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LakeForestLeader.com SPORTS
the lake forest leader | April 5, 2018 | 29
Lacrosse
North Shore hotbed for
Division-I lacrosse players
Michal Dwojak
Contributing Sports Editor
The North Shore area is
known for producing elite
talent, no matter the sport.
From Chris Collins and
Jon Scheyer to Hilary
Knight and Conor Dwyer,
Chicago’s northern suburbs
has produced elite talent
seemingly from every
sport.
However, what many
people might not know is
the North Shore is a hotbed
for a certain sport that
has gained traction in the
Midwest over the last 10
years. Just like Chicago is
synonymous with basketball
recruiting and Texas
with football, the North
Shore has produced elite
talent in the IHSA’s latest
sanctioned sport: lacrosse.
Many coaches are excited
for the potential growth
the emerging sport could
experience with the sanctioning
of lacrosse, despite
the gradual growth in the
western suburbs and other
parts of the state, area
coaches and players know
how special it is to play in
and represent the North
Shore lacrosse talent.
“It’s certainly something
we appreciate around here,
we take pride,” Glenbrook
South boys coach Will
Jeffrey said. “Sometimes
a western-suburb team
will pop up, but it’s usually
the New Triers and the
Loyolas.”
The numbers speaks
for itself, of the 40 current
mens lacrosse players
from Illinois who play on
Division-I rosters, 18 have
come from a school represented
in 22nd Century
Media’s coverage zone
— Loyola Academy, New
Trier, Glenbrook South,
Glenbrook North, Lake
Forest and Highland Park.
The numbers are far more
impressive with womens
players, where 33 of the
45 Illinois natives playing
D-I womens lacrosse are
from the same North Shore
schools.
So what makes lacrosse
so special in the area?
For many players, it’s
the start and uniqueness.
Glenbrook South junior
Greer Bireley will
soon add to the impressive
women’s numbers. She
announced her commitment
to play at Butler, and
like many of the players in
the area, lacrosse wasn’t
a popular sport for her to
play. While Bireley was
off to play lacrosse, her
friends went to play other
sports in the spring like
soccer. Bireley did clinics
from a young age and
played club lacrosse along
the way.
Like many other lacrosse
players, the sport
combined different abilities
and ways to stay fit
from other sports they
play. For Bireley, personally,
it’s just something
unique.
“I just loved it so much,”
Bireley said. “It was part
of the fun that not a lot of
kids played it.”
Part of the inspiration
for girls lacrosse players
comes from success down
the street. Northwestern
University’s historic womens
lacrosse program is
an inspiration for many
of the players in the area.
The Wildcats won five
straight championships
from 2005 to 2009 and
added two more in 2011
and 2012.
The program provided
an easy arena for young
children to learn and fall
in love with a sport many
might think is only played
in the nation’s Northeast.
“I think it’s awesome
and the girls are so lucky
to have that in their backyard,”
said Annie Lesch,
Glenbrook South girls la-
crosse. “I think it’s been
exciting and has brought
fans to the game who don’t
have a connection but
know the game and hear
about the high schools
having girls lacrosse.”
Despite the talent at the
Division-I level, there are
far more players at the D-II
and D-III levels. While
there are many players like
Bireley who have played
the sport from a young
age, there are more athletes
who didn’t start playing
until their freshman
year of high school. Many
coaches have noticed that
lacrosse offers a chance
to keep in shape during
another team’s offseason.
Whether it be football,
field hockey, ice hockey
or another sport, athletes
come to lacrosse with open
arms and minds to learn
about a sport they likely
knew little about.
“Lacrosse is growing so
rapidly now there are so
many D-III and D-II opportunities
that we have
so many kids playing at
all levels from his state —
all over this country,” said
Catherine Catanzaro, Lake
Forest High School’s girls
lacrosse coach.
The hope is the sport
will continue to grow in
Illinois with IHSA sanctioning
the sport. While
there are some youth development
leagues out
there, not enough of them
are in place currently to
field the necessary amount
of players. Coaches like
Catanzaro, who grew up
on the east coast, were
used to lacrosse growing
up. Many Midwest-based
coaches never had a feeder
program at the youth
level.
“There’s definitely a
lot of history,” said Justin
Georgacakis, Glenbrook
North boys lacrosse coach.
“It is unique to be in this
area and to be competitive.
The more teams that are
competitive in the state ...
the better the quality there
is.”
EVAN
From Page 31
lot of things.”
Mack was one of the
main reasons Boudreaux
committed to Xavier but
with him out of the picture,
and the departure of assistant
coach Luke Murray,
who Boudreaux also had
a relationship with, it was
time to look elsewhere.
“Alright third time’s
the charm. Very excited
to announce that I will be
attending Purdue University
next year!” Boudreaux
announced in a Thursday,
March 29, tweet.
“After talking with my
family, it was in my best
interest to kind of open it
up and reevaluate everything,”
he said. “At the end
of the day, I just felt like I
was really comfortable
with the situation Purdue
was in and I just felt like
it was the best opportunity
for me to continue my career.”
Boudreaux, a 6-foot-8-
inch, 220-pound forward,
said he is looking forward
to playing for the Big
Ten school. Boudreaux
describes his experience
with the coaching staff at
Purdue as “comfortable,”
which made the decision
that much easier for
him.
“They have given me the
opportunity to come in and
contribute, and contribute
to a team that brings back a
lot of really good pieces,”
he said.
At the end of the day,
for Boudreaux, it came
down to which program,
and coaching staff, had the
best fit.
“That was what drove
me to the decision to
leave Dartmouth and the
decision to eventually
pick Purdue, as well as
Xavier,” Boudreaux said.
“I’m looking at a program
that has a really great tradition
of being successful
in the NCAA tournament.
“I can’t wait to join it.”