West Chester Lacrosse Association

West Chester Lacrosse Association 2019 U7 & U8 Intro Letter

Dear Parents,

Welcome to the 2019 West Chester Lacrosse season!

If you're new to our club, we look forward to having you and your son join the West Chester Lacrosse community. The West Chester Lacrosse program has built a rich tradition over the past 35+ years and is considered one of the premier Youth Programs in Pennsylvania. Countless high school, college, and even professional lacrosse players got their start in lacrosse with our program.    

The league is fortunate to have wonderful facilities and top-notch coaches and directors. Many of our coaches have played lacrosse at high levels for college programs such as Notre Dame, Loyola, Villanova, Cornell, University of Pennsylvania, University of Delaware, Lehigh and Bucknell.  Our coaches and program directors invest time to stay current on leading approaches for teaching the game of lacrosse so that our players improve and have fun.

The goals of our U7/U8 Instructional Programs are to:

Introduce the game of Lacrosse and HAVE FUN!
Teach Lacrosse fundamentals, individual skills and introduce team concepts
Help each player develop their skills and improve over the course of the season
Improve coordination and overall athleticism

Parent Support at Practice

We need more parents to volunteer at both age groups to assist the coaches in order for the kids to get as much out of the program as possible.

Parent coaches allow us to break out into small groups to run drills and give the boys more individual attention to develop their skills.  Ideally, parent coaches should have played lacrosse in high school or college, but that is not absolutely necessary. Parents who coach other sports or teachers are great!  Administrative opportunities are also available to help support the Instructional program.

Anyone interested in volunteering- please complete the coaches registration: Click Here

Schedule

The practice schedule for the entire season is below.  Practices will begin Saturday, March 30th and continue on a similar schedule until the weekend of May 18th.  Play Days will be announced in the coming weeks. U8 practices on Wednesday night with your team and set in-house games take place on Saturdays.  Practices are held at Kelly Field on Saturdays for U7 & U8 and West Goshen Community Park Field on Wednesday for U8 only.

Opening Day March 30th  Check-In and Practice Schedule at Kelly Field

U-8 Check-in 8:00 AM to 8:25 AM, Practice 8:30 AM to 10:00 AM
U-7 Check-in 9:40 AM to 10:05 AM, Practice 10:15 AM to 11:15 AM

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

 

Age Group Directors

U7 Director:  B.J. Ratcliffe (bjradd@hotmail.com)

U8 Directors:  Brian Kash (bkash@sshco.com) & Mike Bradley (mbradleynmg@gmail.com)

 

Players MUST have a mouth guard in order to play.  Each player will receive a reversible numbered tank top that should be worn to every practice.

Field Rules – Kelly Field, West Goshen Community Park participation the field after Opening Day
No colored drinks are allowed in players water bottles
Please also be aware that dogs are NOT permitted at Kelly Field as per the township ordinance.
Only the players and registered coaches who have completed background checks can be on the field. Parents and siblings, please watch from the bleacher section or at West Goshen Park outside of the playing field.
Kelly Field located at 601 Westtown Road, adjacent to the Government Services building. West Goshen Community Park is located at the intersection of Fern Hill Rd and N. Five Points Rd.

Miscellaneous

U7 & U8 will have set teams for scrimmages. We will divide the group up based on a combination of lacrosse skills, age, physical size, and athletic ability.  Teams will not be formed based upon school as a first priority although schools will be considered.

U7 & U8 will scrimmage other local clubs in the area, we call these Play Days.  Information regarding play days will be sent in separate communications.

Initial team assignments may change to keep the teams equal for scrimmages.

All boys within their respective age group meet at the same time on Wednesdays and Saturdays, so carpooling issues should be non-existent regardless of what team your son is assigned.

Practice is the priority of this program.  We will play games and have fun, but practice is where players learn and improve.

Saturdays will be a combination of skills and scrimmages, although scrimmages will not start until a few weeks into the season.

It is imperative that your son arrives at least 15 minutes prior to each session and be in full protective gear ready to play.

There are no make-up days for weather-related cancellations.

Required Equipment

Players must provide their own stick, a lacrosse helmet, gloves, elbow pads, shoulder pads, and molded mouth guard
A stick measuring 32-40 inches in length (34-35 inches is recommended)  
A protective cup is recommended
Water bottle

Equipment can be purchased at most major sporting goods stores.  (Visit our homepage, www.wclax.net to get the link for Dick’s Sporting Goods store coupons.) The boys will be given a mouth guard and a numbered, reversible nylon tank top on Opening Day.  Please dress the boys appropriately for the weather. Please be sure to label each piece of equipment with your name so we can contact you if anything is left behind on the field.

Communications and Inclement Weather

TeamSnap will be the primary form of communication.  You will receive more information on TeamSnap shortly.   Also, please make sure to read email blasts sent from admin@wclax.net. Please check your email if there is inclement weather leading up to practice.  This letter and weather alerts will also be posted on the website home page at www.wclax.net.

Thank you for your support and we will look forward to seeing you on the field March 30th!

West Chester Lacrosse Association