Grow the Game®

officiallaxgirl
Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on reddit
Share on whatsapp

OfficialLaxGirl: Mainstream Is All About Growth

Editor’s Note: Please welcome OfficialLaxGirl to LAS for a guest post! We asked Tari to reply to Connor Wilson’s “Can Lacrosse Become Mainstream?” article, and she’s continuing the discussion with us, by raising some really goos points! Check out CW’s article, and take a look at another response, from Brian Witmer. Both are worth a read. We also have responses from Ryan Conwell and a certain pro player coming down the line, so keep your eyes peeled for that as well.

Hi there! My name is Tariro Kandemiri, though I go by Tari or T. I am currently a sophomore at Sewanee: the University of the South, as well as a member of the women’s lacrosse team. Some of you may know me as Official Lax Girl (Twitter, Instagram) or simply know me as that girl who’s just really obsessed with lacrosse. I write for Inside Lacrosse Women and also handle social media for Lacrosse Playground’s women’s site.

In the post below, I share some of my thoughts on what can help lacrosse become “mainstream” or grow overall, as that seems to be one of the major focuses of the sport in recent years.

Grow The Game

That’s a phrase I hear all the time, whether it be on social media, at practice, or when I discuss the game with my fellow lacrosse players. But what does it really mean, to grow the game? The way I look at it, growing the game means making it accessible, and fun, for all.

With the focus shifting slightly to making lacrosse more inclusive, the path of where our sport is going has become even brighter. Though there are many ways we can make lacrosse truly grow, I thought I would take the time and opportunity to discuss a few ways I believe would have the greatest impact on not only the growth of our game but the overall atmosphere of it as well.

Inclusion

Recently, one of my favorite lacrosse players, Taylor Thornton who played at Northwestern, posted a throwback photo of herself holding the NCAA D1 Women’s Lacrosse Championship trophy. That photo instantly brought me back to when I started playing lacrosse my freshman year of high school, and I would watch every lacrosse game I could possibly find even if i’d seen it tons of times before.

The 2013 FIL, Women's World Cup Lacrosse Tournament. Gold Medal game, United States vs. Canada.

Watching her play, a player that looked just like me, had a big impact on how I saw myself in the game. Though I had easily connected and found favorite players all across the lacrosse landscape, there was something about seeing an African American player absolutely tearing it up on the field that stuck with me. It suddenly clicked in my head that a girl like me could find great success on the field and lead a team, and that was during a time where my very diverse team was slowly moving up. It seemed to me that all the teams that were very good in our region weren’t as diverse.

Representation mattered then, and it still matters now.

There’s something about seeing someone who looks like you, or may not look like you but comes from the same background, that makes you believe that you can do amazing things too. I believe for our game to grow, efforts must continue to diversify the game and bring it to different regions. A thought that’s always been in my mind is; what if one of the best players in the world is out there, but because they can’t afford club, equipment, or just haven’t had the instruction, they may never get to their full potential?

Affordability, inclusion, and celebrating the strides we are making towards even more diversity will really push the sport forward. Also, supporting Professional Women’s Lacrosse will do wonders, especially with Team USA’s history of being very talented and the newly formed United Women’s Lacrosse League. Getting our idols and heroes out there will help because it will inspire players to continue improving their game and attract new players as well!

Focusing On Fun

Sports are supposed to be fun. Even at the highest level, playing without that element of fun may turn players away from the game. As someone whose nerves gets the best of her at times, I have realized that some of my best plays come when I am just having fun with my teammates and letting it all unfold. When I coach younger players I always try to bring an element of fun to our drills, while still emphasizing being focused, because I feel that when the players are looking to have fun, there’s not much room for doubts/second-guessing and there’s more freedom to explore their abilities as players.

laxallstars_women_tahoe3

When lacrosse becomes too stressful or we feel like we just aren’t doing what we really can, the sport loses its allure. It suddenly becomes more of a chore, which could lead to sticks being put in closets and cleats hung up. If we can show how much fun lacrosse is even when we are going 100% full speed and hunting down every ground ball, the sport will continue to gain popularity. I joined the lacrosse team after a friend told me about this “really fun sport” she was playing, and it seems that word of mouth is what’s helped us get to the point we are at today.

The more positive words spoken about the sport, the better the reputation, the more it’ll grow.

Utilizing (Positive) Media

The lacrosse community is filled with wonderful, talented, and caring people. The problem is, not everyone outside of the community knows that. One of the biggest ways we can grow lacrosse is by taking control of the way the media may portray lacrosse players, and making sure that the amazing things done by teams all over the country are recognized!

On Twitter, I see multiple posts all throughout the year from teams volunteering or working with charities, but that side of lacrosse players is rarely seen in the media. It’s time we fully take control of how the media sees lacrosse and take the initiative to push our positive deeds to the forefront. Though we don’t necessarily let bad headlines tower over the sport, I think that the more we can show that lacrosse players are truly amazing off the field, the better it will be for our sport. When parents, families, or even potential players see how involved those athletes are in their communities, those positive thoughts may seal the deal in terms of bringing in potential players.

Thank you Lacrosse All Stars for allowing me the opportunity to share some of my thoughts on ways lacrosse can go mainstream, or even grow steadily to a point where we feel it may be mainstream.

I hope you all enjoyed reading this, and if you’d like to continue the conversation please feel free
to follow me and message me on Twitter: @officiallaxgirl

Contributed by Tariro Kandemiri.