The Lady Bison are led by two new coaches this year, Nikki Costa and BHS ‘11 grad Allie Debeljak along with captains Hannah Cantlie, Maya Granot, Hannah Karl and Dana Kippen.

“This year our coaching staff is the best we’ve had in my three years of playing, junior captain Maya Granot said. “They are open, understanding and push us all to the best of our abilities.”

“They are very invested in our team and do all they can to improve the lacrosse program,” Granot added.

The coaches have a lot of good advice and feedback for the players. They play music during practice and encourage them to play to the best of their abilities.

“It’s clear that [Costa and Debeljak] really care for the success of our team, and it really shows,” said senior captain Hannah Cantlie. “They support us in every drill and push us to be our best.”

“It’s really nice to have that positive energy, especially on days when the whole team is kind of worn out,” she added.

“Our coach said she has a lot of fun surprises planned, and she hinted that she may wear a banana costume to a game, so I’m pretty excited to see that,” Gottfried said.

The players are confident in their ability to win and the knowledge they have gained through experience and practice as they move into the season.

“I think we’ll be a lot better [this year],” senior Maddie Gottfried said. “We learned a lot from our coach last year, and I think we’ll be able to apply that knowledge this season. I think that, combined with the focus and determination we have this year, will make us a very strong team.”

“We are stronger, smarter, and more in shape then we were last year,” Granot said. “Our stick skills have improved tremendously and our chemistry as well.”

Although they don’t have the numbers of many other teams, the Bison have unique strengths that should give them an advantage on opponents.

“A major strength of our team is that we have chemistry on the field,” Granot said. “We all can read the field and the players’ movements, which is a big factor for the game of lacrosse.”

“If I see [Hannah] Cantlie get control of the ball on defense, I know [what she’ll do],” Gottfried said. “It’s easy to predict what move someone is going to make, so the whole team can respond accordingly.”

“We really have become great friends who strive for a common goal, and it’s been a great time getting to know everyone better and grow as a team,” Cantlie said.

While the team is very confident going into this season, they are also focused on learning from their experiences over the course of the year.

“We need to work on keeping control of the ball,” Gottfried said. “It’s really easy to panic and just throw the ball randomly to shake off your defender, but if we can keep control of the ball and make smart passes, then we’ll win a lot more games.”

“During practice we really focus on passing and throwing on the move,” Granot said. “Once we master that, our team will be a big threat and we will have a great season.”

Players have individual as well as team goals.

“A big thing I’m focusing on is shooting,” Granot added. “As an attacker, I shoot constantly. This year I’m hoping to double my goals and get more accurate.”

“I think that last year we made a big stride in our abilities, and that definitely showed in our improved record,” Cantlie said. “This year, however, we’ve been working even harder and I genuinely think we will be even more successful.”
The Lady Bison have a home game against Bay High School at 5:00 on April 6.