New players learn the game from scratch

Playing sports at the collegiate level is no easy task, especially for those who have never played the sport before.

After participating in track-and-field competitions for four years, freshman Miranda Otto finds playing a new sport to be "a completely different ball game."

Outside sessions with the coaches and individual practices help build the skills necessary for success, according to Otto.

"Learning how to play a new sport was very interesting and different, but it isn't much related to what I've done in the past," Otto said.

This season the women's lacrosse team will be fielding three athletes who have never played the sport before, according to Beth Van Parys,  head coach of the women's lacrosse team.

"All three of them came in wanting to be part of the team," said Van Parys.

"They all wanted to learn how to play the sport, and they wanted to be competitive," Van Parys said.

Freshmen Otto and Meghan Grenier and senior Nicki Hunsicker were recruited because of their "interest to play, and the drive and motivation to be part of the team," Van Parys said.

Each of the players joined after showing interest in playing the sport last semester, according to Van Parys.

"My roommate is a lacrosse player, so we started shooting around, and she taught me how to pass and play wall-ball," said freshman architecture major Otto, 18, of Lakewood, Wash.

Coming from a background in track and field, in addition to cross country, "it's a completely new experience that I have to get accustomed to," Otto said.

"I had no clue what lacrosse was a year ago, and I came here, and I'm starting to learn," Otto said.

For senior political science major Nicki Hunsicker, 22, of Emmaus, Pa., "I've played soccer all four years here at Norwich, and there are certain similarities between the sports."

"You still have to be athletic to play, because there's the running aspect and the feet movements," Hunsicker said. "The biggest difference in lacrosse is the stick, and you have to catch a tiny ball with the stick," Hunsicker said.

Teaching the fundamentals and ensuring the new players understand the basics are just two of the tasks the coaching staff wants to accomplish, according to Van Parys.

"Lacrosse isn't too hard to pick up if you've played other sports, and [the new players] turned out to be great learners," said assistant women's lacrosse coach Julia Steese.

"One of the things all these girls share is that they have a great attitude," Steese said. "That's all we can really ask for if you don't know if you're going to get a lot of playtime."

The coaches and more experienced players have been teaching the newer players "hand-eye coordination stuff," in addition to "passing, catching the ball, [and] working on the basics," Steese said.

Some of the other things the coaching staff is working on include "general athletic ability, like being on your toes, and being able to adjust during a play, to learn and to adapt," Van Parys said.

However, the coaches are only given a limited amount of time to work with the players prior to the season starting in the spring.

"I'll watch them during the fall, and then give feedback on the things they could work on for the spring tryouts," Van Parys said.

"I'll give them the tools and some pointers on the things they can work on by themselves," Van Parys said.

While the coaches are responsible for training the entire team, some veteran players have become mentors for the newer players.

"The girls, the first-timers, have great attitudes, and they're really receptive," Steese said. "They listen to what the other girls have to say."

The senior and junior players "take on their own little mini-coaching roles, and they try to help out [the new players] as much as they can," Steese said.

"All the girls are amazing, and some of them have been playing for nine years," Otto said.

"The more experienced players are very helpful, because [we] didn't know anything about lacrosse, and they help teach us when they can," Otto said.

In addition to normal practice time, the more practiced players hold individual sessions with the new players, in order to better reinforce the essential skills, according to Otto.

"The assistant coach will sometimes do individual practices, and she's made extra time in her schedule to take us down to Shapiro and work on passing, catching and the basic rules of the game," Hunsicker said.

The coaches try to have the individual sessions "at least once a week, and sometimes we do more," Steese said.

Getting the new players "to watch lacrosse, whether it's on the TV or with other teams play, [is what we do] to get them used to the sport," Steese said.

According to Hunsicker, another key aspect of becoming an accomplished player is team cohesion.

"The girls made it really comfortable for us as new players to get acquainted with the sport," Hunsicker said.

"After those first couple of weeks it wasn't too difficult to get adjusted," Hunsicker said. "The sprints weren't fun, but playing with the other girls was."

Overcoming the physical hurdles of playing a new sport was at the front of both the coaches' and players' minds prior to the start of the season.

"In terms of athletic ability, we're looking for someone who has the hand-eye coordination and the spatial awareness necessary for [the position]," Van Parys said.

"Being an athlete gets you into the competitive mindset, and you're generally already in good shape if you've been playing sports for a few years," Hunsicker said.

"Physically, you have to be in the proper condition to be able to compete on the collegiate level," Van Parys said.

However, different sports require different skill sets, according to Van Parys.

"For lacrosse, it's the fine motor skills, like for passing and catching," Van Parys said.

"We're all getting better at the ball handling skills, which takes the most time," Hunsicker said.

"Trying to see the stick and get the ball" is one of the hardest physical challenges to overcome, according to Otto.

The new players also faced mental obstacles to conquer in their pursuit of becoming better lacrosse players.

"It's always a little nerve wracking to join a team, and you don't know what to expect," Steese said.

"Changing to a sport I've never played, never seen, I think the biggest mental issue is personal confidence," Hunsicker said.

"At first I was a little nervous," Hunsicker said. "I didn't think I was going to be [like that] but I was very nervous in the beginning."

"The new players start off kind of nervous, but you just have to go out there and do it," Steese said.

Some of the players pick up the sport quickly, while others "will watch first, to see how it all works, and then jump in," Steese said.

According to Steese, all the new players have been improving rapidly since joining the team after tryouts in February.

"They've made tremendous strides in the sport, considering the first day when it was awkward to hold the stick, and now we can throw them into a scrimmage," Steese said.

"One of the major improvements these new players have made is just being part of the team in general, and enjoying their time out there," Van Parys said.

"I recently played my first game and we won, so I feel like I've been doing well and making progress," Otto said.

"The other new players are completely new, but they've been working really hard and picking up all the skills quickly," Hunsicker said.

Each player brings a different dynamic to the team, and "the newer players wake everyone up a bit, because they go out there to have some fun, and they bring that to the team as a whole," according to Van Parys.

"Newer players, whether they're freshmen or new to the sport, have a freshness, a joy of learning new things," Van Parys said.

The new players are a "good addition to the lacrosse family," Steese said. "Freshmen usually bring a lot of energy."

"They're so positive and they want to be there, they bring a whole new energy level to the team," Steese said.

Looking ahead to the rest of the season, and future seasons, the players are optimistic about developing as lacrosse players.

"I know I'll keep getting better, and get to play in more games," Otto said. "I feel like I've been getting better, so with practice things can only get better."