It’s almost the start of the spring sports season and I got the chance to sit down with the Boys Lacrosse interim head coach, Mike Harris, to discuss all things about the upcoming season.
Hello, today I am interviewing:
Coach Mike Harris. I’m the Interim Head Coach for Brien McMahon Boys Lacrosse.
Okay, and how do you feel coming on to a new team as Interim Head Coach?
Well, I’m very honored and excited to be leading the [Brien McMahon High School Boys Lacrosse] team as their Head Coach this season. I am no stranger to Brien McMahon High School. I played here and graduated in 2015. This will be my fifth year coaching at Brien McMahon, four years consecutively. My previous roles were as a JV Coach, and then last year, as Coach Smith’s Varsity Assistant.
So just to start off, how would you describe the sport of Lacrosse to someone who hasn’t watched or doesn’t totally know the rules to Lacrosse.
Lacrosse is what they call the fastest game on two feet. It’s very similar to the style of play of basketball, hockey, and soccer. With so many overlaps, players who play those sports tend to pick it up pretty quickly. Plus, you get the physicality and finesse you would see in football as well, which is why a lot of football players tend to translate into good lacrosse players. You get a lot of different aspects from all these different sports in one, which is what makes it so exciting. When you put it all together, you’re playing lacrosse.
So what does your game schedule look like if people were wanting to come out and watch?
We have nine home games out of sixteen this season, which is nice. For all the details, feel free to check out our schedule on the McMahon Athletics app or site. Our home games include; Daunbury, Hamden, Fairfield Ludlowe, Newtown, Prince Tech, Norwalk, New Canaan, Trumbull and East Lyme. We play in the East division in the FCIAC, which includes; Us, Norwalk, Fairfield Ludlowe, Fairfield Warde, Danbury, Trumbull, Westhill, Stamford, and St. Joe’s. We also play Staples and New Canaan who are from the West Division, which is made up of all the heavy hitters (Darien, New Canaan, Greenwich, Wilton, Ridgefield, and Staples) as well as a bunch of out of league games.
How do you feel the Senators will do against all the other teams– and divisions?
We have a lot to prove this year, but I believe we will be prepared to compete well in our division. Last year, our only two wins came from the bottom two teams in our division, so we need to start by making those division games count in our favor. We also need to capitalize on our six non-league matchups this season. Winning more than two games in our division is our first order of business, but we’ll be taking it one opponent at a time. I feel that if we can execute our game plans appropriately and play tough lacrosse, we’ll see success.
What’s your strategy going into the start of the season?
As for our teams’ identity, we’re still figuring that out, but part of our strategy is going to come in the transition game. We need to be a better clearing and riding team. We are also trying to play sound team defense and are looking to play a fast pace, aggressive offense to find opportunities and attack the goal early and often. One of the issues we had last season was not being able to capitalize enough on our offensive possessions, as well as clearing the ball. We had a very well rounded defense last year, but you’re always going to give up goals. So, if you’re not scoring more goals than the other team, you’re not going to win games. Those are just a few things that we need to improve on this season.
On participation, what are the grades of the students involved and how many new students are coming in this year?
Overall, we have a pretty young team. Numbers in the program are not as high as I’d like them to be, but I’ll take whoever’s committed to being an active part of this team and willing to do whatever it takes to succeed. We have seven seniors, of which, only five will be able to play this season. We have a solid junior and sophomore class. Fourteen juniors and eighteen sophomores with eleven juniors and seven sophomores being varsity contributors. A very light group of four freshmen, of which, three are varsity contributors.
What would you say to anyone who’s maybe thinking about playing next season or wants to join Lacrosse after hearing about the sport?
As I mention to many of the athletes out there, lacrosse is probably one of the best sports you can play in the spring. Lacrosse allows athletes to work on their hand-eye coordination, footwork, conditioning, fine and gross motor skills, which all apply to any of the other sports that these athletes play. We can teach you how to play lacrosse, but it always helps having good athletes to work with. It would be great to continue seeing more diversity in a sport that many people have the misconception of being a sport for “rich, white people”. This game is for EVERYONE and our door is always open. If you give it a chance, you’ll find that it’s one of the greatest sports in the world.
Thank You.
Whether you’ve seen a game or not, I think everyone should come out to see the Senators in action. If you were ever on the fence about playing the sport, you shouldn’t worry about your experience and just come out and give it your best shot.
