West Valley Lacrosse Club Press Release

Saratoga, California—On January 14 , 2004—The West Valley Lacrosse Club announced the establishment of the Red Hawks lacrosse team. The team will immediately become an integral part of The Northern California Junior Lacrosse League (NCJLA), competing with teams from Novato in the north, to Monterey in the south.
According to club president, A.J. O’Brien, “we’re excited about the opportunity to compete in this league. We have pulled together an incredibly exciting organization very quickly. Our head coach for the Junior Red Hawks will be Joseph Christie, a Division I player from Drexel University who more recently played for the California All Stars in ’02. Joe brings incredible depth and knowledge of the game to our club, and his experience as a Saratoga teacher will insure his success with the kids.

For our Pups team (grades 4-6) we’ve lucked out by retaining Mark Lipscomb as our head coach. Mark comes to us with extensive coaching experience; including his successful tenure as the head coach of the Stanford Men’s’ Lacrosse. In addition, Mark started the popular Stanford Lacrosse Camp, where he coordinated enrollment and selected coaching staff. In addition, he served as the Director of Youth Lacrosse for the State of Hawaii (1995-98), which included a stint as the head coach at the prestigious Punahou School. Prior to that, Mark served as the assistant coach to the Naval Academy prep school in Newport, Rhode Island (’94). His most recent coaching assignment was as the head coach of the Palo Alto Tomahawks (Juniors). We have an incredibly talented and exciting coaching staff.”

For many of the Red Hawk players this will be their first experience in organized play. Some have attended camps. Others have been engaged in intramural activities at their local schools. Several of the new Pups players first played at Hillbrook, a small private school in Los Gatos, California. Others—especially at the juniors level—hail from the Saratoga Public Schools. Joe Christie has been a virtual force with boundless enthusiasm, promoting the sport through “pick-up” games and camps in and around Saratoga.

“For parents new to the sport there are numerous parents with pervious experience who are here to help,” according to Mr. O’Brien, a former assistant coach with the Tomahawks. “We’re here to help sort through the various start-up issues for moms and dads, including buying equipment and familiarizing everyone with the rules of the game.”

The members of the West Valley Lacrosse Club are optimistic about overall prospects for lacrosse in Northern California. The newly established San Jose Stealth team has done a great deal to generate excitement about the game as the newest entry to the National Lacrosse League. The indoor version of the game played by the Stealth attracted over 8,000 fans at the home season opener—a thrilling defeat of the top-notch Colorado team at the HP Pavilion.

Practices will be held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-6 PM, starting on February 3rd at Argonaut Elementary School in Saratoga. The season includes a schedule of 8-10 games, along with the potential for pick-up games. Parents can sign-up their youngsters by going to the sportability web site. The official site address is www.sportability.com/redhawks. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. We hope to see you on the field…Go Red Hawks!