TRUE LACROSSE ALL-STARS - DICK'S SPORTING GOODS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS TEAM PREVIEW
(December 22, 2008)
Location: Chicago, Ill.
Co-Head Coaches: Jake Deane & Mike Gabel
Established: 2007
Colors: Green, black & blue
by Danielle Findley
The True Lacrosse All-Stars are hoping that a November trip to a national recruiting tournament helped them prepare for the Dick’s Sporting Goods Tournament of Champions.
“We played against some of the best teams in the country,” says True Lacrosse midfielder Peter Santulli (Hinsdale Central H.S.). “The competition we played really showed us what we’re striving to be. It really helped the team grow.”
The men who will be leading the team to Florida are co-head coaches (and professional lacrosse players) Jake Deane and Mike Gabel, who started the True Lacrosse program almost two years ago in hopes of getting players from the Midwest more exposure to college coaches.
“The level we’ve played at, and our knowledge of the game, can help these kids out a whole lot,” says Deane. “It’s not like other areas where kids always play lacrosse. Coaching is very rare out here, so we think we can do well at it.”
As co-head coaches, Deane and Gabel blend two different playing and coaching styles to try and help their players reach the highest level.
“Jake is more of a vocal guy, so he likes to give a lot of talks to the team, while I work more with kids one-on-one,” says Gabel. “We both know what our strengths and weaknesses are. We feed off of each other’s energy to come up with what’s best for the kids.”
The players feel that having two coaches with professional experience gives them an advantage over their competition in Florida.
“Having pro players as coaches, they have so much more experience than other coaches in our area,” says attackman Adam Sammarco (Lyons Township H.S.). “Going to a tournament like this…where there is more competition, their experience can help us be better prepared.”
As January draws near, the team hopes to use their under-the-radar status coming out of Illinois as inspiration to win a national championship.
“We always tell the kids that everyone is going to underestimate how good we are, and we have to play with a chip on our shoulder,” says Gabel. “The kids aren’t really going to respect you, the coaches won’t respect you, and a lot of college coaches won’t respect you, so you have to go down and prove it.”
The True Lacrosse All-Stars will face the Tampa Tribe and Team HeadStrong (Philadelphia, Pa.) in the Highlander Sport pool in Toyota Pool Play on the opening day of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Tournament of Champions. Click here for the complete tournament schedule.
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