Indian Time - A Voice from the Eastern Door

The commitment of the Salmon River girl’s lacrosse parents to provide quality lacrosse for the girls to equal the success of the boy’s program is an ongoing process. This will mark the fourth year that the Akwesasne Attack Girl’s booster club has had to fundraise to make sure that the girls at Salmon River have an opportunity to play lacrosse.

“We had to hurry and raise funds so the girls would have a team at Salmon River,” said Shari Bigtree-Adams. “We were hoping that the team would be in the Salmon River budget and we wouldn’t have to fundraise, but we found out that Salmon could not add the team to the budget again this year.”

In 2010 Tisha Thompson realized that women’s field lacrosse was growing in popularity but there was nowhere for the girls in this area to play. Surrounding schools had girl’s lacrosse teams but not SRCS. Ms. Thompson, with the help of Ms. Bigtree-Adams decided take action to help fill the void. They approached the Salmon River school board to ask if they would add a varsity girl’s lacrosse team to their sports program. Unfortunately, like many school districts, Salmon River was in a financial crunch. Ms. Thompson and Ms. Bigtree-Adams were told that if they could start a booster club and raise the money to fund a varsity girl’s lacrosse team for the next three years, possibly the program could be added to the SRCS budget. The first year the group raised $8,000 to give to the school board.

Three years have passed and the parents and students were hopeful that their fundraising days were over. To their surprise they were told that the team could not be added at this time to the strapped sports budget that has experienced cutbacks, and so they started a flurry of fundraising. In just three weeks $7,000 was raised to assure the continuation of the SRCS girl’s lacrosse program.

“The program at SRCS is important to the girls who graduate from the Akwesasne Attack program and need a place to continue playing. The Attack is an excellent feeder program and Salmon River would benefit from the talent that is coming out of it,” commented Ms. Bigtree-Adams. “We keep meeting obstacles and the girls sometimes feel like giving up but we don’t want that to happen so everyone is determined and committed to keep the SRCS girl’s lacrosse program going. In the last four years I have witnessed these young ladies grow and develop into strong, skilled, determined and spirited role models who I hope will carry these character traits with them as they graduate through the program. This is why I hope that the girl’s lacrosse program will become permanent and be included as a spring sport offered in the future years to come.”

The SRCS varsity girl’s season started on Monday and according to coach Terri Swamp, 17 girls showed up for practice. “We had a good first day of practice. I was impressed with the way the girls encouraged each other. Some girls were about three quarters of a lap behind and they were being praised and encouraged by the others that were already finished. That was awesome to see,” said Ms. Swamp. Ms. Swamp is originally from Cattaraugus, New York and played for the Seneca School Girl’s Lacrosse Team, the Iroquois Nationals and a year for St. Lawrence University, but suffered a knee injury that prevented her from playing any longer. She has been helping out with the Akwesasne Attack and “saw that the SRCS girls needed a coach so I stepped up to the plate to help out,” stated Ms. Swamp.

Ms. Joy Gibson is a parent of an up and coming Akwesasne Attack player and she is interested in the continuation of the varsity lacrosse program. “For the last couple of summers I have traveled with an awesome group of young ladies from Akwesasne Attack throughout NYS. We played in Rochester, Ithaca and Syracuse. In the beginning they were getting beat by high scores. They were leaving with their heads hanging as they walked to the car. Lacrosse is big downstate, really big. I would say that we are behind by about 15-20 years. Those teams we played were good, really good and fast. We weren’t prepared for it. The girls still continued to show up for practice with sticks in hand ready to practice. They worked harder and recruited friends. They bonded and became a family. They encouraged each other to not give up and even signed up for fall tournaments to improve themselves. They weren’t winning them all but they were not getting hammered like in the beginning. A coach stepped in and worked hard with them and it has paid off. The Akwesasne Attack played those teams that beat them in the beginning and now we are winning and making a name out there.”

“We have girls that are naturals and once they put a stick in their hand it’s like that stick was meant to be in their hands right from the beginning,” stated Ms. Gibson. “It is important to give the girls the same opportunities that our boys have experienced in lacrosse. It has helped shape character and it helped them to go to college and travel to places they would not have seen, meet people they would never have met, play teams they would never have encountered. These opportunities are needed for our girls. We have at least 12 young ladies around the age of 14 trying out for the Haudenosaunee Women’s U19 Lacrosse team that will play in Scotland in two years. This is a big milestone for them.”

Two veterans of the SRCS varsity lacrosse team talked about their experiences on the team. “Last year we were a group of beginners but starting at the same level got us interested in continuing to play and get better. Some of us played on the Six Nations team over the summer. The team was chosen to play in Texas to showcase the game since it’s not a big sport there and they wanted to learn more about it,” explained Morgan Thompson. “I had never been to Texas so it was very exciting for me.”

“It’s really important for us to keep our lacrosse team for many generations to come. Girls can flourish here and it can help them to get into college,” stated Vanna Thompson.

Both girls felt that fundraising was stressful but it was worth it because of the experiences that come along with playing lacrosse and they would do it again to keep the program. “It’s going to be a good year.”

Ms. Gibson and Ms. Bigtree-Adams both emphasize that girl’s lacrosse is getting big and can get girls into college. Erin Francis has helped out in the Attack program and is now playing lacrosse for Syracuse University. Tewasherake Barnes is a recent graduate of SRCS and is playing lacrosse for Utica College. “A lot of fathers and other people that stop to watch the girls are really surprised at how talented these girls are,” stated Ms. Bigtree-Adams.

The Akwesasne Attack booster club is committed to their girl athletes and, for now, will continue to provide the funding necessary to make sure there is a place for the girls to play lacrosse.

The Akwesasne Attack would like to thank the following businesses for supporting the SRCS Girls Lacrosse 2014 Season: Twin Leaf, Brass Horse, Spooky Burns and Mark Benedict, #9 Fuels, Traditional Lacrosse, Gus & Hilary Pyke, 3 Feathers Internet Café- Valene Gray, Lorraine White, CKON, Rocket Ronnies, Twinleaf, Tackle Box & Spinners Pizzeria, Divalissa-Melissa Connors-Chamberlain, Chocolate Chicks, Keegans Tobacco, Akwesasne Sports, SRMT Health Services Staff and Leona’s Wines-Leona Francis.

The Akwesasne Attack will be holding signups for the boys and girls 2014 Spring Season on Monday March 17 through Friday March 21, from 5:00 p.m. to 7: p.m. at T19 Sports on Route 37, Akwesasne. The cost is $50.00 per player and there is a family discount. Full payment is required in American funds. Players registering for spring field lax will be eligible to play for free in a NEW pre-season box lacrosse league. More info will follow as it becomes available. Akwesasne Attack is always looking for coaches.