The Fraser Valley Lacrosse Club was established in 2016 by John Vella, John Niedzwiecki, John Monkouski and included the help of Fraser Valley Recreation District, among others. The club’s mission is to provide, grow and sustain youth lacrosse opportunities in Grand County and develop a lifelong love of the game, competition and sportsmanship.
With over 125 kids in the program, from kindergarten through high school, girls and boys, the Lacrosse Club Mountaineers are making a name for themselves, especially after finishing out this successful season.
There are currently seven teams under the club’s umbrella. There are two girls teams, grades third through fourth, and fifth through seventh. The boys teams includes teams representing grades first through second, third through fourth, fourth through fifth (novice), sixth through seventh (peewee) and the high school team. There is also a Mini-Sticks program available for kids in kindergarten and first grade.
The girls teams are doing tremendously well under the direction of coaches Jimena Davila, Kailin Quinn (KQ), and Abby Sedney.
“This girls season has been our best one yet! Both teams had amazing records with the older team going undefeated and the younger one going 4-2. I am so proud of these girls and what they have accomplished,” coach Davila said. “I couldn’t do any of this without the help of the two girls coaches KQ and Abby. Their time and effort to guide this group of girls and turn them into great lacrosse players is admirable.”
Davila also thanked the program directors, parents and Jill Steigerwald for starting the girls program.
“I am so excited for the future of this program,” Davila said. “We want to expand to more age groups and have more girls join the program! Come be a part of the Fraser Valley Girls Lacrosse!”
The two younger boys teams, coached by Josh Henry and Mac Valen, are also having a successful year.
“These teams are growing every day, being a younger team in a third grade division in the AYL (Arapahoe Youth Lacrosse) they learned and developed as a confident team. No matter a win or a loss they stuck together and played their hearts out,” Henry said.
Henry added that the team dominated their competition during a short fall season and says the team has proved they are ready for spring 2024. He encouraged the community to come out and support the young players by watching the games.
“As a coach I couldn’t be prouder to have this team come together,” Henry said. “Watch for this team in the spring to make success for themselves in their years to come.”
In the middle of the Mountaineer pack, coached by Daren Jacobson, Vella, and Eddie Feeley, are the novice and peewee teams. The teams are made up of fourth and fifth graders, and sixth and seventh graders, respectively.
Recently, these teams were moved to the more competitive Arapahoe Youth Lacrosse White Division, and the players rose to the occasion.
The peewees earned the spot to play in the top bracket playoffs and gave the team that won it all a run for their money.
The novice team, coming in as No. 6 underdogs, took out the No. 4 seed, followed by the No. 2 seed and then continued on to win the league championships. The novice team won the Colorado Lacrosse Championships in Colorado Springs in early June. Because of their achievements, the novice Mountaineers have been invited to the Colorado Mammoth home opener against the Georgia Swarm on Dec. 22 to celebrate during halftime and walk in the Parade of Champions.
This summer, the Mountaineers Novice and Peewees transitioned to box and sixes lacrosse, the fastest game on two feet. Box lacrosse is tight spaces, shot-clock controlled, fast paced, small goals, run and gun lacrosse. It’s played on a sport court, instead of on grass. Sixes is a nice combination of field and box, and is like box with the high intensity, open style of play, high scoring action and played on grass or turf.
And after decades of push, lacrosse will be back in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles and will be played sixes style.
“Box lacrosse is the number one way to get these kids fast tracked in the game of lacrosse, and I think it’s safe to say that we have these kids on the right track by playing both formats,” Vella said.
Both teams represented well in the Battle of the Boxes Tournament, and the peewee team went to the National Box Lacrosse Championships in San Jose, California, in early August and brought home fourth place and bragging rights.
“It was incredibly cool to see our teams represent against other states’ all-star teams and have success! We are so proud of these kids for running through their fears and jumping into box and sixes lacrosse,” Vella said.
The season was considered a wrap for the Novice and Peewee squads Oct. 1, but the coaches decided to go for one last hoorah, and entered both teams into the Aspen Invitational, where the girls and younger boys were already scheduled. The format was 7v7, traditional field lacrosse.
It was a great choice. These teams showcased major improvement, chemistry, ball movement, high intensity, unselfish play and dominated the mountain festival, coming out on top.
Lacrosse was added to Middle Park High School sports in the spring of 2022. They had an amazing inaugural season and went 10-6, making it to the first round of the state playoffs. They continued to work through the off-season under the club’s umbrella.
The team just ended their 2023 fall season at 4-2 beating impressive teams such as Chaparral, Golden and Mullen high schools.
The Middle Park boys lacrosse season begins Feb. 27, 2024. All skill and experience levels are welcome. Student-athletes must have a physical completed before they can play.
The club is extremely proud of all their teams, coaches, and supporters, and would like to say thanks to everyone who has helped along the way.
“Without this tremendous support, this club would not be a success. Let’s continue to grow this,” Vella said.
The lacrosse club is always welcoming new athletes of any age and ability. For those interested in learning more about or wanting to join the club, please visit Fraser Valley Lacrosse Club at LeagueAthletics.com. Updates are also posted on their Facebook page. Players interested in joining Middle Park High School’s team next spring should contact Scott Anderson at scott.anderson@egsd.org.