“We were flat all day and in warm-ups. We’re telling the guys right up to the start that they were about to get punched in the mouth.”

This weekend the Tigers travel to Omaha to face division opponents Burke (11 am) and Westside (1pm) at Creighton Prep. The JV faces Prep (3 pm) and Burke (5 pm).