US Lacrosse High School All Star Team Games

 by Peter Bonoff

�Congratulations! You have been selected to play in the 2001 High School All American Games, June 29 and 30� read the US Lacrosse letter.  This started my trip to Amherst, home of the University of Massachusetts, three hours east of Boston.

My first impression that Friday afternoon was hot and humid, east coast style.  Arriving parents and players were packing fans up to the high-rise dorms.  Who in Seattle packs a fan?  The 92 All Stars were the featured act of a giant Lacrosse tournament with more than a thousand high school and middle school players on a 10 field pasture.  The campus all weekend was swarming with players packing the dinning hall, dormitories and all the spaces in between.

Our games were reserved for the Lacrosse stadium, an artificial grass field.  The West team emerged from the shade and finally introduced themselves for a 9 pm evening practice.  Almost all of the �west� players were from east of the Mississippi River, most were east of Ohio.  Our coaches were from Illinois and Pennsylvania.  The practice was the time for the players to show their stuff.  Most had outstanding stick skills and 210 pound frames.  There wasn�t much team play and no team spirit.

Saturday started with a morning practice.  With the temperatures already in the 80�s, it became just a walk around.  Too quickly it was noon, time for the West to be introduced alongside the East, a powerful team.

I started at center defender and later played long stick mid as all the 21 players (7 at each position and 2 goalies) were happy to rotate on and off.  Surprisingly, the West kept pace with the East ending in a tie at half time.  At the break, the referee announced that the field temperature was around 100 degrees; the players had already figured out the asphalt on the edge was cooler than the artificial grass.  The game ended with a flurry of goals with the East on top by one, 18 to 17.

The rest of the All Star day ended unceremoniously.  The following North/South game was interrupted by severe thunderstorms for 2 hours and the anticipated Awards Ceremony was postponed into late evening.

What did I learn?  Playing with your friends and for your school or pickup is more fun.  I understand now that playing lacrosse on the East coast is not for everyone.  While the skill and competition are higher, the actual visceral enjoyment is lacking. 

I really appreciated the chance to represent Washington State.  My thanks to the Association and the Bainbridge Club for your support.  I look forward to seeing the high school seniors in next year�s college club circuit.

Peter Bonoff

West All Star Team member, 2001

Bainbridge High School Graduate

Attending Western Washington this Fall