Duke School Under the Oak Magazine, Fall 2017

Lacrosse Joins Duke School’s Athletics Roster
Just a few miles in each direction from
Duke School, two of the country’s
top collegiate lacrosse programs
compete at Duke and UNC-Chapel
Hill.
The sport, once mainly popular in
the Northeast, has made its way into
colleges, high schools and middle
schools in the South.
Last spring, Duke School joined the
trend by welcoming a Middle School
boys’ lacrosse team, thanks in large
part to the efforts of parents Richard Griffin, Clint
Harris and Joe Cooley.
“Lacrosse is such a great game,” said Richard.
“We’re here in Durham, we’ve got Duke and
North Carolina – two top lacrosse programs – so
we should just keep spreading the game to boys
and girls.”
There were some hurdles early on, with questions
about where the team would practice, how the
school would cover the cost of equipment and
gear, and who would coach.
But Richard, Clint and Joe saw the
potential in a Duke School team,
and not only raised the funds to
cover the cost of equipment, but
also provided pre-season clinics
and coached the team themselves.
At the same time, Middle School
Athletics Director Brian Greene had
recently come on the job and quickly
realized the popularity of the school’s
spring sports season.
“I did have a desire to try to add
something on to the spring plate
and balance out those numbers,” he
said. “The more I thought about it,
and spoke to people on campus, it
felt like lacrosse was something that
should be pursued.”
It turns out he was right: 15 boys
participated in the inaugural season.
Some had played on club teams in the area, while
others had never picked up a lacrosse stick.
“The interest and the development of the team
goes back to the kids on the team,” Joe said.
“They got their friends excited about it. This year,
we have kids thinking about doing it because last
year looked like so much fun.”
The future indeed looks bright. Brian expects to
see more students try lacrosse this year, as the
team continues to welcome both experienced and
novice players. Those involved hope to see a girls’
team added to the roster.
“Part of my job is continually
thinking of what’s the next step
in growing the athletic program,”
Brian said. “I would like to think that
one day girls’ lacrosse could be a part of
our program as well, as long as it’s the
right fit.”
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UNDER THE OAK