Quality over quantity, for local lacrosse loop

Measuring progress, for any local sports organization, is seldom easy. Rejuvenated on a regional basis roughly a decade ago, lacrosse has hit a plateau, of sorts, with registration figures hovering between the 500 and 600 level the past few years.

But if the quantity has not necessarily taken a giant leap forward, the same cannot be said for the quality of players being produced. Sudbury Rockhounds are beginning to make a name for themselves, competing with various teams at a host of venues, both in Canada and the United States.

Peewee sensation Félix Coté recently became the first Sudbury player ever selected to the Team Ontario roster, working his way through three sets of tryouts to grab a spot on the final lineup of 18 players.

A very solid “AA” hockey player, the grade six student at MacLeod Public School does not necessarily mirror the passion of most of his winter-time teammates. “I just love lacrosse – and I’m better at lacrosse than hockey,” Coté said recently.

“I just practice more, I’m always out in my yard. I have a set-up with a “lax wall” and net – and a golf net, so I don’t lose any balls.” Playing within the GSLA (Greater Sudbury Lacrosse Association) for the past six years, Coté has long-since established his dominance within the Nickel City.

Being cut from the provincial tryouts last spring in his minor-Peewee year only provided the talented youngster with greater motivation the second time around. “After last year, I remember thinking that I just had to make it this year, so I worked really hard,” Coté said.

Blessed with an impressive skill-set out of the gate, Coté is also benefiting from the hands-on advice of someone who knows the game pretty well. “I have really good hands and can get through people,” he said.

“But I’m working on my fakes with Senior (John Grant Sr). I still have to work on them, because I do the same thing a lot.” Coté will suit up with the Ontario squad immediately following the provincial playdowns, competing as a member of the Peewee Rockhounds in early August.

By that time, 17 year old Mike Randa will be nearing the end of his eight month experience with Evolve Elite Lacrosse. The Grade 12 student at Lo-Ellen Park Secondary plans to attend Cambrian College in September, studying within the Electrical program in the fall.

An eight year veteran of the local lacrosse ranks, Randa had his eyes opened substantially this past year, cracking the roster of a Canadian crew that traveled to Florida to compete in the I-Cup International Lacrosse Classic in January.

“I like lacrosse more than any other sport,” Randa said. “I’m out in my backyard every day, throwing the ball around.” In fact, many involved with lacrosse will note the fact that individual practice time can be accommodated with ease, as players need only a stick, a ball and a surface to provide a rebound in order to work on their manual dexterity.

Still, playing at a higher level clearly has its advantages. “Ever since I started playing with “Evolve Elite”, I notice my skills progressing.” Randa was joined by fellow Sudburians Doug Bennett and Chris Hayes in Florida, and while the team did not win a game, they took the State champions to overtime.

Randa is back with the U-18 squad this summer, having just returned from the Long Island Laxfest, with a couple more high profile tournaments still on the schedule. And like Coté, he pays close attention to those who have been there before.

“Our coach, John Grant Jr, is always fooling around with his stick, doing all these tricks and stuff,” Randa said. “And when he throws the ball, it’s just so accurate. Every tip he gives me, I’ll try and do it. He just knows so much about the game.”

Now 21 years of age, Owen Bennett has learned much about field lacrosse, but also his intended career of choice as well, having just completed his second year of mechanical engineering at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.

Recruited on a lacrosse scholarship, Bennett stressed the importance of academics in his decision to head south of the border. “At Bucknell, the mechanical engineering program is one of the top in the country,” Bennett said.

“They stress the academics a lot and there’s no break for athletes. There’s a lot of hands on research, partly because we have really small class sizes.” With an average class of some fifteen students or so, the private liberal arts university that was founded in 1846 numbers a student population lower than Laurentian, with some 3500 or so on campus.

With no exposure in his youth to field lacrosse, Bennett was thankful that a prevailing stereotype opened the door. “I had never played field lacrosse when I first got recruited,” Bennett said.

“But box players tend to come in with much better stick skills than field players.” Different games entirely. “Box lacrosse is a lot more physical, a lot more exciting to watch,” conceded Bennett. “Field lacrosse is more like a chess game on an open field.”

Where the well-spoken budding engineer might be at a different stage of his career than both Coté and Randa, they are bound by a shared passion for a sport they love.

“I would like to keep involved,” Bennett said. “I don’t know about playing once I’ve graduated, but I definitely want to keep coaching and definitely want to put my kids into it.” One more opportunity to allow lacrosse to continue to progress in Greater Sudbury.
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The GSLA will welcome some forty teams to town in a couple of weeks as the local lacrosse association hosts the annual Nickel City Shootout. Games are scheduled for Toe Blake Memorial Arena (Coniston), Carmichael Arena and McClelland Arena (Copper Cliff) on the weekend of July 8th to the 10th.
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And finally, I would be remiss if I did not extend my sincere congratulations to Peewee houseleague coaches Marc Larochelle and Dennis Simeoni. Coaching on competing teams, the pair took advantage of a recent semi-final playoff matchup to provide a wonderful life lesson to players from both teams.

With their squads deadlocked in a 3-3 tie at the end of regulation time, Simeoni and Larochelle opted to utilize players whose names might seldom be included in the scoring stats to tackle the shootout that was required, moving one team into the houseleague Peewee final.

In so doing, they managed to provide a handful of young athletes with an opportunity they might well remember for the rest of their lives, helping stress at the same time the relative importance of sports to all those on hand.

Well done, gentlemen!