Photo by Jeffrey F Lin on Unsplash
By Ashley Earp, Contributing Writer
While most sports are either out of season or are nearing the end of their season, lacrosse is just starting their season. Even though lacrosse is a relatively new sport, it is becoming more popular each day.
If you were to watch one of the men’s lacrosse team’s practices, you would see the dedication each player has for this sport. With new players and another coach added to the staff, the team has a positive attitude heading into this season and are looking forward to their first game.
From watching the team warm-up and complete practice drills, it becomes clear that there is a continuous focus on the communication that players have with one another no matter what it is that they may be doing. Lacrosse is a sport that requires teamwork and communication, something that Susquehanna’s team has always focused on each season.
The drills that the team practices each day enforce the skill of communicating, as there is rarely a moment where players are not yelling out to each other or shouting out helpful plays. What may seem like chaos to some is a comfort to players in knowing that the team yells to get the plays done right.
In addition to communication, the River Hawks have also put a focus on growing each individual player, or as head coach Stewart Moan said, “developing all the young and inexperienced players that we have.”
On the field, there are a lot of familiar faces, but there are several new faces that have joined the team as well. New players can cause a sense a sense of caution for some coaches in the sense that they don’t know how they will end up working with the team or if they will be able to fill in the holes that were held by seniors who had previously graduated.
With a total of 37 players on the team, 11 of those players are freshmen. It appears as if those newcomers could have a role throughout the 2020 season.
“I think they [the freshman] are adding a real positive vibe and bringing excitement to the team,” Coach Moan said.
“They are so bought into being open-minded. You try and teach them things, and they try to incorporate that into the game right away as best they can. Besides the skills and potential that they bring, they have a really great attitude and an enthusiasm that has spread throughout our entire team.”
Apart from the new players on the team, Susquehanna has also added a new coach. With well-rounded experience and a background in lacrosse, Nickolas Kifolo, a Susquehanna alum and former Landmark Conference Champion, appears to be a great addition to the team.
The team is also very excited to see what Coach Kifolo will be able to provide for the them, whether it be a new insight or passing on experience to the players. According to sophomore attackman Logan Frank, “he’s working on honing in on the fundamentals and doing all the little things correctly.”
As far as what lies ahead, Coach Moan has made it clear that he’s looking forward to the development of the players throughout the season and getting to play other teams. Frank, meanwhile, was more excited about the actual games that the team is going to play later in the season, along with “getting another shot at E-town.”
The team is looking forward to their first scrimmage of the season this weekend at Messiah College, along with their first game of the season, which is slowly approaching.
