
{"id":24729,"date":"2012-03-29T10:19:22","date_gmt":"2012-03-29T14:19:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/?p=24729"},"modified":"2012-03-29T10:27:31","modified_gmt":"2012-03-29T14:27:31","slug":"new-coach-new-season-new-era-for-jaguars-lacrosse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/2012\/03\/29\/new-coach-new-season-new-era-for-jaguars-lacrosse\/","title":{"rendered":"New coach, new season, new era for Jaguar lacrosse"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Kevin Collins<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Staff Writer<\/em><\/p>\n<p>It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s springtime in the Piedmont yet again, and the feeling of newness is palpable. For Carrboro High School\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s varsity men\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s lacrosse team, spring marks the start of a new season, and with a new coaching staff in place and a program on the rise, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a very new energy surrounding the Jaguars these days.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24730\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24730\" style=\"width: 500px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/2012\/03\/29\/new-coach-new-season-new-era-for-jaguars-lacrosse\/front_web-2\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-24730\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front_web1.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"Front_web\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24730\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front_web1.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front_web1-113x75.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front_web1-150x99.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front_web1-100x66.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front_web1-360x239.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24730\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Carrboro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Alex Knapp evades the Cedar Ridge defense in the Jaguars\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 12-4 win over the Red Wolves on Tuesday. Knapp had three goals in Carrboro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s second victory against Cedar Ridge. Photo by Ted Spaulding<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The atmosphere has changed at this school,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d senior midfielder Wes Bartek said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We used to be looked at as a school that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s small. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re an arts school; we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not competitive. But as each senior class has gone through, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve built more and more of a mentality of a winning team.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>For a program in only its fifth year of existence, that mentality has been brought up through the hard work and dedication of those who were willing to build something, and the team has gotten better every year. But starting this past offseason, the building process got a serious jump-start with the hiring of head coach Chris Mann, whose big personality and positive coaching philosophy has united the team.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Coach Mann and the new coaching staff brought a new life to our team, and it felt like from day one we were more of a team than we were before,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d senior attacker and co-captain Zack Pruitt said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The past couple of years, it was more of a group of individuals, and now it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s more like a united group, like a family, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all about having the other guys\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 backs.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Mann has experience coaching high school and college football, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s applying the motivational techniques he learned to the game that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s number one in his heart \u00e2\u20ac\u201c lacrosse. The teambuilding activities Mann has instituted, like offseason training and mandatory team meals, have gone a long way, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s proud of the new atmosphere of camaraderie around his players.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_24731\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24731\" style=\"width: 400px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/2012\/03\/29\/new-coach-new-season-new-era-for-jaguars-lacrosse\/front2_web\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-24731\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front2_web.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"Front2_web\" width=\"400\" height=\"267\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24731\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front2_web.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front2_web-113x75.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front2_web-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front2_web-100x66.jpg 100w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Front2_web-360x240.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24731\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jaguar Sam Parker fights past a Wildcat defender in Carrboro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s heartbreaking 13-12 loss to East Chapel Hill High last week. The Jaguars will take on East Chapel Hill again on April 20 at East.  Photo by Ted Spaulding<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m excited, especially for the seniors who have been here for four years and have seen both sides of things, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m also excited for the underclassmen that they get a whole new feel,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Mann said.<\/p>\n<p>So far the new mentality is paying dividends, and with Mann\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in-game philosophy now firmly entrenched, optimism around the team is at an all-time high.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re definitely a more respected team, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re a worthy opponent,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Bartek said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re going up against East and Chapel Hill, and I think we have a shot at beating them, and they know it. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s kind of a first.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Usually East would look at us and say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcWe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re going to put up 20 points on them easily.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 Not this year.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>The Jaguars have already gotten a shot at both conferences powerhouses, and dropped both games by just one goal apiece. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get a chance for revenge against both teams later in the season.<\/p>\n<p>The new attitude is a breath of fresh air for everyone involved with the team. Jaguar parents have noticed the changes under the new coach, and they welcome them with open arms. Chris Snyder\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s son Jack is a senior on the team, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s glad to see his son\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s four years of hard work paying off in an encouraging environment.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re really making a great effort to be inclusive and to build a positive base, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s too bad the seniors couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t start out in that kind of environment,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Snyder said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a whole different perspective. Kids are happy to be out there playing; everybody\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s happy to be a part of the team.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>For the seniors on the team who have been with it since Carrboro High\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s second year of existence, lacrosse represents their way to leave a mark on their young school. They relish the chance to help establish the school\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s identity, and to blaze a trail of achievement that will last far beyond their graduation.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It definitely adds something to our school,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Pruitt said.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Our lacrosse team being good is us leaving our mark and leaving some kind of tradition. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the most important thing. I feel like it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s better to be a person who started a program rather than being a part of a program that was already built.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>The Jaguars will take on Chapel Hill on Friday at Carrboro High. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s springtime in the Piedmont yet again, and the feeling of newness is palpable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":24730,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,12,30],"tags":[431],"class_list":["post-24729","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-schools","category-sports","category-top-story","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24729","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24729"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24729\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24776,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24729\/revisions\/24776"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24730"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24729"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24729"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24729"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}