2010 May 1 3/4 WHITE vs Mercer Island

2010 April 17 3/4 WHITE vs Woodinville Black

Stinky Gear?

Your lacrosse gloves and pads can turn pretty nasty after some rainy or hot, sweaty games. Here are a few tips to help with the smell, and most importantly the germs and bacteria.

#1 Prevention – Hang your gear to dry immediately when you get home. We have hooks in our garage that used to hold the step ladder, but are now covered in lax gear.

Wipe out the interior of your bag with Clorox wipes. Yes, that bag that holds all of your gear will harbor the bacteria even while you are cleaning the pads. Wipes also work well for your helmet interior.

Febreze or dryer sheets help with the smell on an occasional basis. Look for the Antibacterial Febeeze. Be careful about dousing the gloves with Febreze as the chemical has been known to loosen the glue that holds parts of the gloves together. These do not kill MRSA or other harmful bacteria.

Wash you gear. Veteran lacrosse mom Scotti Brown uses Hibiclens liquid soap. Soak your gear in warm water and cleanser and dry with a fan and air flow. Put paper towels loosely in the gloves or direct airflow inside to help. Do not put your gear in the washer or dryer!

For your lycra athletic clothing, we have had great success Win Detergent http://www.windetergent.com/

Most important, don’t let that gear hibernate in a wet, dark bag over the weekend!

Resources:

http://www.windetergent.com/

http://www.hibiclens.com/athletes.html

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5233a4.htm

Please comment with any successes you have had cleaning your gear!

~Alex “don’t touch anything until you wash those hands” Lytle

3/4 WHITE vs Sammamish 3-26-10

2010 March 13 Scrimmage 3/4 WHITE vs 3/4 BLACK

At Home Lacrosse Fun!

Below are some at home skills & games for you & your son. They are TOTALLY OPTIONAL, just suggestions if you want to get involved. As the season progresses, we will spend less time per practice on the below fundamentals, so we can go through more "game theory" – offense, defense, rules, etc.

The "things to look out for" are just reiterations of what we cover in practice. Don't worry about learning all of them, unless you catch the lacrosse bug as much as your son. If nothing else, just get out there with your kid & let them show you how great they are playing… Don't worry about making every moment a teaching moment J
As always, let me know if you have any questions – or stop by before or after practice.

Thanks again,
Rich

Before you get started:

A. Always have them wear a helmet when they are playing catch with the hard ball

B. Always have them wear a helmet when they are playing catch with the hard ball – worth repeating
C. They should wear their gloves any time they are playing with a stick – it feels a lot different

Games
1. Play Catch
If you don't yet own a stick, and aren't tempted to buy one, you can use a baseball mitt, letting your son catch the ball with his stick & throw it back to you. If they seem to be getting the hang of it, have them try running while catching & throwing - it's a much harder skill to come by... Lastly, for the ultimate challenge, you can have them try it with their other hand
Things to look out for:
Catching:
- Square up to the passer (like he is skiing toward you)
- Top hand should be touching the top basket
- Stick vertical (lower hand on other side of belly button)
- Catch ball softly, like an egg – don't reach out & snap at it
Passing:
- Turn to side (like he is snowboarding toward you)
- Top hand about 1/3 down the stick
- Elbows out / away from body (T-Rex's don't play lacrosse)
- Aim butt of stick at target (like you are shooting a bazooka)
- Bottom hand / bottom of stick should be back - almost above their shoulder
- Step, Turn, Throw (like you are throwing a baseball)
- Keep hands & stick high (like you are stomach-deep in a swamp
- Finish by pointing stick head at person you are passing to

2. Play "Stick Tag"
Have your son hold their stick (w/ ball) vertically, turning their shoulder toward you so you can't see it. Try to sneak around one side or the other and "tag" the stick or basket with your hand. Especially look out for the bottom of the stick) They should keep their eye on you (looking over their shoulder) and turn, turn, turn to avoid you.
Things to look out for:
- Stick vertical (meaning lower hand on other side of belly button)
- Head of stick goes from Ear to Face ("I see ya, I hear ya")
- Lower hand - Make an "O" with thumb & index finger, hold softly, just to keep it in place
- Always keep body between stick and defender
- Get low
- Turn head to keep an eye on defender
- Happy Feet (this isn't basketball, can do more than just pivot)

3. Play Grounders
Roll or short-hop a ball toward your son - have them run toward it and scoop it up, then throw it back to you. You can also have them stand next to you and throw the ball away from them, so they have to chase it down and scoop it from behind. (I like calling this "Kid Fetch")
Things to look out for:
- Both hands should be low to the ground (knuckle scraping) – especially keep an eye on the back hand
- Butt Down / Head Up
- Foot next to the ball, head over it
- Run Through & Keep Running (Don't stop or rake)
- Hold up near face (like you were going to spit on the ball)

4. Play Indoors - with a tennis ball, and only with your permission
- Have them practice cradling every chance they get - just keep the ball in their stick and move it around.
- Have them look in a mirror to see how they "naturally" hold their stick, cradle the ball, and prepare to throw. Ask them if they are doing everything their coaches told them :) Then have them go through the motions with their opposite hands.

Valentine's Day

Thanks to all who made our Valentine's Day Session a great success! Lots of smiling faces, lots of kids ready to start the season on Wednesday. My daughter Sarah did a great job as coach's helper, and she took some great pictures!

See you Wednesday at Juanita High School - we're lucky enough to stay out of the mud, as we're on the turf of the Stadium field.

Rich