With growing participation rates and increased visibility on campus, the Gustavus Men’s Lacrosse team has quickly become a viable club sport option for students.
In only its third year of existence, the Gustavus Men’s Lacrosse team has begun to make a name for itself, a fact proven by its success so far this season.
“Last year we had a record of 1-5 at this point in the season, and this year we’re 4-2 with two tough losses this last weekend. We lost one game in overtime to UW-Platteville, and then we lost to North Dakota because we were tired from playing [the second of] back-to-back games,” Junior Captain Jonas Broccard said.
Gustavus is one of only two MIAC schools with a Men’s Lacrosse team that isn’t a part of the Upper Midwest Lacrosse League, with St. Thomas’ NCAA-sanctioned squad being the other. This has prompted the young club to think ahead to a possible change of leagues.
“Right now we’re a part of the Great Lakes Lacrosse League, but we’re aiming to eventually become part of the UMLL, which is just a more organized and competitive league,” Broccard said. “What’s holding us back from that is funding. We need matching equipment, a coach and more funds for increased travel.”
The club plays in various weekend tournaments that typically take place in Wisconsin, but will take the field Saturday in Hollingsworth Field against UW-Lacrosse at 12:00 p.m. and UW-Stout at 3:00 p.m. in a pair of rare home matches that are free to the public.
“It’d be fun if a lot of people showed up to watch the games this weekend since we don’t usually get the opportunity to play at home,” Broccard said. “These will be the first men’s lacrosse home games in over a decade, so it should be a great time.”
Despite the pair of losses last Saturday, the Gusties managed two wins the following day and now sit in a tie for second place, just two games behind division-leading UW-Lacrosse.
“I think we’re one of the best teams around when we play to our potential,”Junior Captain Luke Nord said. “We’re excited to show Gustavus what men’s lacrosse is like and open the campus’ eyes to Gustavus Men’s Lacrosse.”
The two home matches for Gustavus will play a vital role in determining whether the team will play in the high or low bracket of their year-end double-elimination tournament to be played the weekend of April 24-25 in Platteville, WI.
“UW-LaCrosse is one of the best teams in our conference, and they haven’t lost a game yet,” Broccard said. “But if we play our style of play, we’re going to be able to play with just about anybody.”
The players have learned quickly under the tutelage of their captains, and they are quietly becoming a force to be reckoned with in their division.
“We don’t have the most athletic or most in-shape team, but we’re doing really well,” Junior Adam Phenow said. “We want to win, and we’ve shown that.”
According to Nord, the marked improvement from last year’s squad has plenty to do with the team’s successful recruiting campaign.
“This year we’re a much better team because our experience is much more spread out among our players,” Nord said. “This season we had more experienced guys come out, but the thing that’s changed the most is the amount of dedication.”
After a decade-long hiatus, the club was revived two years ago by Broccard and Nord when they were first-years. The two lived down the hall from each other in the residence halls and shared an interest in lacrosse.
“We just got guys together who wanted to play catch, and pretty soon it became popular enough that we decided to fill out the necessary paperwork to become a club,” Nord said. “We had one scrimmage that year against Mankato State, and the following year we were recognized by the College as a club sport. We implemented participation fees to raise funds, and that was when it really came together.”
The club had as many as 20 people listed on its roster, but only eight of those players showed up on a regular basis.
“Last year was our first [full] season, and we had around eight guys on the team because we were loosely organized,” Nord said. “Now we have player fees, so more guys stick with it. By the time we get to practice outside, the team is pretty fixed.”
The club is run by the team’s three captains, Broccard, Nord and Sophomore Kyle Tarbutton, each of whom ensure that any student can join the team regardless of experience level.
“Most people on the team had never touched a stick or seen a game played [when they first joined],” Broccard said. “It’s a cool opportunity to play a sport even though they’ve never played lacrosse before.”
Phenow decided to join the squad this season after a friend talked him into attending a practice.
“This is my first year playing lacrosse, and I’ve had a blast,” Phenow said. “One of my buddies was on the team, and he said I should try it out, so I did.”
While some students join simply to make new friends or stay fit, a number of student-athletes take the sport up as a means of offseason training.
“Many of our players are athletes [who] have played sports before and are just looking for something to do,” Nord said. “We get hockey players who want something to do in the offseason, and football players find that it can be good cross-training in the winter months; for athletes, it’s a natural fit.”
Since the team is recognized as a club sport by the school rather than a varsity sport, the squad relies more on personal recruiting methods than most other sports on campus.
“Most of our awareness is spread by word of mouth. We try to talk to anyone who is doing something lacrosse related, whether they’re wearing a shirt or playing catch,” Broccard said. “Only about a quarter of our team played lacrosse in high school.”
The team trains three to four times per week, with practices lasting anywhere from one to two hours. Game rosters are determined by the availability of each player during the weekend of the games.
“We usually figure out who can play the week of the games and figure out who can drive since we have to drive ourselves,” Phenow said. “We have a good number of guys showing up to games, which is nice because then we have lots of subs to give the starters a rest.”
The club receives funding from Student Senate and uses that money along with money gained from player fees to pay off its expenses.
“The main way funds are raised to pay for travel and expenses is the player fees,” Broccard said. “We charge $300 for new players and $175 for returning members, and that money pays for helmets, jerseys, equipment, gas money and hotel money.”
The team is always on the lookout for additional players, and the captains encourage any students with an interest to attend a practice free of charge to test it out.
“If you have an interest to play and pay the fees, you’ll get playing time,” Nord said. “We encourage interested students to play around with us at one of our practices to try it out and get a feel for it.”
Nord said he enjoys the nature of the sport and likes how the club label allows each game to be fun and competitive at the same time.
“One minute you’ll be talking with someone and the next you’re fighting for the ball, so it’s an interesting balance,” Nord said. “It’s such a great sport because you can pick up the basics pretty easily, but it takes a lifetime to master.”