It was a down year in terms of on-the-field success for the fall sports programs at Lake Forest High School in 2009.
But with new coaches in place and a new dedication from the student-athletes in preparing this past summer, the Spartans are looking to turn things around and do some damage this year.
FIELD HOCKEY
2009 record: 3-9-3, 3-7-3
State tournament: Failed to appear
Graduated seniors: 4
Opening game of 2010: 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 14, at Cape Henlopen High School
Preseason preparation is different for every team entering a season, as some use it as a chance to get in shape, some to fine tune skills and others to relearn some things altogether.
For Head Coach Katie Neeman’s Lake Forest High field hockey team, it’s the latter late this summer.
Neeman is entering her first season as head coach for the Spartans, and has brought in a host of new ideas and plans she’s attempting to get the girls on the team to grasp.
Getting a group of players to buy into new ideas in only a few short weeks before the season begins could be a challenge, but the new coach said her players have jumped right on board.
“They’re very accepting to learning different skills with different coaches,” she said. “They’re expecting big things from themselves so it’s a lot less pressure as a coach. It’s a little confusing though so it’ll take a couple of weeks for them to add it all together.”
Surprisingly, Neeman said, it’s been the seniors that have embraced the new ideas more than anyone, constantly asking questions and looking for clarification.
With her veterans leading the way, she said, the youngsters are following right along.
“The seniors are very proactive,” Neeman said. “They’ll urge the other ones along.”
It was a down year in 2009 for the Spartans, but Neeman, a graduate of Lake Forest, said the sights already are being set high for this year.
“We have decided we want to take it one goal at a time, one game at a time,” she said. “But the goal is still to make the state tournament. That’s something they haven’t done in a few years and we want to get back there.”
BOYS SOCCER
2009 record: 3-11-1, 2-10-1
State tournament: Failed to appear
Graduated seniors: 5
Opening game of 2010: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 14, at Milford High School
Coming into his first season as head coach of the Lake Forest High boys soccer program, Corey Yanoshak figured he’d have to use all of his preseason, and maybe then some regular season time, to learn his players and figure out where they fit.
When he entered training camp with the boys just a few weeks ago, though, Yanoshak was surprised to see how identifiable most of his players’ skills were, and the process sped up quite a bit.
“We have a good idea on who is going to be where,” he said. “Because we could get in and do skill work in practice it’s taken a little pressure off my back.”
Numbers are a bit lower than usual for the Lake program this year, meaning that Yanoshak took some focus off of identifying positions and put it on conditioning.
With fielding both varsity and JV teams this year, the coach said conditioning is going to be more important than ever, as his team will more than likely feature only two substitutes off the bench.
In Yanoshak’s first year, the program is heavy on juniors and seniors, which has helped in setting the expectations for the season a bit higher.
“They’ve been through the season before and know what to expect and demand from themselves,” he said. “I’m comfortable with where we are.
“I told them that I think we can have a competitive year. If you win all the games you’re supposed to, plus one more, that’s a successful season.”
CROSS COUNTRY
State tournament: Boys finished No. 14 in Division II; Girls finished No. 16 in Division II
Graduated seniors: 3 boys and 2 girls
Opening meet of 2010: 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 11, at the Lake Forest Invitational, held at Killens Pond State Park, Felton
In the late parts of this fall preseason, Lake Forest High boys and girls cross-country Head Coach Ray Parker is dealing with something he’s not used to with his runners in that many of them are way ahead of schedule.
The preseason has flown along in terms of progression for his kids, Parker said, as many returning runners worked out over the summer and came into camp in stellar shape.
“I’ve got a good core group,” he said. “Some of them are used to doing speed work and have already gotten their distance up to 8 or 9 miles.”
Parker said numbers are low right now, but he expects those to go up. In the meantime, the runners he’s been working with are posting times low enough — especially on the boys side — to challenge in the conference and possibly the state this year for high positions.
The Spartans are in a rare position of being able to open the season by hosting their own invitational tournament in the Lake Forest Invitational.
Parker said starting the season with a meet that big, especially one on their home course is a great way for his runners to size up the competition right off the bat.
“It helps to create excitement for the season,” he said. “There’s a certain amount of nervousness for it, but it’s a great opportunity to experience and to be able to watch what some of the other kids are doing.”
Email Brian Citino at brian.citino@doverpost.com
