Coaching Chaos

With the beginning of spring sports comes the start of another lacrosse season for JA. The rough-and-tumble sport is characterized by the extreme precision required to manage the ball as well as the hard, full-contact hits that players take throughout the game. For Jefferson Academy’s lacrosse team this year, though, the biggest struggle isn’t on the field– it’s dealing with the lack of a head coach after they lost theirs earlier this season. 

“It’s been a hard season without a permanent coach,” claimed senior Jackson Kennell. “The adventure has been a rough one because losing a coach is definitely a difficult process, and hard on the players.”

In the absence of a set head coach, JA faculty and parents have stepped up to help the team stay on their feet during the season. Having a rotating cast of coaches can make it difficult to learn new things though, according to senior Demetrius Maldonado.

“It’s definitely hurt the team a bit, just because we’re trying to learn a lot of new things this season. It’s hard to do that when things are always changing, and there aren’t any constants,” stated Maldonado.

It’s not all bad, though– despite the fact that coaching has been a struggle, the team has stayed there for each other. 

“The team has stayed the same, and the players have stayed the same,” added Maldonado. “That’s been really helpful. We’ve been relying on each other and what we know about each other to get us through the rest of the season.”

In a rather surprising turn of events, the lacrosse team hired a new head coach just days ago. His first practice with the team was on April 1st. 

“We’ve only practiced with him for a day, so we don’t have much to go off of, but he seems like he’ll be a good fit,” claimed Maldonado. “He’s got a lot of experience with coaching and the sport in general. Honestly, it’s just nice to have someone who’s set in stone for at least the rest of the season.”

Coaching isn’t the only change in the lacrosse team this year– this is the first year in a few years that they’ve had a full team, complete with both players and subs. 

“We’ve had a lot of injuries this year, unfortunately, but since we have full subs, it’s not as bad as it would have been in past years,” Maldonado admitted. “In past years players would have to play injured or we just couldn’t play, so it’s nice to be able to rest players when they

need it.” 

Having a full team also helps ensure that the program grows in future years. Since the lacrosse team was so small in the past, graduating seniors were often stressed for the future of the program after they left. This year, though, Kennell is confident that they’re leaving the program in good hands.

“Having a full team is honestly such a breath of fresh air. It lets us create a better program now, but more importantly, it ensures that we can continue to create even better teams in the future.”