Centerville carried a 0-10 record through its first season under former head coach Mike Hilton. Hilton helped build the girls lacrosse program at Centerville while coaching during the first two seasons of the club sport’s existence.
“The first year we had about four or five athletes that played before,” said Hilton, who recently stepped down from his position after undergoing hip replacement surgery. “We were just looking for athletes and we kept everybody on the team.”
The Lady Elks gained valuable experience during a winless campaign, though. In its second year, Centerville turned in a 7-7 record and its first Division I playoff victory.
“We had enough athletes to where we were competitive,” Hilton said. “The girls had played before so we weren’t starting with an entirely fresh canvas. It’s kind of a complex sport to just pick up and I think we had our athletes a little bit better prepared.”
Bacher, who was Hilton’s assistant coach last season, said he looks to add weightlifting to the Lady Elks off season and a middle school program to pump into the high school level.
“The majority of the girls that first year never held a lacrosse stick in their hands before,” Bacher said. “This year, we look to expand our offseason training. Just more stick time for the girls.”
The Lady Elks will also expand their schedule to “about 15 to 16 regular season games,” said Bacher.
“One of the things I plan on assisting with in the local area is having a seventh- and eighth- grade program started,” he said. “That will enable us to have incoming freshmen to have the catching and passing part down.
“The Centerville girls and coaching staff will try to assist the Dayton Lacrosse Club, so it won’t just be a Centerville program,” Bacher said. “That we hope will spur more high school teams into growing in the coming years.”
Hilton predicted lacrosse will receive the varsity promotion within one to two years.
“Centerville considers us a club sport, while our opponents consider us another varsity sport,” Hilton said.
Bacher said parental support and fundraising is key in getting lacrosse at Centerville turned into a varsity sport.
“I think the main thing to become a varsity sport at this point is to continue the course of growing and receiving more support,” he said. “We’re looking at whether we can raise enough funds to afford tournament expenses and some of these extra things so that in 2010, when (Centerville) looks at our program, they see a well-rounded program in terms of what it’s providing for the athletes and the community.”
About the Author