According to senior Kyle Hedblom, the boys’ lacrosse team held tryouts to evaluate how each player has developed over the winter and which players have the skill set to play at a high competitive level.

“We have tryouts so coaches can see the new players and also judge how players have improved over the off-season,” Hedblom said. “(They see) how players have grown with skill and size and see if they can compete at the varsity level.”

Varsity coach Chris Bixby said the coaches evaluate players based on how they perform in a regular practice environment.

“We don’t actually look at it as a tryout, we look at it more as an evaluation to see where they stand and where they are in terms of being ready for our first scrimmages and our first games,” Bixby said. “We’re just out here trying to work through a good practice and keep them motivated and keep them going.”

Hedblom said throughout tryouts, the players work on the basics while captains hold meetings with coaches to decide the contents of practices.

“For tryouts, we do three days of practices with the entire team, and everyone works together, and we go through fundamentals like passing, shooting and ball movement,” Hedblom said. “As a captain, we talk with coaches and help formulate a good practice plan that tests the abilities of the kids, while also keeping practices fun.”

Bixby said although the team was forced to cancel one day of tryouts, they make the best of the practices they have.

“These weather conditions are not ideal, but they’re playing lacrosse and playing with their guys and just trying to have some fun while they’re out here,” Bixby said.

According to Hedblom, snow on the fields results in poorer conditions for playing lacrosse, and players have less stability and command over their movements.

“When it’s snowing, you have limited visibility, the fields are a lot more slippery and you can’t control your movements as much,” Hedblom said. “There are a lot more luck-based games when it’s snowing than when it’s just a classical field where you can control your feet.”

Senior Cole Justesen said snow often makes practices more enjoyable for the players while providing a challenge.

“It’s actually kind of fun because right now it’s not snowing and when we’re running, it’s warm,” Justesen said. “All the snow does is just make us work harder.”

According to Bixby, the players have kept a positive attitude, regardless of the snowy conditions.

“I was more worried that the weather was going to impact mental game more, but the guys have been really mentally strong,” Bixby said. “They came out here and they said, ‘we’re going to put the snow aside, we’re going to just have fun and we’re playing lacrosse.’”

Justesen said the team gets to choose their own attitude towards the changes made to the practice schedule and structure.

“We can either choose to make the most of it or not make the most of it,” Justesen said. “If we make the most of it, we generally have a pretty good season, but if we had cancelled practice today, it wouldn’t get us going as quickly.”

Bixby said the conditions should not alter any more of the season, and despite the early setbacks, the team remains strong.

“The weather shouldn’t impact the rest of the season. We had to rearrange our scrimmage, but we picked up some indoor dome time, so it’s just about whatever we’ll take,” Bixby said. “We’re just trying to do what we can with the situation.”

According to gopark.org, boys’ lacrosse will be having their first game at 7 p.m. April 13 at Hopkins High School against Hopkins.