Avon Lake Lacrosse Club Doubles After Winless First Season

Sometimes it’s not the numbers in the record book that counts, but the numbers on the field.

Last season, in its inaugural year, the Avon Lake Lacrosse Club didn’t win one game. That didn't stop the program from doubling its number of teams.  

“We had one team and were 0-9 playing established teams such as Bay, Brecksville, Rocky River, St. Ignatius and Westlake,” Jim Crawford, who helped organize the program, said. “We were very pleased with our season having scored in all but our first-ever game.”

Interest in the club grew and this year the team is fielding a varsity and JV team, one of three goals the program set for itself year. The goal of adding a junior varsity team was reached when 42 players registered this season, a 50 percent increase over its inaugural year. (See team roster below.)

The team formed in early 2010 when students Alex Lamb, Clay Sharb and Matt Morrisson found they had nowhere to play high school lacrosse. The trio had played for a middle school recreation team in Westlake, but once they entered high school they aged out of that system.

In February of 2010 they turned to Alex’s father, Brian Lamb, to help organize a club team. He now serves as the club’s president.

“Had I known how much work it would be I never would have said yes,” Lamb, a litigator at Thompson Hine in Cleveland, joked. “But it has been the most fun thing I've done in years.”

The program's second goal was bringing in a coach with significant experience. They found that coach in Kevin Walz, a six-year coach for Oberlin College Men's Lacrosse.

“Coach Walz is the real deal, and he is going to help lead our lacrosse team to the next level,” Lamb said.

The program's third goal is to join the Ohio High School Athletic Association. It is currently a member of the Ohio High School Lacrosse Association (OHSLA) and is made up primarily of students from Avon Lake High School, but includes students from other districts as well.

“If a few more lacrosse teams join OHSLA, lacrosse could become a sanctioned sport under the auspices of the broader governing body in high school sports, the Ohio High School Athletic Association, in the next couple years,” Lamb said.

To reach the longer-term goal of adding lacrosse as an official Avon Lake High School sport would mean additional requirements would have to be met.

 Title 9 requires a women’s’ sport to also be added to the high school program at the same time a men’s sport is added. This could mean adding additional sports such as field hockey or women’s lacrosse to the schools sports teams.

“(Superintendent of Schools) Bob Scott and (ALHS Athletic Director) Tom Barone are aware of the efforts as we continue to build the program,” Crawford said.

Lamb said the club will next turn its attention to adding girls lacrosse and youth lacrosse (grades 3 through 8) to the district.

The effort isn’t lost on those who really matter: the players. They are ready to put in the effort and bring success to the program.

"This year we are looking for a huge step up and are ready to get some wins,” Alex Lamb said. “Last year was a bit of a struggle, but the team is going to hold their heads up high and work hard this season and give ourselves a good reputation."

The varsity team has its Saturday, March 26 against Bay Village at Bay High School. The junior varsity's inaugural game is March 29 against St. Edward junior varsity team at St. Edward High School.

For more information on the Avon Lake High School Lacrosse team, go to www.eteamz.com/allc).

Varsity Roster

Alex Bakaitis (junior, Avon Lake),

Justin Campana (junior, Avon Lake),

Anthony Capucini (Junior, Avon Lake)

Tyler Dowd (junior, Lawrence),

Cory Fischer (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Austin Grosel (senior, Avon Lake)

Devon Henry (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Jordyn Jagels (senior, Avon Lake)

Keane Turner (freshman, Avon Lake)  

Jordan Krawec (junior, Avon Lake)

Alex Lamb ((sophomore Avon Lake))

Tyler Lennox  (junior, Avon Lake)

Patrick MacGeorge  (junior, Avon Lake)

Taylor Mack (junior, Lutheran West)

Matt Morrisson  (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Cody Novotny (junior, Avon Lake)

Ryan Schmidt (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Clay Sharb (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Ben Sherman (junior, Avon Lake)

Elliot Smith (sophomore, Lakewood)

Ricky Tomer (junior, Avon Lake)

Mike Twyman (junior, Avon Lake)

 Junior Varsity Roster

Austin Boland (freshman, Avon Lake)

Pierson Callander (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Zach Calogeras  (sophomore, Avon Lake))

Cameron Clapp (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Jackson Crawford (sophomore, Avon Lake)

James Goodwin (senior, Avon Lake)

Kellen Henry (freshman, Avon Lake)

Bill Hyland (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Dylan Kadow (sophomore, Avon Lake)

AJ Knapp (freshman, Avon Lake)

Connor McDevitt (junior, Avon Lake)

Colin Molnar (junior, Avon Lake)

Tim Musat (junior, North Olmsted)

Jack Osberg  (freshman, Avon Lake)

Conor Patton (freshman, Avon Lake)

George Quinn (sophomore, Avon Lake)

Justin Rinaldi  (freshman, Avon Lake)

Tim Schleicher (freshman, Avon Lake)

Kyle Smith (freshman, Avon Lake)

Mike Szegedy ­­­(junior, Avon Lake)

Dylan Walkerly (freshman, Avon Lake)