Lacrosse gears up

With all the snow and cold weather in Vermont, the Norwich men's lacrosse team does all its preseason training inside.

Head Coach Neil Anderson believes that having to stay inside may hinder his team at the beginning of the season, but he does not want his players falling into the trap of feeling sorry for themselves

"We are used to it by now, so practicing inside should not affect us," said Anderson.

Even with the problems practicing inside, the Cadets are in full preparation for the 2011 season. According to their coach, this could be one of the best in Norwich history.

The Cadets are led by captains Patrick Sikora, Tyler Woods and Jason Moore. Their leadership will be a key part to the team's success, according to Anderson.

"Everyone is leaders in their own way. A lot lead by performing to their best ability and some lead by being vocal," Anderson said.

Anderson does not want these captains to have the "C" on their chest become a burden for them or disrupt their play. But Patrick Sikora, 21, a criminal justice major from Montpelier, Vt.., does not see it as a burden.

"Being a captain you have a lot more responsibility than anyone else on the team. I try to make sure that I am the first one at practice and the last one to leave. I want to set an example for the underclassmen on the team and show them the right way to handle themselves at all times," said Sikora.

The team's motto for the season is to ask for help if needed. Anderson does not want his players to think they have to figure everything out themselves and it is OK to ask a coach or teammate a question if they have a problem.

"Everyone is talented and is going to help each other this season. We want the team to make the captain's job easier by asking questions to each other. Our team has really learned in a short amount of time to rally around each other," said Anderson

Sikora agreed and also stated that it is up to the upperclassmen to show the underclassmen how to conduct themselves. "The coaches can only do so much, it is up to the captains and upperclassmen to keep the underclassmen in line," Sikora said, "They are not used to playing at the college level yet so it will take some time. But so far they have been great and are adjusting to the faster game speed quickly."

Said Anderson, "For some it's natural for the underclassmen to look up to the upperclassmen. They want to know how you can compete at a high level. Our upperclassmen know the power they have; we work consistently on how to do the right things to perform at a high level. If the upperclassmen do the right thing then it naturally goes down to the younger players, and it subconsciously allows them to do it too."

The Cadets need to find players to put the ball in the net. They lost two of their top three leading scorers from last year, but Anderson does

not see that as a problem.

"Our system isn't built on individuals," he said.

According to Anderson the Cadets have had no problems putting the ball in the net thus far this preseason. The leading scorer in the conference may not be on their team, but the coach believes that he has an arsenal of talented scorers.

"The majority of our offensive guys are back, the system is still strong. The first two weeks of practice we have had no standouts in terms of who is scoring, we have scored a lot. It shows that we have a strong system and a lot of guys are capable of scoring," said Anderson.

Practicing inside has a different atmosphere than practicing outside but the Cadets are used to that.

"The field is smaller, the ball bounces back off walls, and the lighting is extremely different. It might set us back in our first few games of the season but I do not believe it will be that big a deal. Our team is used to dealing with this; as a senior and captain it is my job to keep everyone prepared no matter the situation," said Sikora.

Anderson said practicing inside Shapiro Field House is no problem.

"We have planned for this from the beginning. We are used to being inside to start, and we have no excuses. It is our job as coaches and players to be prepared for every game we play. We have the tools to be successful; having a turf field and being outside would get us ready quicker. But even if we never get turf we will still be a successful program," said Anderson.

Norwich plans to have a new turf field by next year. The Cadets now play on a natural grass field. The lacrosse team will particularly benefit from having a turf field, according to their coach.

"The turf field will help us than any other program. We need the full field to spread the ball out and emulate game situations. We are in Shapiro, which is a great facility, but it's not optimal. ... If we miss a pass it's not coming off a wall back at us, and we have to switch from offense to defense quicker than usual. We are hindered but not debilitated by Shapiro. If we had turf we would be even more ready to play the big games early in the season, but like I said, no excuses," said Anderson.

It is that mindset, say players, that makes them love playing for Anderson. His knowledge of the game and demand for results, not excuses, pushes the Cadets.

"Coach is great; being a former lacrosse player he knows everything about the game. He always stresses to work as a job and use your teammates for help. He puts us in a great position to win just by the way he has us practice," said Sikora.

According to Anderson the team is ready to compete at a high level because it came together as a team so quickly. A close-knit team is essential to being successful, he said.

"We became a very cohesive team in a short amount of time. They know our goal here is to win a championship and we need everyone on the same page to do it. ... We talk about what is preventing us from being a cohesive unit every day at practice. Whether it is core versus civilian players, older guys versus lower guys, or if we have egos get in the way," said Anderson.

"When everyone gets going and buys in this team is going to gel and explode. The championship will come, it is not going to be easy, but it will come. If guys are slowing us down and not buying into the team concept then the championship will not come. They understand they we have to work together to make this a possibility," said Anderson.

The Cadets' first chance to show off their preseason work is March 9 at Ana Maria College in Worcester, Mass. Their first home game is March 30 against in-state rival Castleton.