'Players Play:' Youth Lacrosse Thrives in Larchmont-Mamaroneck

It was a mantra heard over and over across four packed sport fields, an unrehearsed mission statement that counters the notion suburban youth sports have become as political as the Kremlin and as pressure-packed as the Final Four.

"Players play, coaches coach, refs ref and parents cheer," it went, employing a few different treatments but delivering the same essential message: Within Larchmont Mamaroneck Youth Lacrosse, developing a love of sport, fostering self-esteem and having fun still rule the day.

Of course, youth lacrosse is nothing new to the suburbs — it's increasingly popular in any place where kids and parents live in critical mass — but it has taken root particularly deeply in Larchmont and Mamaroneck.

Here, the league has grown from a small group of families a dozen years ago to more than 800 kids today, a powerhouse of weekend recreation that promises to deliver a new generation of lacrosse prospects to high school and college rosters.

On Saturday, under an unusually powerful June sun, league president Fred Cambria zipped from field to field, pitching orange tents for shade — the league color — and clearly happy the "no-thunderstorm dance" he had mentioned the night before had paid off. 

"Hey, how are you!"

"Don't forget to drink water."

"Got water?"

And so it went all afternoon, Cambria addressing dozens of kids by first name, making sure the final games of the season went off without a hitch.

From the Annex field next to the Town Center to Hommocks Middle School and Flint Park, every available inch of grass or turf was filled to capacity. The morning's soccer games were ending, just as the day's lacrosse began to rev up. Parents slathered sunscreen and coaches cheered with shouts like, "Annabelle! Go Annabelle!" and "Stick with it! Stay with your man!"

"Really the only issue now is field space," Cambria said. 

The growth of lacrosse in Larchmont and Mamaroneck mirrors regional and national trends, driven by a number of factors:

Young kids today have grown up surrounded by the popularity of the sport on the high school and college level and are eager to start early. Those who played the sport in college in the 1980s and 90s are now parents themselves, thrilled for their kids to share their passion. And perhaps in an age of the ever-expanding youth sport season, lacrosse's short and sweet sprint from beginning to end is a nice draw.

In Larchmont and Mamaroneck, youth lacrosse lasts eight weeks and doesn't require multiple practices per week. But for those interested in taking the sport as seriously as possible, the core house league can evolve into travel teams that compete widely.

It would be hard to overstate the growth and impact of the sport of lacrosse nationally, especially for girls. By the numbers:

• US Lacrosse, the main organizing body for lacrosse in America, now has more than 300,000 members. In 1998, that number was just 50,000.
• Among those playing on organized lacrosse teams in the U.S., the highest growth rates are among youth girls and post-collegiate women, increasing by 19.3 and 31.7 percent, respectively, between 2008 and 2009.
• One youth lacrosse event in Ohio later this month is expected to funnel about $700,000 into the local economy, and will draw more than 2,000 players, including those from New York.

"Within Westchester, the youth lacrosse side of it has actually tripled over the past 10 years in terms of the number of players," said Dan Kaiser, president of the Hudson Valley chapter of US Lacrosse, which covers Westchester all the way up to Sullivan County.

Today, about 10,000 kids are playing the sport in Westchester and the growth experienced in Larchmont and Mamaroneck is consistent in all towns.

"Kids love the game and it mixes a lot of elements of other sports," he said. In nearly every town, programs get more kids than they expected, "which is a great problem to have."

In Mamaroneck, it all began with Bobby and Leigh Garry, "right here on this field," Cambria said, pointing toward the clusters of kindergarten girls getting ready for their clinics at the Annex field. 

And the fact it was a joint effort, Cambria said, was felt right away.

"When you have a husband and wife team, what you have for the boys, you have for the girls. It was our own Title IX," he said, referring to the landmark 1972 ruling that requires gender equity in academics and sport.

In the early years, a lack of similar lacrosse opportunities in the area meant kids from neighboring towns played in the league — "It was the only game in town, bad pun intended," Cambria said — but now the overwhelming majority of players are homegrown.

"My daughter started in kindergarten," said Larchmont parent Lauri Feldman. "No one in the family played, but we just kept hearing it was such a positive program."

Her husband has since gone out and bought his own stick, she said. "It's infectious."

Sitting next to her on the bleachers, watching the girls play, Eva Walsh said one of her daughters first got involved with the sport after seeing a school field day demonstration. 

She couldn't be happier that initial interest stuck. "The way they run the program is so positive," she said.

And the female role models are invaluable for her girls, she said.

Girls' lacrosse has evolved to become quite sophisticated, said Kate Verni of Larchmont, commissioner of the LMYL girls' travel teams and a player during her days at Georgetown University.

"It's different from when I played," she said. "The stick skills are so much more refined. Girls today can play 'weak,'" which means with both hands or sides.

Verni became so involved she started an adult woman's lacrosse team with fellow coach Val Fierstein that plays Saturdays in Flint Park. Its popularity has taken off, with a roster of about 35 women.

"It's been so much fun," she said. "Women just want to get out and play."

Interestingly, half the women participating are over 35.

"Ground balls are killer on the old ladies," she joked.

Verni said she is most proud of the way the league instills a sense of responsibility toward younger players. 

In the form of a 'Big Sister' program, the older girls give back to the younger ones, she said, pulling bottled water from the back of her Honda Pilot as the heat of the afternoon reached its 90-degree peak. For example, the 6th grade travel team commits to coming out on Friday nights to help build skills with the younger girls.

The league would be nothing without its more than 120 volunteer coaches, some of whom, like Cambria, played the sport in high school and college. A Syracuse University alum, Cambria played — and won — on the Division I level, an achievement driven by a love for the sport that began in his youth in Huntington, Long Island.

Heather Mahland, commissioner of the girls' house program, also grew up surrounded by the sport. She was raised in Annapolis, Md., where an unusually strong tradition of high school lacrosse dates back to 1929.

But like most parent-coaches, her deepest involvement came when her own children became immersed in the sport. "We all have our daytime jobs," she said — she started her own healthy, nut-free cookie business with fellow Larchmont mom Kyle de Lasa called You & Me Cookie — but they give their time to the league out of a passion for what it can offer kids.

Ed Lynch, who got involved with the league when his oldest daughter wanted to play, said the kids are learning a new sport, which is great, but also forming lasting friendships. 

"The goal," he said, "is for the weakest player to say at the end of the season, I can't wait to come back."