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by Staff
Marblehead Reporter
February 02, 2010
MARBLEHEAD, MA -- DS Designs, Energy Within and HeartStrings Jewelry have teamed up to promote a lifestyle for a healthy heart during the month of February.
Owner of Heartstrings Susan Garofalo designs and creates unique sterling silver jewelry. All of the proceeds from her sales go to purchase automated external defibrillators for the towns where her jewelry is sold.
DS Designs in Marblehead has been carrying Garofalo's jewelry for two years, and as a result of sales, Garofalo has been able to donate two defibrillators to the town, one to the Marblehead High School Athletic Department and one to the Marblehead Community Center. Funds are currently being raised to purchase an AED for Marblehead Youth Lacrosse and other youth sports teams that play at Hopkins Field behind the Village School.
Garofalo founded Heartstrings after her husband suffered sudden cardiac arrest during a workout at a local gym in 2005. He survived due to the existence of an on-site defibrillator.
by Joe Fitzgibbon
The Oregonian
January 21, 2010
BEAVERTON -- As the registration deadline for youth lacrosse approaches on Jan. 31, dozens of Beaverton families aren't sure where their kids will be playing.
"Right now, we've got two private fields in place, but we'd prefer to use those with Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District," said Andrew Klumpp, president of Westview Youth Lacrosse. "I hope we can get this resolved before the season begins."
For the past eight years, Beaverton Youth Lacrosse has run a single, citywide league, attracting more than 700 elementary and middle school participants within the Beaverton School District boundaries.
Last summer, parents residing within the Westview High School boundaries wanted to form stronger ties with their neighborhood elementary and middle schools. The parents formed their own association, hired their own coaches, created a website, and set up their own schedule of contests. More than 75 boys and girls immediately joined.
But when it came time to negotiate for the use of athletic fields run by Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District, the Westview group was tripped up.
Our Sports Central
Boston, MA
February 9, 2010
Major League Lacrosse announced today that they are joining First Lady, Michelle Obama in her efforts to end childhood obesity.
"We are very excited to be working with the First Lady, the White House, our existing league partners such as New Balance, and other sports leagues on such an important cause" said MLL Commissioner David Gross. "The First Lady is committed to ending childhood obesity over the next 18 years and as a league we are committed to supporting her efforts and working with her team to make this goal a reality.
In the last 30 years, the percentage of children who are obese has doubled and the percentage of obese adults has tripled, increasing the number of years that they are exposed to the health risks of obesity including Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and several major cancers. Today, nearly one third of all children in America are now obese or overweight.
laxpower.com
Baltimore, MD
January 24, 2010
US Lacrosse, the national governing body for the sport, announced the addition of the Great Plains Lacrosse Association as US Lacrosse's sixty-third chapter. US Lacrosse has grown to 63 regional chapters in just 12 years since the organization's inception. The Great Plains chapter covers the greater Kansas City area and includes Kansas and Missouri.
by Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg and Kelly Evans
Wall Street Journal
May 20, 2009
This weekend in Foxboro, Mass., more than 100,000 spectators are expected to pour into Gillette Stadium to see four schools -- Duke, Virginia, Cornell and Syracuse -- square off for the national championship of a sport that, if the numbers are correct, you'll be hearing a lot more about. That sport is lacrosse.
Until recently, lacrosse -- America's other stick and ball sport -- was rarely on TV and only its championship games generated much in the way of media coverage. It was mostly played on the East Coast, and it was often viewed as a game for private-school kids. Some of the game's most electrifying athletes -- Gary and Paul Gait; Casey, Ryan and Michael Powell -- were little known outside core followers. The sole exception may be Jim Brown, the former Cleveland Browns running back who played lacrosse at Syracuse University.
"Lacrosse has taken off because it combines the hitting of football, the speed of basketball, and requires the endurance of soccer," says Kyle Harrison, who led Johns Hopkins to a national championship in 2005 and who won that year's Tewaaraton Trophy as the country's best male player.
These days the sport is showing serious growth. Participation in high school lacrosse has about doubled this decade, to a total of 143,946 boys and girls playing on high school lacrosse teams in the 2007-08 school year, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations, which tracks participation by sport. In 2000-01, there were 74,225 high school lacrosse players.
by Sue Shellenbarger
Wall Street Journal
May 19, 2009
We've posted before on injuries in youth sports. As summer teams start up, you'll be hearing more about one kind of injury in particular: Knee damage in girls.
Two professional groups, one of surgeons and the other of athletic trainers, are fielding an educational campaign on the prevalence of knee injuries among girls. Tears to the ACL, or the anterior cruciate ligament in the knee, are eight times more likely in girls than in boys, research shows. Doctors hypothesize that physiological differences between girls and boys, such as weaker hamstring muscles that reduce the stability of the knee joint, or estrogen that leads to weaker ligaments, are factors.
The educational campaign comes amid rising questions about the pressures on young athletes. Mark Hyman, author of a book on the topic, says he regrets having supported his son in pitching so long and hard in high-school baseball that he injured his arm, forcing surgery and a permanent setback. And recent research on 5,000 promising football players shows high-school and college injuries haunt pro players for years.
by Todd Hambleton
Sun Media
April 20, 2009
Where'd all the baseball home-openers go?
None to the east in Montreal, and none to the west in Ottawa anymore . . . so we'll settle for a spring home-opener on Cornwall Island.
There's something exciting about the start of a new season in the spring, and on Saturday night it wasn't really about "settling'' for lacrosse, but more about enjoying a sport in an excellent facility.
And, the home team, the junior B Celtics, got a win, over expansion Kahnawake, in what was the first of what will be dozens of lacrosse junior and senior, A and B home games this spring and summer.
I'll have to settle for writing about lacrosse this year. The two little guys are taking a year off from lacrosse -- they'll try football and baseball instead. (Lacrosse and soccer are out.)
But it came up in intermission conversation (between Slushies) on Saturday: we're probably going to miss playing and coaching the fastest game on two feet -- perhaps we already do. And we're probably going to get back into it down the road sometime.
Because it's just a great game.
READ MORE...
by Staff Editorial
Media General Communications Holdings
April 9, 2009
With Little League starting and other sports in full swing, we look forward to a full slate of athletic competition in the coming months.
The sound of bats hitting balls can be heard throughout Culpeper and the surrounding area these days, with high school baseball and softball teams enjoying successful seasons and local Little Leaguers making their way to the diamond.
While the Eastern View baseball and softball teams are both off to tremendous starts and battling for district championships, future high school players also have begun their seasons with a fantastic celebration.
Culpeper Little League recently marked its 35th anniversary with opening day festivities for baseball and softball, which proved to be an enjoyable experience despite rain. The Rappahannock Athletic Association also celebrated opening day last weekend. It marked the 30th year of youth baseball in Amissville.
But baseball and softball players aren't the only competitors out and about now that the weather is warming up (at least some days). Lacrosse, tennis track and field hockey are also in full swing.
And don't forget those youth soccer players who populate the fields at the county rec complex. They might learn a thing or two by stopping to watch the EVHS girls soccer team. The Cyclones are off to a 5-1 start and have won three of their four district contests.
by Mike English
February 20, 2008
Palm Beach County schools took Monday off to celebrate President's Day, but dozens of young lacrosse players turned up at Jupiter High School for lessons anyway.
The Jupiter High boys and girls lacrosse teams sponsored a one-day clinic at the idle campus for players from first through eighth grades.
The camp drew 18 girls and 38 boys, and on the boy's side most of them currently are enrolled in the JTAA or Palm Beach Gardens youth lacrosse programs.
"This was a great turnout for our first time," JHS boys coach Don Blumenthal said. "I would say three quarters of them have played in the JTAA. Only about seven or eight of them have never played before."
On the girls side, 18 young campers turned out, said JHS girls coach Sarah Burlingame.
"Only about half of the girls are involved in the JTAA program," Burlingame said.
For some, it was the first time they have touched a stick.
"Your lacrosse stick should become part of your body!"
Youth Lacrosse USA
To become proficient in passing and shooting, the player must be able to propel the ball from the stick with the wrist "snap." Many beginning players pass and shoot with an arm motion, or "push" the ball, which causes the ball to leave the stick on a low trajectory resulting in a low pass or shot. An excellent way to develop the wrist snap is to utilize the wall. Go to a cinderblock or brick wall and stand approximately 3 to 5 yards away. Any wall will work (no windows), but a smooth concrete surface at least 10 feet tall is the best.
You can and will observe daily improvement if proper technique is maintained. Increase the reps as wrists become stronger. Aim for as many reps as possible with desired form, however. This is a lefty-righty work out. Attempt to do as many reps as possible. Remember, your goal is to strengthen the wrists, to become proficient in releasing the ball with the snap of the wrists, to gain hand speed, and to develop a quick release.
The single most effective training technique that was implemented in my game, and the one that I preach first and foremost to my players as a coach, is one of the oldest. “WALL BALL” is the one aspect of training that can help a player develop and be the sure handed ball control player, regardless of position, that every team needs.
By Paul Carcaterra
January 6th, 2004
Paul Carcaterra is widely regarded as one of the top youth lacrosse teachers in the USA. he is a former captain and All-American at Syracuse. He plays for the MLL New Jersey Pride. Carcaterra also is co-director of No Limit Lacrosse Camps (which he co-directs with MLL All-Star John Gagliardi).
As this wonderful sport evolves, both from an equipment and training standpoint, we are all exposed to new ideas about how to become better coaches and players. I have been involved with the sport of lacrosse for 21 years, at the youth/high school (Yorktown), college (Syracuse), international (Team England), and professional levels(NJ Pride). There were many innovative ideas that helped me become a strong player, and now a high school (Fox Lane) coach in Westchester County, NY. However, the single most effective training technique that was implemented in my game, and the one that I preach first and foremost to my players as a coach, is one of the oldest. “WALL BALL” is the one aspect of training that can help a player develop and be the sure handed ball control player, regardless of position, that every team needs.
January 22, 2008
The movement to place Automatic External Defibrillators on the sideline of lacrosse games continued to grow this past year, this time in Setauket, N.Y. The Three Village Youth Lacrosse League, which runs a clinic starting with kids in kindergarten, recently instituted a new AED program for the upcoming season.
John Petraco, a physician, coach and father of four boys, brought up the program to the board and all agreed it was worthwhile. Thanks to help fundraising from the Louis Acompora Foundation, the league has five AEDs and will be training their coaches how to use them. Some day, the league hopes to have them for every team, and for now, they are developing a system where they will be handed off to get them to as many games as possible.
Inside Lacrosse
January 16, 2008
Level 2 Sports has announced the details of the 2008 adidas National Lacrosse Classic. adidas Lacrosse is the title sponsor and event partner which will feature the Top 500 high school underclassmen players in the United States.
Open to 9th, 10th and 11th grade boys, the adidas National Lacrosse Classic provides an opportunity for players to test their skills against the 'best of the best' competing for a roster spot on their Regional Team. The adidas Event Advisory Board has established 8 regions in the Nation. Each region will have a select number of teams based upon 2006 high school participation rates. A total of 20 teams will play in the grand finals, July 18-20, 2008 at the Discovery Sports Complex in Maryland as a showcase for college coaches and scouts. In addition, the winning team of the adidas National Lacrosse Classic will represent the United States against Canada for the Brogden Cup in December 2008.
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