by Cooper Walrod
First of all, congratulations on your win today. It will set a positive tone for the rest of the season. I am writing a lacrosse update for the new online version of trident, and I would like to ask you a few questions, if you please.
Were there any players that really stood out in either game?
In the Varsity game the 3 starting defensemen stood out the most two of which Nick Taylor and Kevin Kottke contributed to the offenses scoring, followed by the freshmen players Kyle Canale, who scored the very first goal in CDM's CIF history, and then it Ryan Mix and JD Abbott. Our other starting attackmen Mike Kidushim, David Kidushim, along with Otis Mitchell and Chris Horton rotating through also put points on the board for us. Connor Pinkston and Jake Schwartz both faced off well. While Andrew Noto, who started his freshman on our attack is now a sophomore and our starting goalie. We are hoping that he will go onto have a great career the next 3 seasons for us.
On the JV team Jordan Crone scored the first goal in CDM's JV CIF innaugural season, while sophomore goalie Connor Benvenutti and freshman Hugh Russel who came in to defend the goal in the fourth quarter both shut out the the visiting Servite HS JV. Alex Manthow had a hat trick and two assists and also led the team in ground balls. Nick Reese, Jeff Livingston, Gavin Ball, John Galosmo along with Kevin Corrigan, Chandler Mitchell also played very well.
Who are the captains?
Mike Kudishim, Austin Ray, and Connor Pinkston.
What would you say is your teams strongest asset(ie offense, defense goaltending, physicality)?
Defense was the strongest in today's game because of thier superior stickwork and speed folowed by our Attackman.
What do you think the team needs to work on?
Ball movement and applying what they've learned and rehearsed in practice to our game situations. Today we were just a little jittery and didn't have the stick work that we usually possess. It looked as the game went on that they were finally becoming comfortable with thier sticks and settled down a bit.
How are the players working together?
So far so good, but we are going to have much more difficult challeneges for us coming up in the season, so we'll try to become more cohesive both offensively and defensively as we go onward. They are a great group of guys that communicate very well with each other so I think that they will continue to grow as a team.
Just a semantical question-is the ice hockey term hat-trick used in lacrosse?
Yes
BTW...Your little brother Pete also played well in his first game as an attackman. He defended a Servite player so intensely that he ran out of both of his cleats simultaneously just prior to dislodging the ball from his stick.
Showing posts with label Mark Todd. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mark Todd. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Mark Todd Q&A with CdM Newspaper
Why did you start a lacrosse team at CdM?
I did not start lacrosse at CdM. I am hardly even responsible for it getting approved as a CIF sport. The team was founded by Michael Gratzinger (class of 06’) when he was just in the 8th grade. He had played it in a youth league in Irvine and knew of some other students at CdM that also played there or that had expressed interest in the sport. Mike had set a goal of making lacrosse a CIF sanctioned sport by the time he graduated, so he set out and recruited kids from other sports in non-competing seasons and the zeitgeist movement had begun. In fact, because he and his parents were so instrumental in this sports growth on campus, and the school district for that matter, that we named our most prestigious award a crystal bowl trophy the Gratzinger Cup which sets in the trophy case in the gymnasium. The Abbott family, as do many others, now carries this progress forward. With or without my coaching, the team would have occurred because it is truly the commitment the CdM student athletes to this sport and the tremendous involvement of their parents that make this team go. We are very fortunate.
What are your expectations for this year's team?
We have perhaps the toughest strength of schedule in the Southern Section of CIF. We were moved from our normal conference (CIF determines them by region and similar sized student populations) and put into a conference that benefits from a larger draft of students and that coincidentally has a longer history with the sport. As for my expectations, I think that we’ll have a very young team that will be very competitive this year and even more so in the years to come. Our student athletes definitely work hard at practice and in 6th period and it is beginning to show. It is my hope that this schedule will benefit our students with greater exposure to college recruiters across the nation. I look forward to seeing the complete dynamics of our squad once many of our players come over from their winter sports. Additionally, I’m surrounded by the most talented assistant coaches I have ever had any of whom could easily be a head coach at any other program, high school or collegiate, in the country.
Do you think that lacrosse has the potential to become a more mainstream sport?
Lacrosse is the oldest sport in the country and on the continent for that matter. It is extremely popular back East and in Canada (it’s their National Sport) and it is unequivocally the fastest growing sport in the country, as a recent Sports Illustrated article attested. I think you will see lacrosse become a mainstream sport. The NFL, NBA, and NHL were once all fledgling leagues that grew and continue to grow from constant refinement from their commissioners, owners, and fan demands. I think the professional lacrosse league (MLL) is already beginning to grow from these previous models. For instance just last summer we saw Los Angeles and San Francisco both opened professional lacrosse franchises in their cities.
What are the challenges of setting up a completely new sport at CdM?
Infrastructure is the greatest challenge. First there are field space and usage issues, as well as finance and fund raising demands from the school district on down to the individual player. Lacrosse, much like football and hockey can be somewhat cost prohibitive because of all the gear each player must buy and the equipment a team needs. Next there are the human elements such as fear of the unknown, prejudice, and competition, which we haven’t really come up against here at CdM but I’ve been told that other schools have had to battle them in addition to the infrastructure items I mentioned. Finally, it’s the political transfer of power from being an ASB club team to that of a CIF sanctioned Varsity sport, which requires a lot more paperwork from the coaching staff and students, and an incredible amount of logistical coordination between the conferences and Athletic Directors. Ironically, many of the schools typically in CdM’s conference are from the Irvine area which has had lacrosse played in its schools as long as 15 years ago, but because of inconsistent leadership, organization, and field space had decided not to join in with many of the other school districts that have become CIF varsity sanctioned sports. Fortunately, the story here is very different. Our Principal, Athletic Director, Athletic Secretary, and Parental Boosters involvement have been extraordinary. With out their leadership and diligence this would never have occurred.
I did not start lacrosse at CdM. I am hardly even responsible for it getting approved as a CIF sport. The team was founded by Michael Gratzinger (class of 06’) when he was just in the 8th grade. He had played it in a youth league in Irvine and knew of some other students at CdM that also played there or that had expressed interest in the sport. Mike had set a goal of making lacrosse a CIF sanctioned sport by the time he graduated, so he set out and recruited kids from other sports in non-competing seasons and the zeitgeist movement had begun. In fact, because he and his parents were so instrumental in this sports growth on campus, and the school district for that matter, that we named our most prestigious award a crystal bowl trophy the Gratzinger Cup which sets in the trophy case in the gymnasium. The Abbott family, as do many others, now carries this progress forward. With or without my coaching, the team would have occurred because it is truly the commitment the CdM student athletes to this sport and the tremendous involvement of their parents that make this team go. We are very fortunate.
What are your expectations for this year's team?
We have perhaps the toughest strength of schedule in the Southern Section of CIF. We were moved from our normal conference (CIF determines them by region and similar sized student populations) and put into a conference that benefits from a larger draft of students and that coincidentally has a longer history with the sport. As for my expectations, I think that we’ll have a very young team that will be very competitive this year and even more so in the years to come. Our student athletes definitely work hard at practice and in 6th period and it is beginning to show. It is my hope that this schedule will benefit our students with greater exposure to college recruiters across the nation. I look forward to seeing the complete dynamics of our squad once many of our players come over from their winter sports. Additionally, I’m surrounded by the most talented assistant coaches I have ever had any of whom could easily be a head coach at any other program, high school or collegiate, in the country.
Do you think that lacrosse has the potential to become a more mainstream sport?
Lacrosse is the oldest sport in the country and on the continent for that matter. It is extremely popular back East and in Canada (it’s their National Sport) and it is unequivocally the fastest growing sport in the country, as a recent Sports Illustrated article attested. I think you will see lacrosse become a mainstream sport. The NFL, NBA, and NHL were once all fledgling leagues that grew and continue to grow from constant refinement from their commissioners, owners, and fan demands. I think the professional lacrosse league (MLL) is already beginning to grow from these previous models. For instance just last summer we saw Los Angeles and San Francisco both opened professional lacrosse franchises in their cities.
What are the challenges of setting up a completely new sport at CdM?
Infrastructure is the greatest challenge. First there are field space and usage issues, as well as finance and fund raising demands from the school district on down to the individual player. Lacrosse, much like football and hockey can be somewhat cost prohibitive because of all the gear each player must buy and the equipment a team needs. Next there are the human elements such as fear of the unknown, prejudice, and competition, which we haven’t really come up against here at CdM but I’ve been told that other schools have had to battle them in addition to the infrastructure items I mentioned. Finally, it’s the political transfer of power from being an ASB club team to that of a CIF sanctioned Varsity sport, which requires a lot more paperwork from the coaching staff and students, and an incredible amount of logistical coordination between the conferences and Athletic Directors. Ironically, many of the schools typically in CdM’s conference are from the Irvine area which has had lacrosse played in its schools as long as 15 years ago, but because of inconsistent leadership, organization, and field space had decided not to join in with many of the other school districts that have become CIF varsity sanctioned sports. Fortunately, the story here is very different. Our Principal, Athletic Director, Athletic Secretary, and Parental Boosters involvement have been extraordinary. With out their leadership and diligence this would never have occurred.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)