Salem Observer : Salem, Lacrosse

Young Salem High team girls lacross team seeks confidence, offensive spark

Salem Editor — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 01:37:00 GMT

Momentum has yet to join the Salem girls lacrosse roster. Aside from a 10-6 victory over Nashua North, the Blue Devil offense has been stymied in the early going, including a 19-2 loss to Central on Monday, April 27.

The contest with the Little Green was never in doubt, as Kaleigh Gibbons notched three goals of her seven goals in the early going while Central opened a 9-1 halftime lead.

“We’re in a little bit of a slump right now. They have to get a little bit of confidence,” said Salem head coach Faith Wahlen. “They’re young, and they lost some people last year that had stepped up.”

Following Gibbons’ three unanswered tallies, Sarah Viehl found an open Aja Metcalf in front of the net to trim the deficit to 3-1, but Salem wouldn’t muster another score until just prior to the final buzzer.

Viehl assisted again, passing to Avery Neusch.

Following the game Wahlen said she believed the next day’s meeting with Memorial would untrack her team, and she was right. The Blue Devils edged the Crusaders, 10-9.

Sloppy passing and poor effort on ground balls have been among the causes of a rocky start for Salem, as well as finding a fluid offense.

“We’ve done a bunch of shooting and drills,” said Wahlen. “They practice against me, so I know they can do it. Then they get into a game, get the ball on their stick, and they just freeze.”

Although her team cruised to victory, Central’s head coach, Whitney Nelson, saw promise in a young Blue Devil opponent.

“I think they do a great job of reading the pass and going for the interception,” said Nelson. “They’re very good at anticipating, and that was something I definitely noticed, especially in the second half.”

Salem was shorthanded due to vacation week, but Wahlen said a busy week of play should help her players gain some game experience and find a groove.

“Once they see that they can do it and realize they can score a goal a certain way, it usually flows,” said Wahlen. “Getting the momentum started early enough seems to be our issue right now.”

Salem boys lacross team shows flashes against Memorial, but team remains winless

Salem Editor — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 01:33:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

For roughly three minutes of game play, Salem boys lacrosse coach Chris Keleher was happy with the effort his team gave. The rest of the contest was a different story.

The Blue Devils lost a 6-2 halftime lead and fell in overtime to Memorial on Saturday, April 25, despite clawing back with two goals in the final minutes to force the extra frame. Mitchel Powers ended the contest with 2:27 remaining in overtime, sending Salem home with a 10-9 defeat.

Salem’s fourth quarter was quiet until Jake Matthews worked from the sideline to the middle of the field, scoring while falling down to pull his team within a goal at 9-8 with 3:09 left.

He nearly tied the score with little more than a minute remaining, but his shot ricocheted the post. Brett Miller capitalized on a pass from Steve Kalucki with 44 seconds remaining, firing a shot into the back of the net, but the Blue Devils couldn’t score in the extra session, dropping to 0-5.

“We played down a level,” said Keleher. “As I told the kids, we let them play with us, and they did. They outplayed us, and we played lackadaisically. Until they want to make a commitment to play four quarters of lacrosse, we’ll be dealing with those issues.”

Miller’s four-goal effort wasn’t enough for Salem, which played its closest game of the season after losing by at least six goals in four prior games.

Keleher said he is most frustrated by his team’s approach to games, not the results on the scoreboard.

“We had kids who forgot game uniforms and things like that,” said Keleher. “That points to where the head is. If your head’s not in the game, then we’re going to be in trouble.”

Keleher said his squad can bounce back and take a lesson from its setback at Memorial.

“The last two and a half minutes of the game, that’s the kind of effort we need the whole game,” he said. “You have to play like that the whole game, not the final two minutes when you know you’re in trouble.”

Salem's Mike Ball earns accolades following return from injury

Salem Editor — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 00:37:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

It took Mike Ball an intramural football game to find out that he could bounce back from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

After suffering a knee injury in the first half of his first-ever Southern New Hampshire University men’s lacrosse game, the Salem resident rehabbed and returned as one of the biggest offensive threats in all of Division II lacrosse.

He scored 55 goals and notched five assists last spring, earning him the New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Division II Player of the Year award, as well as the SNHU Male Athlete of the Year honor. Still, Ball and the Penmen coaching staff look forward to an even bigger season in 2009.

“Mike’s capable of the 80-point mark,” said SNHU’s head coach, Paul Calkins. “Last year was pretty good, but I think he’s capable of more.”

Ball also has high expectations for next spring.

“That’s definitely my goal. I want to come out and lead the nation in scoring,” Ball said. “I want to get a lot more assists, and have another breakout year.”

After his ACL injury two seasons ago, Ball tried intramural football on campus at the beginning of the 2007-08 academic year.

“During the fall I played quarterback, and we won the league,” he said. “I started to get the confidence to cut and not think about what could happen to my knee.”

During the lacrosse season, Ball is a vocal and offensive leader on the SNHU squad, but in the summer he hits the beach as an avid wakeboarder.

“I get intense on the field, but when I’m not there I love to be at the beach,” said Ball. “Most people see me off the field as relaxed. Not much bothers me.”

Calkins knew last year was going to be a good one for Ball when he watched the attackman during practice; Ball scored with ease against a defense Calkins also thought was going to have a solid season.

“It was fun because in his first preseason every time he was touching the ball he was scoring a goal,” he said. “You’d see him in practice going against our guys creating defense, and you realized it was going to be fun. He proved right away that everyone had to take notice.”

Ball said he is successful at lacrosse thanks in part to the skills he learned from his lacrosse coach and father, James Ball, as well as his competitive nature.

“I get made fun of a lot because I’m so competitive at everything, no matter the game,” said Ball. “I don’t lose very often, but when I do people like to get on me for that because they know it won’t happen much.”

After one year of bouncing back for Mike Ball, his coach is ready to witness a leap forward.

“For Mike this past year, it was almost a year of redemption. He had a lot to prove that he will be someone to be reckoned with,” said Calkins. “This year I think he’s got something else to prove. He’ll come out stronger.”

Salem girls' lacrosse team pushes Londonderry in playoffs

Salem Editor — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 23:43:00 GMT

BY RYAN O’CONNOR

Faith Wahlen thought they might have a shot.

The No. 6 Lady Blue Devils, who compiled a 9-6 regular season record, forged a two-goal lead in the first half of the Division I quarterfinals against 13-3 Londonderry, the No. 3 seed.

But a barrage of second-half goals by the Lady Lancers – seven in the first 10 minutes – sent the Salem girls lacrosse team home for the season.

“Londonderry came out the second half absolutely on fire, and it was pretty much just us trying to catch up the rest of the half,” said Wahlen of the 12-7 playoff defeat. “Londonderry was just one of those teams we couldn’t get past.”

Salem lost to Londonderry, 9- 6, on April 25, then fell again, 14- 12, in the regular-season finale on Thursday, May 29.

“We had a couple injuries and certainly had our ups and downs, but overall it was a great season for these girls,” said Wahlen. “We stayed in a lot of games against some real quality opponents. We just couldn’t squeak through.”

Now, the team must learn to play without five of its leaders if it hopes to return to the postseason in 2009.

Alyson Higgins, Sara Halbich, Tatum Dyer and Taylor Dyer all graduate, and junior Kyleigh Keating, said Wahlen, won’t be back either.

“I’m losing a bunch of kids I’ve had since their freshman or sophomore year, so they’ve been with me a long time,” said Wahlen. “Overall, they had a great season, and there are going to be some big losses, but I definitely have some leaders I expect to step up next year.”

Salem returns 12 of its 17-player varsity roster, including freshman Aja Metcalf and sophomore Chelsie Muldowney, who Wahlen said solidified her defense in front of junior goalie Emily Cook this season.

In the midfield, juniors Sarah Viehl and Nicole Rozumek had fine seasons and gave their coach plenty of reason for hope next year.

“I think Nicole is going to replace my Taylor Dyer. She’ll pretty much be everywhere,” said Wahlen.

On the attack, sophomores Alissa Horta, Lauren Burnett and Avery Ncusch return for their second season and look to continue their progression.

“Toward the end of the year they just completely stepped in and contributed and two ended up being starters in the playoffs, so I expect all three to really step into new roles next year,” she said.

Also expected to be back are current juniors Lauren Santo and Melissa Putnam, and sophomores Christine DiChiara and Alison Vivinetto.

D-II Bow pulls away from D-I Salem in uneven girls' lacrosse battle

Salem Editor — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:04:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

SALEM – Timeouts are designed to give teams the chance to catch their breath, regroup and grab some momentum.

When Salem High School called a timeout midway through the second half of its girls lacrosse game against visiting Bow High School, the Blue Devils caught their breath, but it was the Falcons who regrouped, snatched the momentum back and finished with a 16-10 win.

Salem trimmed what was once a five-goal deficit to 11-10, but Bow scored the final five goals of the contest on Saturday, April 26.

“I think they got their momentum (after the time out). I don’t sub(stitute) often, so I wanted to give (our team) a chance to get their legs a little bit,” said Salem’s head coach, Faith Wahlen. “It kind of worked against me.”

Caitlin Pratt tallied three goals, and Alison Meagher notched two as well, helping the Falcons jump to an early 6-1 lead, and Bow looked prepared to cruise to a victory.

A first-half timeout by Wahlen helped her Division-I squad regroup and recoup some of the goals, including four from Kyleigh Keating, who found the back of the net five times by contest’s end.

Meagher added three goals in the second half to help the defending Division-II champions extend their lead during an inconsistent contest.

“There really was no flow. There were some whistles and some odd calls,” said Bow’s head coach, Chris Raabe. “Our defense was lacking communication, and our feet got slow in the middle of the game. We’ve been off for a week and a half, and that kind of hurts.”

Two Falcons received yellow cards during the game, and on two separate occasions the referees stopped play to address fans on both sidelines, saying they would not start play until the fans were silent.

Bow and Salem do not play in the same division, and both coaches said they were impressed by their opponent.

“They were the fastest team we have played,” said Raabe. “We’ll usually outrun teams, but they were very quick. It was a good win for us.”

Wahlen said her team needs to improve upon mentally preparing for games against difficult opponents.

“Bow is one of the top opponents in the state, so playing them gives us a competitive game that opens eyes,” she said. “We need to work on settling down and going in with confidence instead of reacting to the team we’re playing.”

Sara Halbich added a goal and three assists for Salem, while Samantha Gallerani notched back-to-back goals late to help ice the victory for the Falcons, who have now scored 15 or more goals in three games so far this season.

Salem coach hopes title-winning ways permeate lax squad, too

Salem Editor — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 20:12:00 GMT

BY RYAN O’CONNOR

For Aly Higgins, Sara Halbich, and Taylor and Tatum Dyer, it was another year, another field hockey title.

The senior quartet – along with juniors Nicole Rozumek and Kyleigh Keating and sophomore Chelsie Muldowney – led the Lady Blue Devils to a third consecutive state championship in the fall.

Now, Faith Wahlen is hoping some of that success migrates back into the spring season. Though the girls lacrosse coach admits the two sports are very different – most of the athletes competing in field hockey have done so for years, while many players on her squad first took up lacrosse in high school – she knows she inherits some of the state’s most polished winners.

Last season, the Lady Blue Devils took a 13-10 record into the playoffs and lost in the quarterfinals.

This year, Wahlen said the fifth-year squad is capable of reaching the semis, maybe even the final.

To do so, it must break into the yearly hierarchy of Pinkerton, Nashua South, Souhegan and Concord, and compete with annual foe Londonderry for one of the top four spots. While the field hockey players bring proven success, junior midfielder Sarah Viel and senior goaltender Sarah Cino add experience to this year’s lacrosse team, and sophomore Avery Neusen and freshman Aja Metcalf bring youth and intensity.

“I’m hoping, because I have so many returnees that have already been there and know how it feels (in the playoffs), it will help us,” said Wahlen. “These girls have a lot of fun and bring a lot of desire. They’re very hard working, and some have been together so long we’ve kind of built a little family amongst each other.”

Also expected to contribute on the 2008 squad are juniors Emily Cook, Lauren Santo and Melissa Putnam, as well as sophomores Lauren Burnett, Alissa Horta, Christine DiChiara and Ali Vivinetto.

Putting up a fight – Long losing streak followed by longer winning streak

Salem Editor — Wed, 23 May 2007 16:39:00 GMT

BY MATT STOUT

A little more than three weeks ago, when the Salem girls lacrosse team huddled together for one of its first practices in May, Blue Devils coach Faith Wahlen sensed frustration, disappointment and, perhaps, broken confidence.

Losers of four straight at the time, Salem had just stepped face to face with all but one of the top teams in Division I and proved, despite the setbacks, the team wasn’t far from joining them atop the standings.

“(Wahlen) kind of asked us, ‘What do you like about this team and what do I think this team can do better?’” said junior Tatum Dyer. “And we all pretty much said the same thing and agreed – when you know you’re capable of something and you just can’t do it, it’s frustrating. I think that kind of hit everyone on the team.”

Ever since, Salem has hit back. Before dropping a 16-7 decision to undefeated Pinkerton Academy on Tuesday, May 22, the Blue Devils built a seven-game win streak, with convincing wins over Keene, Manchester Memorial, Manchester Central and two against Nashua North.

As importantly, it started to execute the way it thought it could all season.

In scoring 13 or more goals in six straight games, Salem’s offense – predicated on speed and well-executed passes – found the rhythm it lacked in April. Meanwhile, the Taylor Dyer-led defense, made up of several first-year starters, started to click.

The win streak, in turn, helped propel the Blue Devils back into the middle of a crowded Division I field. They’ll find out on Thursday, May 31, if the mix of momentum and confidence they’ve found will equal the same success in the quarterfinals of the state tournament.

“They’re learning how to pick themselves up,” Wahlen said. “I had moved a couple people at the beginning of the season, so it was like, ‘Where is this person going to go? What’s this person going to do?’ Now, they’re learning how to play a little better with each other, read each other, know where other people are going to be. They’re just understanding each other a little better than usual.”

That growing comfort level may be most evident on attack. In recent weeks, the scoring load has shifted from one or two people to several. In its 17-4 win over Memorial on Thursday, May 17, Salem received contributions from nine different scorers, including Kyleigh Keating, who scored four times; Afton Marshall, who scored thrice; and Sara Halbrich, who also notched three.

It’s a step up from when Salem was losing, though the team knows it necessarily didn’t play badly
during the skid. Londonderry, jockeying for a top-four seed, needed overtime to finally down Salem, 13-11, on April 24.

“I think we are pretty confident, and, even the games that we lose, we come out saying, ‘That was definitely winnable,’” said Taylor Dyer. “We go in there against the good teams ready to work hard and hoping to upset them because we’re never the favorite in those situations.”

That’s one of the many things they like about their team.

“They’re coming back to fight,” Wahlen said of her players, “which is a good thing.”

Up and down – Salem stuck at .500 following alternately strong, shabby play

Salem Editor — Wed, 02 May 2007 16:44:00 GMT

BY SAPNA PATHAK

They know how to take the lead.

Now they have to learn how to hold it.

And until Salem’s boys lacrosse team figures out how to stay ahead of opponents until the final whistle blows, Chris Kelleher’s postgame talk will sound like a broken record.

“They think the game’s over before they even played it,” said Kelleher after an 8-4 loss to Manchester Central. “We jumped up two (goals) quick, and they thought it was over, and it clearly wasn’t. That’s something we have to work on. We have to play the entire game – the entire game.”

Close games are nothing new to the Blue Devils, who followed the Little Green loss with victories over Manchester West, 8-4, and Nashua North, 11-9. Perhaps, said Kelleher, it’s the team’s mixture of youth and veterans that’s led to this year’s choppy play.

With 10 seniors leading a group of newcomers, the Blue Devils have, at times, had trouble meshing on the field.

Against Central, Brendon Lyons scored twice, while senior co-captain Pete Emerzian and Ryan Shelley netted one shot apiece.

“Against those top teams like Pinkerton or Exeter, we get a bit overwhelmed,” said Kelleher of the four-year varsity program. “They’ve been doing this at this level for a lot longer, but we’re getting there. We could just as easily be 5-1 instead of 3-3, but the problem is consistency.”

Facing the Little Green, goalie Shaun Russell guarded the net for the first half before giving way to freshman Joey Scire. Junior Chris Frebiani, who played attacker against North, has also impressed Kelleher in net. But he coach said he’s relying on the defense to make up for the goaltending trio’s inexperience.

“Goaltending is going to be huge for us, but unfortunately we’ve got little experience,” said Kelleher.

“Until I see someone look hot in a game, I’ll keep moving people around. We’re still kicking out the old habits of not putting teams away. We just haven’t developed that killer instinct.”

The Blue Devils face Londonderry on Thursday, May 3.

Game notes

Against Manchester West, Ryan Shelley and Eric Jablonski scored two goals each. Brett Miller, Brendon Lyons, Pete Emerzian and Sean Redmond each scored one.

Facing Nashua North, Jablonski, Chris Frebiani, Emerzian and Steve Delfosse scored two goals apiece. Miller, Nick Tomasi and Jordan Kusch each put away one goal for the Blue Devils

Relative success – Once again, SHS grads part of fine fledgling program

Salem Editor — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 21:50:00 GMT

BY MATT STOUT

The Salem girls lacrosse team owes a lot of where it is right now to Meagan Schadlick and Christina Miano. The pair hopes that one day the Southern New Hampshire University women’s lacrosse team can say the same thing.

After picking up lacrosse as freshmen in high school and, in turn, helping to lift the Blue Devils to a playoff win in each of their senior years, Schadlick and Miano – cousins by birth but sisters by choice – figure prominently into the Penmen’s future plans now that the Salem natives are a sophomore and freshman, respectively.

Following a 10-8 loss to Merrimack College on Tuesday, April 24, No. 10 SNHU, which earned its first ever ranking in the latest IWLCA Division II national poll, stands at 8-3 and 6-2 in the Northeast-10, and is in prime position to capture a top-four seed in the conference tournament set for early May.

Defenders Schadlick and Miano have seen varying time behind a senior and a graduate student this year, but they understand their contributions – both past and expected – are more spelled out.

Last season, Schadlick was part of a Penmen squad that claimed both its first playoff berth and victory against Bentley College. This season, as the two have reunited, the attitudes, stick skills and experience in program-building they’ve brought have helped elevate their team to contender status in just its fourth year as a program.

“We earned where we were,” Miano said of the pair’s time at Salem, where Schadlick was actually one of the original four members who helped start the club program. “And it’s the same thing here. This team earned its position.”

Yet, as much as Schadlick and Miano were attracted by the opportunity to help develop another young program, it was their desire to remain close both on and off the field that ultimately brought them to Manchester.

The two went to elementary, middle and high school together, playing not only lacrosse but volleyball on the same teams. Schadlick is Miano’s “role model,” while Miano is Schadlick’s “support system.”

Their games, of course, also have similarities. SNHU coach Mary Squire said they both have advanced stick skills for defenders, a talent they developed when they realized it wasn’t their speed that would carry them, said Salem coach Faith Wahlen.

“Sometimes we have to really get Schaddy to get rid of the ball because sometimes she wants to hang on to it too long,” Squire said, laughing.

They have their differences, too. Wahlen described Schadlick as a physical player and a vocal presence Salem team. Miano is more of a thinker who quickly studies her advancing opponent before attacking, though both traits have translated well into a SNHU defense that leads the league in caused turnovers.

“In practice, we just have to work our butts off,” Schadlick said. “It’s just (about) working our way up and supporting everyone when they’re in, watching what they do.

But it’s very exciting knowing next year we’re going to be the up-and-coming team and ... (we’re) playing key roles for the defense,” she added.

After traveling last spring to catch each other’s games, reuniting certainly makes it all the more enjoyable. Yet, being together, Miano said, was always in the plans.

“They like to start things,” Wahlen said. “They’re very big into building, and they’re very good at building things together.”

Youth movement – Families’ focus shifts to children in multiple athletic endeavors

Salem Editor — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 17:20:00 GMT

BY MATT STOUT

It’s a Sunday afternoon in late January, and Colleen and Bob Nagri plan to eventually settle in for the night to catch the New England Patriots’ playoff showdown with the Indianapolis Colts.

Their Dodge Durango – its back windshield plastered with eight metallic silhouettes of different athletes, representing the sports their children, 10-year-old Alex and 9-year-old Kyle, play – sits idle for the moment. Soon, they’ll drive Alex to her soccer practice, and hopefully make it back in time for kickoff.

Tomorrow, she’ll have a lacrosse clinic to attend, while Colleen plays in her Monday night women’s soccer league. In the days to follow, Kyle will run from a travel hockey practice to one for basketball – recreation or travel, take your pick. Alex will also train with her basketball team, and if Bob hadn’t blown out the same knee twice years earlier, he’d have a men’s league basketball game to look forward to. Then it’s games the following weekend.

But it’s not too bad. It’s winter – “kind of that offseason,” Colleen said – and the typically busy week comes after what Bob called a “light weekend” of four practices and three games.

Of course, it didn’t compare to a weekend earlier in the season when Kyle and Alex, between two jamboree soccer tournaments, two basketball games and two hockey games, combined for 10 contests – on a Saturday.

“Half our friends think we’re nuts,” Bob said, referring to the Salem family’s demanding sports schedule, mapped out event-by-event in an oversized day planner. “And the other half is doing the same things.”

With the growth of options and demand in youth sports, the Nagris’ story isn’t uncommon.

At a national and local level, single-sport youth athletes have become more uncommon; neighborhood and regional organizations, better organized than ever before, are accommodating more and more kids; the attraction of higher levels of play, such as those offered by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), has intensified.

From the popularity of events such as the Little League World Series to the growing sums of money families pay to play, there’s no denying youth sports have become a different beast than 15, 10 or even five years ago.

How some of these families juggle it all can be an art in itself. Why they do it can be as abstract.

Youth sports, parents and coaches assert, keep kids active, teach them life lessons of succeeding and failing, and, for a select few, provide an avenue to bigger and better opportunities. For some, it’s fueled by competitive drive; for others, it’s a way to meet and be with friends.

“But other than that, I don’t know why,” said John Riehl, president of Goffstown Junior Baseball and father of 14-year-old Matt and 10-year-old Timmy, who play sports year-round. “I think we’re all crazy.”

‘The Life’

For Marianne and Todd Philbrick, the introduction to youth sports – or “The Life” as Marianne called it – started when now 13-year-old daughter Ellie signed up for cheerleading at 7. It began with five practices a week in August, three to four during the fall season, before her schedule ballooned with intensive lessons at the Bedford Dance Center.

Then Ben, now 12, started playing sports. He tried baseball and currently plays for the AAU’s Black Flies. He also enjoyed hockey and competes for a travel team out of the Manchester Regional Youth Hockey Association. Along the way, he picked up football, lacrosse and basketball.

Next, 9-year-old Rachel found soccer and gets her kicks playing for the Bedford-based New Hampshire Classics, in addition to taking dance lessons.

“It was more like it kind of crept in our day-to-day living,” said Marianne, a Bedford resident. “In the beginning you stay through every practice. You just stay and watch. And then you can’t because child No. 2 has their own stuff, and you have to bring them there. And then two years later, child No. 3 comes along. And before you know it, they’re all in elementary school with a hugely busy schedule.”

The Philbricks are not alone. Desiree Casey, also of Bedford, said between her three children – 12-year-old Ryan, 10-year-old Andrew and 6-year-old Carly – the family covers six sports in football, hockey, lacrosse, softball, swimming and tennis. She didn’t include skiing and snowboarding.

Scott Sprague of Hooksett has two boys – Austin, 11, and Devon, 9. Each plays travel soccer, travel hockey and baseball.

“I think Easter Sunday was the first day in over a year that neither of my kids got out of their PJs,” Sprague said. “It hasn’t happened much, but they got up and Devon goes, ‘What do I have for sports today, Dad?’ I go, ‘You have nothing.’ And he says, ‘What? I don’t have any games or anything? Oh man.’”

As a result, families like the Philbricks, Caseys and Spragues have helped spark some interesting phenomena.

One has been pure growth at the local level. Organizations such as the Hopkinton Youth Sports Association feature roughly 300 kids in baseball, 200 in soccer and 200 more in basketball, all kindergartners to eighth-graders, said president Darren Winslow.

Though there aren’t exact numbers on how many of those kids play multiple sports, that’s 700 registered athletes from a town of 1,544 households, according to the 2000 U.S. Census.

Salem girls softball is another example. Based in what’s always been considered a “softball town,” said president Ann Gubellini, the organization shifted from Little League to Babe Ruth last summer, added several travel teams and saw registration swell from 360 to 440 girls.

The attraction of playing for those travel teams in Amateur Softball Association (ASA) tournaments was a huge draw, Gubellini said, as the opportunities in the sport, from facilities to available leagues, have grown.

“In this area,” she said, “it’s just spun out of control.”

That’s at the local level. Mix in travel teams, and schedules become more hectic.

The juggle

When sports overlap, which parents agree happens most often in October between fall and winter sports and March or April between winter and spring, conflicts arise and the multi-sport athletes are left with decisions.

The general rule is, Marianne Philbrick said, when two events conflict on the schedule, her family and others she knows tend to stay loyal to the sport concluding at the time. When an early April hockey playoff series interferes with a baseball tournament, hockey comes first.

Some coaches are more flexible than others.

“In lacrosse, they (the coaches) said, ‘If you’re trying out, we expect that lacrosse is your primary sport,’” said Desiree Casey of Bedford. “Andrew made the decision that he wanted to try out and that he didn’t want to play baseball. And that’s OK with him. At least the expectations were up front.”

As children get older and the competition become more serious, different choices have to be made – which sports stay and which go.

Marianne Philbrick said her son, Ben, has experienced that, giving up lacrosse and basketball when his AAU baseball commitments became too much at age 10.

Bob and Colleen Nagri of Salem said the same thing about their daughter, Alex, who stopped participating in gymnastics when that clogged her growing schedule.

These decisions are nothing new. Children needing to choose at an earlier age, however, is a recent trend.

“And I’m kind of torn on that, and I think a lot of other coaches are, too,” said Bill Gahara, president of the Hooksett Youth Athletic Association. “But it seems once they become 12 or 13 years old, kids are starting to specialize and are starting to play that one sport year-round.”

That, in turn, has led to even more changes.

The next step

At 12, Jay Yennaco, a Red Sox third-round draft pick in 1995, played 15 games of Little League baseball and a handful more for his town’s all-star team in 1988. He had at his disposal private instructors – perhaps a parent who used to pitch or a high school coach who worked with talented youngsters.

Baseball was the Windham native’s primary sport, and these were his options less than 20 years ago.

“Today, if I was 12 years old, I can play a 70-game AAU schedule. Today, private instruction is run by college coaches, past professional players or at minimum, college players. It’s really an expertise,” said Yennaco, who offers private lessons mainly to high school and college-age players but has had parents of youth players approach him.

“I’ve worked with 7-, 8-year-olds,” he continued. “But I think there are parents out there who would have a 4-year-old come, although I necessarily wouldn’t encourage it.”

Yet, that is the reality for families whose children have chosen to take their athletic abilities to the next level.

With individualized lessons on the rise and more chances to play on a regional or national stage, many families willingly devote the extra time and money, and do so far more than they used to.

Ed Skovron, president of the New England AAU office, said the organization was home to 15,000 regional members when he took over roughly six years ago.

Now, with the addition of more sports like lacrosse and diving, New England AAU features roughly 25,000 members, Skovron said.

The biggest growth among the more established sports has come in baseball, up to 4,000 from 2,500 four years ago, he said.

“That’s what’s happened – kids that have that type of ability, the parents want to see the maximum ability that they have,” said Skovron, who’s been involved with AAU since 1990.

Today, Skovron agreed, families are more concerned with realizing their young athlete’s potential.

“Absolutely,” he said. “All you need to do (to understand why) is go down to Disney World when
they run the (AAU national championships) down there, and you’ll see 375 Division I coaches watching kids there play basketball.”

The draw of earning a college scholarship is strong for many talented athletes, but not every AAU athlete is after that.

“I think you have to play AAU basketball if you want to make the school team or to continue to play,” said Chrissy Sylvain, a Weare native who started the Weare Lady Generals 14-and-under AAU girls basketball team this year. “Even if you want to play (junior varsity), you have to play AAU. If you don’t play, you’re really behind everyone else.”

That’s where many coaches and parents feel youth sports have moved. And it’s not cheap.

Marianne Philbrick, for example, said her family pays $1,500 for Ben to play AAU baseball with the Black Flies.Yennaco, who also serves as the Nashua Pride’s pitching coach, said private instruction for baseball players, depending on the instructor, can run from $30 to $45 for a 30-minute lesson and $55 to $75 for an hour.

Rob Day, goalie coach for the Hooksett-based New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs and co-founder of Puckstoppers goaltending, said private instruction in his field can range from $80 to $100 per hour and, in some cases, up to $300 per hour.

He also estimates there are eight to 10 legitimate goaltending instructors in New Hampshire alone.

“The day of the three-sport guy is pretty much gone,” said Day, who has 139 athletes in his database and added 65 in the last two years. He said he’s worked with some as young as 8. “The bar has been raised quite a bit. There are more opportunities for kids, but everybody’s always looking for that little edge.”

The sacrifice

When Bob Nagri drives through his neighborhood, he sees driveway basketball hoops and hockey nets. Much like in his home, he knows there are buckets of balls and sticks in neighboring garages and basements.

Rarely does he see kids playing with them.

“When I was a kid, we’d rush home, get our homework done and get out there playing as a group until the lights went out,” Nagri said. “Now, they do their homework, and they have a half an hour before they have to be at practice.”

It’s just another subtle change in the landscape of youth sports. The costs, which several families estimated were $5,000 to $15,000 annually, stand out.

The miles do, too. Scott Sprague and his wife, Lisa, whose two sons play travel hockey, bought a sedan a year and a half ago for better gas mileage on tournament trips to Canada. The car, new then, now has 36,000 miles on it.

Steve and Kelly Kirkpatrick, Bedford residents with four boys who play year-round sports, have two minivans to make the travel easier.

But maybe it’s the small changes – fewer family dinners, lazy Saturday afternoons that are no more, extinction of family vacations taken on a whim – that stand out most.

“Family life in general has changed,” said Steve Kirkpatrick. “It’s more accepted that parents take their kids one direction or another a lot of different nights, and they give up family dinners and stuff like that.”

In the end, these are changes they embrace.

“My life is around my kids,” said Colleen Nagri. “So if they want to do it, I’ll do whatever I can to make it happen.”

Blue Devils bring talented mix to bear on ’07 foes

Salem Editor — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 23:42:00 GMT

BY MATT STOUT

Forgive the obviousness, but the Salem boys lacrosse team is a varsity sport, has been for four years now.

However, in building the program, head coach Chris Kelleher said the team has been hindered in the past by players who didn’t understand that.

There was an attitude, he said, carried over from the years when Salem was a non-sanctioned team, a “club mentality,”

Kelleher called it, one that has no place in a varsity program.

And the ’07 Blue Devils may finally be getting that.

Led by a 10-man senior class that helped it to its first state tournament appearance last spring, Salem enters this season with a buzz it never generated before. The Blue Devils have experience, supplemented by the youth of a promising freshman class. It has the team speed it lacked in prior years. Its defense, led by several upperclassmen, is as sound as ever.

Most importantly, it realizes the kind of commitment it’ll take to put it all together, Kelleher said. That, he hopes, is the first step among many the Blue Devils will take this season.

“Before, we had a club team, and that mentality was to go out there and do what they want to do and not play as a team,” said senior defenseman Jon Emerzian, who shares captainship duties with his brother, Pete, a midfielder. “Last year we had kids that when they got tired, they didn’t want to play, so they walked around on the field. This year, we have a lot more team play, and we cooperate more with each other. We have more of a mindset to be good than just having fun out there.”

Winning, of course, is fun, too, and Salem aims to do much more of that this season.

Besides the Emerzian twins, the Blue Devils return seniors Brendan Lyons, an attackman; Corey Miller, an attackman/ midfielder; and Sean Redmond, a midfielder, to help improve upon last year’s 5-9 record and first-round playoff exit.

Fellow seniors Nick Tomasi, Jordan Kusch, Dan Frasca, Neal Anderson and Devin Adams also provide the necessary experience to help lead the team’s younger players. Reaping the benefits of Windham’s growing youth program, Salem has brought in well-rounded freshman classes in each of the last two seasons, with this year’s crop ready to make an immediate impact.

Rookie Brett Miller, brother of Corey, starts up front as an attackman, while freshman goalie Joey Scire is “neck and neck,” Kelleher said, with sophomore Shaun Russell for the starting goalie spot.

Add it all up, and Salem has the potential to make this the best season in program history – varsity program history, that is.

“They’ve been kicked around a little, but they keep coming back, so I give them a lot of credit for that,” said Kelleher, whose team opens on Monday, April 9, against Hanover, the team which beat SHS in last year’s playoffs. “I think with that, they see the potential of this team, and they have high expectations themselves.”