Navy's Syd Abernathy Part 3

West Point's Michie Stadium 

I had the honor to see Syd Abernethy play my senior year in high school in Croton and his senior year in college at the Naval Academy in a quarterfinal NCAA playoff game at West Point in 1981. Before that game, I had never heard of him. In addition, it was my first time seeing an African American in game, and one who clearly was one of the best players on the field and one who played my position too—attack. Many people don’t know I was an attackman in high school.

West Point Lacrosse History: http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/army/sports/m-lacros/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/2012lacrosseguide.pdf

My Earliest Exposure to Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=elliot

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

The Business of Lacrosse



1978, Freshmen Croton Harmon High Game at Croton Point Park. Bill Laemel (Left and in the back ground on the side line; click to enlarge image), Me, Fred Opie (center), and Hank VanAsselt (right). The thought of Hank lose on the field back then with a long stick in his hands is a scary movie. Ed McMan was our freshmen coach. He was Nick Padula’s side kick and a great guy to play for.

In late 1970s Westchester County, there were no Herman's World of Sporting Goods (went defunct in 1993) Model’s, Sport’s Authority, Dick’s Sporting Goods, or any other sporting goods stores selling lacrosse equipment. In fact it wasn’t until my junior year in high school 1979-80, that Laura Lee Sport’s in Ossining (then located in Arcadian Shopping Center) and the Lacrosse Barn in Yorktown that I go to a retail store to purchase a lacrosse stick and all the related paraphernalia. Now you see sport stores, department stores, and others retailers carrying sticks (and equipment often in abundance).You even see lacrosse equipment commercials on television (not to mention lacrosse sticks showing up on Law and Order and in GQ magazine). In addition, you can buy any kind of lacrosse stick you want on the internet—custom made and strung—and get it shipped to your door step in 2 to 3 days. Folks we’ve come a long way since 1976.

Croton Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Croton

Yorktown Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Yorktown

Interview with Ousmane Green, Yorktown's Lacrosse Tradition: https://soundcloud.com/thestudytable/interview-with-ousmane-green

Listen to Our Podcasts and More: http://www.fredopie.com/

Custom Sticks and Cuse Lacrosse Culture

That's Tim Nelson's 1983 season custom head with a classic Yorktown, most likely little brother Tom strung, Brine Superlight II with wide strong  traditional pocket.

Organized lacrosse head dying sessions using a white plastic head, Rit fabric dye, and downing dozens of hot Buffalo chicken wings in the process represented a part of lacrosse experience in the 1980s. There was definitely an unspoken competition over both who could eat the most wings and who could come up with the most aesthetic multi-colored design with your name, number, and somehow fit it all fit on a small surface. A Syracuse 80% of the team loved traditional pockets. The difference was over the size of the holes. Yorktown guys like big holes maybe 5 and West Genee players always used small holes say 8 or more. The island guys at SU, and we didn’t have a lot in those days, were right in the middle. Upstate players used Brine superlight II; about four of us however used STX. 

I grew up on Army lacrosse and coach Dick Edell. As an attackman in high school I patterned a lot of my game and gear after All American attackmen Frank Giordano (Port Washington, Army), Greg Tarbell (LaFayette, Cobleskill, Syracuse) and Mike O’Neill (Massapequa, Hopkins) In fact I wore # 7 after seeing both Tarbell and O’Neill play at West Point. I purchased a STX Barney with a traditional pocket and the same funky gold shaft that O’Neill used in game I saw at the point. I often wondered how many young players emulated my gear and game as they watched me play.

Yorktown Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/09/college-lacrosse-recruiting-series-part_18.html

Mike O’Neil http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2012/07/john-hopkins-all-american-attackman.html

Army Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=army

Recruiting and High School Pedigree

Me left, covering Yorktown's Rob Hoynes in my senior year of High School. Hoynes would go on to have a great playing career at Army.

My entrance into the Syracuse University (SU) lacrosse community on campus in 1983 happened awkwardly in large part because of my own insecurity as a player void of any noted tradition. The incoming class of 1983 came in with allot of players with loftier credentials then mine. We became acquainted during shoot arounds on the old beat of turf field located next to Manley Field House on south campus peppering each other with questions about our high school programs. My school, Croton Harmon High School in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, only Yorktown players knew about being from the same league. At the time, Croton had only produced Maryland’s Clay Johnson; so what I learned then and understand the better now, is that like many other spaces, the lacrosse world has a rigid hierarchy. For a new unproven recruit, one’s high school opened or closed doors. That has changed with the emergence of club teams and the various All this and that teams. So here I was in 1983 feeling like a marginalized lacrosse player with no creditability until I could prove myself on the field. I was a stepchild and outsider among a group of players from high schools with legendary histories. 

My Syracuse Teammates: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=%22Tom%22

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Clay Johnson: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Clay+Johnson

Brad Kotz

Brad Kotz and Tim Nelson, a dynamic duo from the class of 1985

You know your good when you have a Wiki page! Brad Kotz aka “Kotzy” has one.  Brad is a West Genesse product who would go on to be a 4 x All-American midfielder at Syracuse, the 1983 college player of the year, and two time National team player in 86 and 90. I roomed with Brad my first semester at SU in the fall of 1983.  We also played together on Maryland Lacrosse Club, and the 1990 US National team.  He had great speed and strength (The guy worked hard in the weight room), and he almost never caused turnovers. Brad had tremendous eye hand coordination; he would joggle a ball on the top of the head of his Brine superlight II; a trick akin to what Tiger Woods does with a golf ball and an iron (Brad, we need you to video tape that for my blog and YouTube channel!). For me, Brad's shooting accuracy represented his greatest attribute. For example, I saw him shoot an amazing 4 for 6 in a World Cup game in Australia when he played virtually on one leg to do a knee injury.  Kotzy played with a pocket no deeper than a women's stick which allowed for his quick release. Players today should learn from him and get rid of all those grapefruit holders! The guy consistently shot hip high opposite the goal’s stick which is the toughest shot in the game to stop. Perhaps most heart warming to me was witnessing Brad's anger and disappointment the year Todd Curry was inducted, that Tim Nelson had not been inducted yet.  

The Nelsons of Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/09/college-lacrosse-recruiting-series-part_18.html

Brad Kotz:

http://www.foodasalens.com/2009/10/syracuse-lacrosse-memories-and-eating.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brad_Kotz

http://www.fanbase.com/Bradley-Kotz

http://apps.uslacrosse.org/museum/halloffame/list_by_school.php?school=Syracuse%20University

Tiger Woods Golf Ball Dribbling Commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpHdrpwA9Ag

One Big Reason Why Syracuse Recruited Me

Tim Nelson against Army at West Point, 1985 

Perhaps the person that the Lord used the most to turn the attention of the Syracuse Lacrosse coaching staff was the big 6' 2" 200 pound attackman Tim Nelson (Yorktown High School). Our high schools played against each other back in Westchester in Section 1. We also played together on a Manhasset summer league team in the old Freeport Summer League after my first year in college. As a result of our shared history, Tim (Nellie) knew my game and knew it well. When I went to Herkimer as a virtual unknown player, he went as a highly recruited two-time high school All American who had played in two New York State title games to NC State. In the late 1970s and early 1980s the Wolfpack had a great lacrosse program that included Tim’s older brother Scott. At the end of his first year, State dropped their program and Syracuse offered him a scholarship. In his first season at Syracuse, SU won its first national championship in 1983, Nellie earned first team All American honors and he won the Turnbull Award as the best attackman in the country that year. During that championship season, I visited SU and ran into Nellie. He told me about the teams need for defensemen and then lobbied the coaching staff to recruit me based on what he knew of me as a high school player and my summer league performance. That’s the story of how I became a Syracuse Lacrosse recruit when most other programs and coaches showed no interest. 

The Nelsons of Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/09/college-lacrosse-recruiting-series-part_18.html

My Summer with Steve

The Lacrosse Field at Lakeland Middle School 

The summer before I entered 9th or 10th grade Steve Mabus’ family moved on my street.  At the time Steve played college lacrosse at Kutz Town State in Pennsylvania. I don’t remember how it started, but before I knew it, Steve and I started playing catch, shooting on goal, and playing one on one in his yard. Steve played in a college summer league at the Lakeland middle school field and started taking me along his game. I remember watching Scott Finlay (Yorktown, West Point), Scott Nelson (Yorktown, North Carolina State) and Bill Simunek (Walter Panas, St. Lawrence), Greg Rivers (Yorktown, Delaware) and Clay Johnson (Croton, Maryland) play. These guys were terrific athletes, with great sticks, and lacrosse intellect. Watching them provided a visual image of how the game should be played. Graduate school advisors once told me that I should apply to the best possible Ph.D. programs. She explained, “You will rise to the occasion in an atmosphere of very bright people and become a much more polished scholar.” The same is true with the summer lacrosse you watch and the leagues you play in.

Summer League Lacrosse Stories http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=summer+league

You Will Be Better Off If You Finish

Buzz (Christ Burt, Lawrenceville Prep), Me, and OD (Mike O’Donnell, Yorktown) “trying” to cover Hopkins middies and attackman during our loss to John Hopkins in the 1985 NCAA Championship game at Brown University

After a crushing lost to Hopkins for the second year in a row in the 1985 NCAA Men’s Lacrosse finals, I stopped playing feeling burnt out and feeling like the sport had taken on too much importance in my life. Perhaps thats why some players never complete their degrees requirements; lacrosse was more important than their course work. They played four years of ball and now they are ready to move on. That happens all over the country in many sports. In my case, in May of 1985 I was nine credits short of graduating. We returned Syracuse from the championship game in Rhode Island on a long bus ride. I backed my car up on campus and returned to Westchester to take an anatomy and physiology course at Westchester Community College in summer.  Next I then registrared for a student teaching course at Pace University in White Plains; that’s all I needed to do to graduate. I was the first one in my family to earn a college degree. What a difference nine credits has made on my career opportunities. Complete your degree requirements you will be better off in the long term.

Building Male Relationship Through Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2012/08/nurturing-healthy-male-relationships.html

Syracuse Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=%22Tom%22

My Take On Youth Lacrosse Clubs: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2012/05/club-team-lacrosse-and-tournament-scene.html

Starting Lacrosse Programs, Mr. Murph's

related links below

Lacrosse Pioneers in the Hudson Valley: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=+Elliot+Stark

The Nelsons of Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/09/college-lacrosse-recruiting-series-part_18.html

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Starting Lacrosse Program, Don Daubney

Lacrosse  at Lakeland Middle School, 1976

I am taking a look at my lacrosse career through the lens of Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers. It argues that success is a combination of opportunities, timing, and people in one's life. I talked about Elliot stark starting lacrosse in Croton-on-Harmon just before my family moved to Croton in the late 1960s. Without Elliot Stark there might not have been lacrosse in my town and in my life. Next there was Croton Harmon middle school physical education teacher, Don Daubney, a University of Rhode Island grad, who taught a soft stick and soft ball lacrosse unit to my eighth grade class. That rare exposure to the lacrosse in Westchester County at the time was crucial in my career. I would guess that less than half of the county’s public schools had lacrosse as part of their physical education curriculum and my tiny public school system was one of them. Thereafter Daubney ran a boys 8^th grade summer recreation program that lasted about three or four weeks. We learned the basics and once we had them down, the summer program culminated with a game against the Lakeland/Walter Panas recreation program. Like Elliot Stark, Daubney gave me a rare opportunity to play the game of lacrosse.

Excerpts from Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers, The Story of Success: http://www.gladwell.com/outliers/index.html

Interview with Malcom Gladwell on Outliers: [Listen Now 4 min 31 sec] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz4hPbHIZ6Y

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Seeing Something That Others Can't See

Celebrating with Dan Pratt after a goal I scored in the 1985 NCAA Finals which we lost to Hopkins 

I've been talking about fall ball reflecting on my first days on campus at Syracuse University (SU) in 1983. My orientation to SU lacrosse happened organically with a very talented 1983 recruiting class. The class included Neil Alt (Towson, MD) Dan Pratt (Homer, NY) Gordie Mapes (Rush-Henrietta, Rochester), Todd Curry (West Gennee) Pat Donahue (West Gennee), Mike O’Donnell “OD” (Yorktown), Tom Nelson (Yorktown) Matt Holman (Summit, NJ), Mark Brannigan (West Genee, Cobleskill), Chris Bruno (Cobleskill), Matt Cacacciato (Fox Lane, NY, Cobleskill) Rhett Cavanaugh (Fox Lane, NY, Army) and Chris Baduini (Montclair, NJ) Some of us first met at the 83 championship team banquet in the summer following SU's victory over Hopkins. Simmie had us sit together introducing each one to the audience with some brief remarks. Coach made a lofty comment about my ability and that I would be a very special player. The comment put me in an awkward position with the other recruits and championship team members at the event. But early on Simmie saw something in me back then that other coaches didn’t. However what he saw remained hidden until I adapted to a new system and level of play and that’s exactly the role of fall ball for a new recruit. It gives you time to adjust to bigger and faster players who are better than what most players see in high school or in my case junior college.

Fall Ball Series: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Fall+Ball

My Syracuse Teammates: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=%22Tom%22

How To Pick a Good Club Team For My Child?

Summer 2012 FCA boys and girl club teams. The majority of coaching staff are volunteers like me who know the game . 

A parent in a local youth program asked a question via email that I thought made for an informative post. Earlier this summer his child who is going into 4^th grade went to a lacrosse camp that a local club team program ran and he enjoyed the experience. The club team is part of full time lacrosse business by the same name that includes for profit teams, tournaments, camps, and a retail store. The child his excited to play this fall and as a result the parents are considering signing the child up for the club team that ran the camp. But before doing so the parent wanted advice on how to select a club program. As the parent states, the “main priority is finding a program that is fun and will allow” his child to play with friends in their community as much as possible. He ends his email with “any insights and advice would be much appreciated.” I responded, I encourage my son to enjoy many different sports. He can specialize in college should he have that option. He has the stick in his hand most of the year because he's a fanatic. But he's now the same way about hockey. It's much the pattern that I had and I didn't start playing lacrosse until 8^th grade. I didn't experience burnout until the end of my college career—and perhaps it was frustration after losing in the championship game for the second season in a row to Hopkins and because I felt lacrosse had become too high a priority in my life and I needed to gain some balance.  Below are links to what I've said about this and related topics. More to come.

My Earliest Exposure to Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=elliot

Lacrosse in My Home Town of Croton on Hudson and Boarding and Yorktown: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

My Take On Youth Lacrosse Clubs: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2012/05/club-team-lacrosse-and-tournament-scene.html

Playoff Time Injuries Part 1

Adam West (left) and me on the right, The old Croton Point Dump field, 1980. Today it's a RV Park

I can remember a lacrosse related emotional hurt I experienced my sophomore year in high school in 1979. It was the end of my Junior Varsity (JV) season and tradition had it that the varsity coach would promote the best JV players if the varsity made into the post season sectional playoffs. You would practice with the varsity and dress for the playoff games. For me—and suppose any athlete passionate about his or her sport, this was a big deal! While coach Nick Padula, that’s right I am calling you out coach (smile)! I remember going to see Croton play at Yorktown in the playoffs and seeing my JV teammates John Purdy, Andy Morehouse, and Joe Vasta dressed in their varsity jerseys on the sideline. I was crushed. It seemed clear to me that I was one of the better JV players on that team or perhaps I was a really late bloomer.Years later I learned that my dad had a run in with the varsity coach and I became the victim of collateral damage. 

Croton Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Croton

Yorktown Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Yorktown

What To Do If You Don't Get An Athletic Scholarship Offer?

Me on the right covering Yorktown's Rob Hoynes during the Spring of my senior year at Croton Harmon High School. Rob, a great player and person, went on to be an All-American midfielder in high school and at West Point.  

 Related links  below

My College Recruiting Series:

 http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=recruiting

http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/09/dealing-with-rejection-as-lacrosse.html

http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=College+Lacrosse+Recruiting+Series

Club Teams and Tournaments Are Out of Control!

Related links below

Coaching Series: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=coaching

My Earliest Exposure to Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=elliot

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Coaching Youth Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=youth+lacrosse

What's Your Response to Losing A Big Game?

Dan Pratt 36 and Fred Opie 34 in the 1985 NCAA Lacrosse National Championship 

Lacrosse Pioneers in the Hudson Valley: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=+Elliot+Stark

The Nelsons of Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/09/college-lacrosse-recruiting-series-part_18.html

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Lacrosse Back in the Day At Croton Point Park: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Croton+Point

How I Developed My Lacrosse Stick Skills

Fred Opie 

Lacrosse Wall Ball Routines:

http://television.insidelacrosse.com/tag/how_to

     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiwZV_a2EfY

My Earliest Exposure to Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=elliot

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

My Hard Work and Lacrosse Stories: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=%22hard+work%22

Interview with Coach Paul Wehrum Part 1

Coach Wehrum diagramming Xs and Os at a Herk vs Army B team, West Point circa 1982, click the image to enlarge it.

An interview I did with my Junior College (Herkimer County Community College) Coach, Hall of Famer Paul Wehrum. He is the only Junior College Coach in the National Hall of Fame and he served as US Team Coach in 1998. After three undefeated seasons, 15 consecutive regional championships, and 7 National Championships, coach retired as a Full Professor of Physical Education from the State of New York. He's now the head coach at Union College. 

Coach what were the keys to developing your successful career at Herk?

“The primary things were having an emphasis on the academics [by doing things like] only two hour practices. Using you as an example, I concentrated on your academics but also pushed you hard lacrosse wise and did the same with my other players. I made sure kids enjoyed both athletic and academic success and I would not let them give up because a teacher graded your paper and failed you. I encouraged them not to give up; most of our kids did not have great success in the classroom in high school. Then when players went on to good schools, their success naturally brought more players to Herkimer through word of mouth [and kind of a chain migration with repeat players from the same communities coming to Herkimer] from Croton, Baldwin, Yorktown, West Genesee, Irondequoit, and Homer.

Be a Steve Mabus To Some Young Player

Freshmen Game at Croton Point Park in 1978,  Fred Opie and Hank Vanassalt in the black shirts with white sleeves. 

I am looking at my lacrosse career through Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers. It argues that success is a combination of opportunities, timing, and people in one's life.So how did I  explain my rise in the lacrosse world despite starting the game late and not coming from a  perennial powerhouse program in the sport?  The summer before I entered 9th or 10th Steve Mabus’ family moved to my neighborhood. Steve played college lacrosse for Kutz Town State and he had a lacrosse goal in his back yard.  Steve was like having a private coach and he worked with me all summer long before Steve returned to college. Over the years I have reflected on the significance of Steve on my skill development and toughness. I often end lacrosse speeches with the statement: Be a Steve Mabus to some young player in your circle of influence. 

My Series on Outliers: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Outliers

Excerpts from Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers, The Story of Success: http://www.gladwell.com/outliers/index.html

Interview with Malcom Gladwell on Outliers: [Listen Now 4 min 31 sec] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz4hPbHIZ6Y

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Lacrosse Outliers, The 1930s

In his book, Outliers, author Malcolm Gladwell argues that success is a combination of opportunities, timing, and people in one's life. I want to use that theory help explain the reason why and others have had some degree of success in lacrosse. Elliot Stark introduced the game to Croton-on-Hudson back in the 1960s. A Brooklyn native, Stark played lacrosse at Rutgers University and later at New York University (NYU) in the early 1930s. NYU had one of the oldest collegiate-level lacrosse programs in the country with the first game played against Manhattan College in 1877. Until the 1970s, just about all the city universities had lacrosse teams. Stark would later go on to play and promote professional indoor lacrosse throughout New York City (NYC). Stark organized a game between members of the Onondaga Nation (near Syracuse University) and the “New York City All-Stars” for the 1939 World’s Fair held that year in NYC.  A onetime reporter turned political relations guy, Stark settled in Croton in the 1960s and started lacrosse in the town. Stark had both passion for the game and the ability to sell it to school and recreation department officials. I was born in 1963 and my family moved to Croton from Ossining about the same time has Stark. My mother grew up in Ossining and she believed that Croton had better schools and would offer her three boys more opportunities than she had experienced growing up in Ossining and she was right. By the time I began playing lacrosse in 8th grade in the early 1970s, Stark and others had made Croton one of the few lacrosse programs in Westchester County and a successful program as well.  

Excerpts from Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers, The Story of Success: http://www.gladwell.com/outliers/index.html

Interview with Malcom Gladwell on Outliers: [Listen Now 4 min 31 sec] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz4hPbHIZ6Y

Croton and Yorktown Lacrosse: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-steve-mabus-in-your-lacrosse-world.html

Lacrosse At Croton Point Park: http://lacrossememoir.blogspot.com/search?q=Croton+Point

The Croton Diner and Croton Point: http://www.foodasalens.com/2009/09/croton-dinner.html

Croton Point Park History: http://brickcollecting.com/croton.htm