House League Welcome Note
Welcome to the 2021 season! We are excited we got clearance to begin our program on Friday night, as originally scheduled. It will be a packed year of learning and fun! We are also focused on safety and will need everyone’s help to do their part so our program can proceed every Friday and Sunday as planned.
GYL was established in 1972 to teach lacrosse to girls and boys throughout our community. At the core of GYL is our House League program. It runs from kindergarten through 4th grade and continues to be the fundamental building block for our travel program. We strive to make a fun and grade appropriate competitive environment to foster skill development and a love and passion for the game, recognizing that we are teaching much more than just lacrosse.
General Information:
Friday Night Clinics will begin on March 19th.
Girls are on GHS #3
Boys are on GHS #4
We are happy to announce the time is returning to 6:00 to 7:00pm!
House League will be on Sundays beginning on March 21st; for our first session we will be at Greenwich High School:
Girls K & 1st grade will be 1:00 to 2:00 on GHS #6
Girls 2 grade will be 2:00 to 3:00 on GHS #6
Girls 3rd grade will be 3:00 to 4:00 on GHS #6
Girls 4th grade will be 4:00 to 5:00 on GHS #6
Boys K & 1st grade will be 1:00 to 2:00 on GHS #7
Boys 2nd grade will be 2:00 to 3:00 on GHS #7
Boys 3rd grade will be 3:00 to 4:00 on GHS #7
Boys 4th grade will be 3:00 to 4:00 on GHS #7
The first two sessions of Sunday House League are run as clinics to foster skill development; games will begin in week #3
GYL goes rain or shine – please dress your athlete appropriately for each session!
Sorry, we cannot accommodate friend requests
All time and/or location changes will be posted on the ticker on the GYL homepage – we are expecting field changes all year so be diligent in checking before you go to a session.
We are expecting lighter numbers the first two weeks due to school break – we look forward to seeing your child whenever she or he is able to come for their first session
Information specific to the girls’ program:
We are pleased to announce that Shawn Cavanaugh will be running our Friday Night Clinics. Coach Cavanaugh is an amazing addition to our program. Not only is he a girls basketball coach, but he is also a girls lacrosse referee and PE teacher at EMS. Coach Cavanaugh’s coaching philosophy is rooted in the growth and development of each player from both a skills and sportsmanship perspective. Welcome Coach Cav!
Girls in grades K, 1 & 2 will be playing with Swax balls, and therefore goggles and mouthguards are not mandatory. In fact, they can be distracting to our goal of increasing hand eye coordination.
Goggles and mouth guards are mandatory for grades 3 & 4 and children will not be allowed on the field without proper equipment.
Information specific to the boys’ program:
We are excited that Eugene Miller will be joining Brady Miller and Brad Neuberth as part of our master coaching team!
Rolling admissions has created some lumpy numbers for some grades. For this reason, we are not going to finalize the House League teams until next week. This way we can be sure the teams are the right sizes. The first 2 weeks of House League are run as clinics so teams are not important at this stage.
Full equipment (including helmet, gloves, cup, arm and elbow pads, and a mouth guard) are mandatory for ALL players at all times. Parents are responsible to ensure that their children are appropriately dressed, hydrated, and equipped at all times including during inclement weather. If your player is not properly equipped then he will be ineligible to play that session. Here is a link to requirement equipment.
House League Jerseys:
We are going to start handing out the House League pinnies on Sunday March 28th. We ask that you come a few minutes early to your session to get your child’s pinny from the appropriate table (girls will be at GHS Field 6 and boys will be at GHS Field 7). Of course we need everyone to be in the line with a mask and maintaining social distancing. If you are unable to attend on March 28th you can get the pinny at your first session.
Volunteer Coaches:
Our program relies heavily on volunteers. We often are told by great people that they don’t have lacrosse experience. At this level we are looking for people who want to get involved in the program. Lacrosse experience helps but we have found some of our best house league coaches are those who may coach other sports. You wouldn’t believe how many soccer, hockey, flag football, and other coaches we have in our program having fun and learning the game. If you are interested in volunteering please e-mail Sarah O’Connor (girls) or Craig Wingrove (boys). It’s not too late to volunteer! It’s a very rewarding experience that you can share with all players including your own child.
If you have already signed up to coach, we are getting practice planners to you as soon as possible. Please be patient. There have been a lot of moving parts leading up to our first session.
Intro to Travel Lacrosse:
As a reminder, our Intro to Travel Lacrosse program is open to any girl or boy in 3rd or 4th grade. We will be sending out additional information to those families who have signed up for this program. Intro to Travel Lacrosse is an add-on to House League – it is a fun opportunity to play area programs in individual games and at a season ending jamboree (COVID permitting). If you are not signed up and would like to be part of the fun, please let us know as soon as possible. Please contact Sarah O’Connor (girls) or Andy Stern (boys).
COVID Protocol:
Please familiarize yourself with GYL’s current COVID-19 protocol. Changes to our protocol will be e-mailed to the entire membership. As a reminder:
Masks are mandatory for all players and participants
COVID positive players or players under investigation for possible COVID due to exposure or symptons need to submit a physician clearance note
Please respect social distancing at all times
Field Rules:
We understand children in House League are younger and require parental supervision and support. So, unlike at Travel tryouts where no parents were permitted, we are asking parents to be responsible when they come to the field.
When on Field 3 and 4 (typically Fridays), please stay behind the fencing at all times. No parents are permitted on the turf field.
When on Field 6 and 7 (typically Sundays), we are asking parents to stand on the outside sidelines. For Field 6 that means on the side with the softball field. For Field 7, that means on the side where the bleachers are.
We do not want parents standing on the sideline between Fields 6 & 7.
This all may mean your child gets dressed in your vehicle and they leave their bags with you on the sideline or in the car.
We are focused on making this a fun but also safe year.
It’s going to be a great year of lacrosse. We are looking forward to seeing you at Friday Night Clinic on Friday, March 19!
Sarah O’Connor & Craig Wingrove
GYL House League