Lacrosse building following

Chris Yemma

As volleyball has only started to gain popularity on the East Coast,

a new sport is emerging on the West Coast, and slowly creeping into

the Orange County spotlight.

It involves a stick, a ball and a net, shoulder pads and helmets

for the boys, and goggles for the girls.

It’s called lacrosse, and it combines elements of football,

hockey, basketball and soccer.

And, beginning next spring, it will officially become a CIF

Southern Section-sanctioned sport among high schools.

In the Newport-Mesa area, the sport is growing rapidly, fueled by

a common theme: most programs are created or ran by East-Coast

transplants wanting to see the sport grow on this side of the

country.

“Basically, that is exactly what has happened,” said Corona del

Mar High girls lacrosse coach Addy Connolly, who is originally from

Baltimore and played Division I lacrosse for Virginia Tech. “It’s

people from the East Coast coming out here and networking.”

Newport-Mesa high school teams are starting to emerge into the

lacrosse scene, as both Corona del Mar and Newport Harbor have young

teams. The CdM girls team is in its first year of existence while the

boys are in their third.

Newport Harbor has had a boys team for four years and a girls team

for three.

Costa Mesa, Estancia and Sage Hill have yet to start teams, but

interest has been peaking among the schools, said Don Hoover, the

president of Newport Harbor’s booster club.

The sport, originated by native North Americans, was adopted and

given its present-day name by French settlers. In 1856 the Montreal

Lacrosse Club was organized and by 1860 the rules of the game were

standardized.

It is currently immensely popular in the eastern part of the

country, and is considered one of the fastest growing sports all

over.

“I think it’s because of a couple of things,” said CdM boys coach

Mark Todd, who is also the UCI men’s coach. “First, it’s the only

team sport that has the X-game factor. It’s fast, physical -- it’s

called the fastest game on two feet -- has all the hitting of hockey

and football and the same cutting patterns of basketball and soccer.

“I think the West-Coast kids are seeing it and saying, ‘Wow, this

is a great sport.’ ”

Kathy Chaix moved from New Jersey to Newport Beach last summer and

was hoping to start a girls team at Corona del Mar so her daughter

would have an outlet to continue playing the sport in high school.

Chaix started the CdM girls club program and hired Connolly to coach.

Chaix is now a CdM assistant.

“I think the Newport area will see a huge growth,” Chaix said. “We

have 12 to 15 girls right now and, next year, we might have 25 or

30.”

A key for success on the high school level is the growth of youth

leagues in the surrounding regions, numerous people associated with

Newport-Mesa lacrosse said.

In the CdM girls program, only two or three athletes have played

the sport before, said Connolly.

But the Newport boys program is starting to see some talent,

thanks to a youth league that is beginning to act as a feeder

program.

Newport Beach Youth Lacrosse Director G.W. Mix, who worked for

ESPN for numerous years as a director of events and university

projects, said he sees the sport growing rapidly in the next few

years.

“The key to growing the sport is to focus on the youth,” he said.

“They have to learn the right fundamentals when they’re 8, 10, 12

years old. That’s what separates the San Diego kids from the Orange

County kids.”

The sport is currently CIF sanctioned in the San Diego and North

Coast sectionsand will officially be included in the Southern Section

next spring.